Self-Checkouts Are Being Rethought

When self-checkout first came around as an idea, it was of course a response to calls for higher wages, made more through arbitration than through bottom lines that supported increases. Most recently, in just the past couple of years, the number of self-checkout lanes has surged.

But already we are beginning to see a pull back from them by the companies who were so eager to put them into use. It seems to be falling into a category of "be careful what you wish for." The idea was, of course, to reduce the need for human cashiers who of course require a W-2 wage and save businesses money.

But has it actually saved money? 

It was announced recently that our local Schnuck's grocery store would begin limiting self-checkout to 10 items or less. And more businesses are following suit, including the world's largest retailer, Walmart. The reason is something in business known as "shrink." In other words, these retailers are losing money due to customer errors and intentional theft.

The thing is, physical cashiers serve more than one function, really. Of course, the primary one is to scan your items and collect your payment. But the other is to act as a failsafe between you and the door to ensure all the items in your cart were paid for and accurately charged.

Receipt checkers may stop you at the door to check your cart. But what are they looking for? The bigger ticket items like beer, soda and TVs. If you've slipped a Snickers bar in your bag without paying for it, it may not be the highest dollar amount item, but those Snickers bars begin to add up to big bucks. And the receipt checkers aren't going to know if you have scanned your avocados as a tomato.

I don't even think all of these intentional thefts signal a dishonest consumer at large in so much as it simply gives consumers another reason to feel like they are owed something. "If I have to check myself out and bag my own stuff, shouldn't I be compensated in some way for doing that?"

It's enough that most consumers already feel like they are being ripped off. Now they have to serve themselves as well?

Limiting items being self-checked to 10 or less gives retail establishments more ability to actually check a receipt and make sure everything is accounted for. But ultimately it also means more people will be going back through the regular manned lanes to check out.

I think ultimately, I understand why businesses want to do these things. Install self-checkouts and ordering kiosks. At the same time, at the heart of any retail business is the interaction between store representatives and the public. Customer service is important. And you can't get that if there is little or no interaction.

It makes the experience feel cold and mechanical. But it also gives consumers less to consider on the other end of the transaction, like how what they do affects the livelihood of a real person. Are they stealing from Nancy on aisle 5 or the guy stocking the shelves? Or are they stealing from a phantom entity behind a curtain pulling levers?

It would not surprise me to see expanding self-checkout lanes to begin retracting more and more as the experiment falls flat. In order to deal with the rising demand for higher wages, businesses are going to simply have to go back to the drawing board to figure out the best way to handle those costs.

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