Bad Service - is it a cultural issue??
 

I don't mean to personally attack anyone here...

....but in all honesty, in the 1.5 years I have studied here, I am amazed at the level of rudeness in the service industry.

Specifically in the airline industry you find that people just don't care in giving good service (most of the time). Of course, people automatically blame it on 'low wages' or 'union trouble' or 'incompetent management', and in the end they put all the damn frustration onto the customer!

WHY?????????

In Asia - let's say Japan for example - the United (for example) ground staff are a thousand times nicer compared to many of the US based stations! Why is that? Why are they so dedicated to their company and in ensuring to their fullest extent possible that people are helped to their satisfaction, while in the US you better not ask the gate agent a question - for she may unload you and cancel all your reservations!!!

Maybe this is something for OMNI?

I'm not "making excuses", but I think the US service industry management puts un(der)trained personnel to deal with the public way too soon, and management in many cases do not treat the employees with the proper respect, etc. On the flip side, I think that many US service employees don't treat their jobs like a career, but rather, just as a job until the next one, and as far as younger people go, many aren't all that well-educated, and have been raised in an "its all about me me me" society.

I always find it a pleasure when travelling to places where service is great, such as in Chile, where I frequent. Almost every hotel, restaurant, cafe, airline, rental car, etc. transaction is pleasant, if not a pleasure. I'm talking about ranges from a $3 lunch to a good restaurant, from a $30 hotel to a $200 hotel, from a 45 minute flight in economy to an international F flight, etc. (Of course there are exceptions, and I have a few stories...)

My european experiences are similar, but lesser. My limited Asia experiences have been generally very good.

Although I don't know for sure, I think in most other areas, the service jobs are viewed as a career, and if you don't have the disposition to deal with the public, you shouldn't. In the US, a lot of service jobs are filled with space-filler, and if the hotel stays relatively full, it doesn't matter who is at the front desk.

I can't speak for the rest of the world, but long-time service workers in the US are facing unprecedented cuts in wages, benefits, workrules, and so on. It has to be a serious drain on the morale - all while now having to work with incompetent, inexperienced, unmotivated young coworkers. (Again, there are exceptions.) I don't know how some of these people still can have a smile on their faces, but many still do. I also find that a service worker in the US is going to generally get less respect overall from customers, and eventually, even the best may snap from time to time. It doesn't make it right when I'm the one snapped at, but after being spit on all day, I can see why it can happen.

Its funny that as I write this, I recall my fish purchase of earlier this week - I usually go to a very small store in Berkeley, with owners of Japanese descent, who are always so polite and grateful that you are buying their fish, I even received a bow from behind the counter of the fishmonger - both as a welcome, and after I took my piece of fish.

Ok, I'll stop now, but this is an interesting topic that I may have more comment on later :)

I think a lot of it has to do with the way customers act in the first place. A lot of people here act rudely and (I don't know if you've ever worked in a service job), it's upsetting when people do that (why should I treat people well when they treat me like crap?). I routinely see people ignore FAs instructions (stuff they told the passenger - like turn off the cell phone/computer/cd player) and they don't pay attention to their kids running around. I know someone who works checkin for UA and I was told that when Japanese and other asians come to checkin, they have everything ready and hand it to you right away. Half of the elites (1K, Premiers, and Premier Execs) will walk up to you and hand you their MP card (they'll have it ready), knowing full well that they need to show photo ID (which takes them a minute to get out).

I have to say, I rarely am treated poorly (except at restaurants where service takes forever) because I know "please" and "thank you," whereas most people don't bother. My personal experience is that if you treat people decently, you get treated decently.

My Ranking are based on experience and for bad service experience you should try Air France, Alitalia, China and Vietnam List is very long and US industry is among the best of the worst :)

Hardest to combine is professional AND friendly service. More often you get just one of two. Japan is about the only place where they actually achieve this unwordly task. ;)

I really haven't experienced that much rudeness from airline personnel. More often, it's indifference rather than rudeness. The few times I've experienced outright rudeness have been memorable. And we do tend to remember the bad experiences more than the good ones.

I also suspect that customers in the US (as suggested by others here) are often rude towards airline staff, or have ridiculous expectations of them. (I'm sure some FlyerTalkers treat staff poorly, though I doubt they would admit it.) Unfortunately, it's a vicious circle.

And it IS a management problem. It's up to management to provide incentives to take good care of customers. I don't think this happens very much in reality. According to some insiders who have posted here on FT, airline FAs aren't necessarily given meaningful (or any) performance reviews, nor is their performance even observed by those they ostensibly report to. Without feedback and monitoring, some people will still do a good job (though there might still be room for improvement), but others will not. It's those "others" who need to shape up, and it's part of the job of management to see to that.

And I'd like to add that I have worked in a service industry (not travel-related, though), and I know from that experience that when staff have incentives to treat customers well, it makes a big difference.

Sorry Eastbay1K , I perceive this comment as a blow under the belt to the young generation.

I am originally from Europe, am an American citizen however, and live on both sides of the ocean.

One of my greatest pleasure when flying back to the US, is to be greeted in all restaurants and hotels around the country with genuinely friendly and happy faces, wishing me, albeit superficially, a good morning, how are you today? I am so and so, etc. what may I bring you today?

When I am angry, I call them "old bags", this is the other service personnel I meet quite frequently in the banks, at the airline counter or on the telephone... The frustrated middle class America, with as little education if not less than the young ones, unhappy not to have "made" it in life and having a grudge against everyone.

The question was, is it a cultural thing? In America it is. People in America grow up being repeated unrelentlessly how great America and the Americans are, that they are part of the best nation in the world, we are ther strongest etc. etc. ad nauseam. Too many people believe all this garbage a little too literally and as such they tend too often to react with the proverbial attitude: "well Buddy, if you don't like it, **** you"

There is a lot of schooling going on in the US to learn how to sell products, but no one teaches them how to get a customer to return. The mentality is cash in and go to hell. In other countries it is cash in and welcome back for more, please...

Bad service is not met where young people work, open your eyes.

I agree with many of the things are being said here, but I have to disagree with the following statement:

I have worked in the service industry (or maybe I should say that I am involved in the Hospitality industry), and the customers in America are probably the most pleasant ones to deal with! Yes - I would actually say that in the US the customer alomst sucks up to the waiter/waitress, check-in/out agent, flight attendant, etc...

I don't know how many times I have seen this, but it is often THE CUSTOMER who says "yes, ma'm/sir" to the Flight Attendant, while the latter does almost the opposite!

And I only see this on the american carriers, or with american consumers!

The thing is, the most demanding customers are mainly the Asian and European ones. And while they may not be that nice to serve at times for they don't even say "thank you" when appropriate, it is incredibly rewarding when you find out that they enjoyed their experience and are returining in the future! I don't even start to think about the monetary compensation, nor do I expect any sort of tips from the customer.

But then again I was raised as an expat in Singapore for all of my life, so my views and experiences may be very different.

That is the worst question you can ask me... .

In the 1.5 years I have been studying in the US, I feel as though there is no way you can get even more superficial.

When I first came here I used to respond to the question in great length as we do in Europe, but now a "how are you" is answered with "how are you" and no one even cares.

Now - because of this - EVERY TIME I hear the question I start to churn inside no matter in which country I am, no matter how genuinely they ask the question. It will take a lifetime for me to get back my sense genuine care that I used to perceive when being asked this questions!

If I ever run a restaurant/Hotel/(or dare I say) Airline, trust me, I will forbid every single employee to ask the "how are you" question, and fine them appropriately if they do use it as a greeting...! Tell me something - what would you say if the customer says "I feel CRAP!" Then you are in trouble...

No, it's easy.

"I'm sorry to hear that, sir. Is there something I can help with?"

Okay..

So what would you respond to this:

"Well, my car got stolen."

"I don't know... - my house got burnt down."

"I lost my job - can you help?"

You just don't ask those type of questions. You don't even know the person!

I think grouse's lines work for all of these.

My responses were actually replies to "is there something I can help with." So the conversation would go something like this:

Service Provider: Good morning how are you?

Customer: Bad.

Service Provider: I'm sorry to hear that, sir. Is there something I can help with?

Customer: I lost my job.

Service Provider: ..... :o

You think Europe has better CS than the US? I have to disagree wholeheartedly. French customer service? German? Austrian? Awful. Italian? A little better but still makes you feel like they are doing you a favor.

In general US service is pretty good. I don't expect the $8 an hour employee to bend over backwards to help me and he seldom does. But usually he does what needs to be done and I go on with my day.

I have to chime in and say that this is the single most annoying thing about US service for non-US residents.

I`m Canadian and have been living in Europe for the last few years so I am used to NA style service. It still makes the hair on the back of my neck cringe when a waitress calls me `honey`. People can smell faux-familiarity a mile away.

Apart from that I have no qualms about US service levels.