This is in response to Benjamin Siegel's op-ed about the "customer always being right" ("Can I Help You?" April 5).
He is absolutely right so far as an unruly and uncooperative customer is concerned. However, there have been times in my life when I have encountered truly unreasonable employees, for whom the phrase "the customer is always right" was apparently alien.
Recently, my mother and I approached one of the food stalls in the Walden Galleria. Since we felt that the boy attending the stall had not seen us, we tried to get his attention by calling his name and waving our hands. This, unfortunately, became our downfall. We were subjected to a constant barrage of, "Don't you dare yell at me!" (for calling his name?) and "You have a problem!" while we waited for our food to be prepared. We eventually paid, and left in a huff - no screaming from us, no refusal to withhold money. We know how to act in a transaction. He obviously did not. Sadly, his was not the only rude demeanor we had to tolerate: two other workers that same day were less than civil to us. A waitress in a diner later that evening slammed our food down in front of us and refused to make eye contact. A woman taking a survey cursed in our direction when we politely declined to take it.
So, when Siegel calls for politeness and understanding so far as daily concerns go, he ought to call for them on both sides. Customers are not the only ones who are whiny, childish and demanding.
