[Irine]

Today at work ( my job for now is a cashier at a mini-market) i got a fake bill....i almost recognized it but there was a long line of people and i knew that if i am not fast enough i assume i will get thrown out ( i really need money) well - after i was sent to do something else the manager sat at the cash and asked "who accepted this bill? how do you check a bill?"

Now i am really afraid to go back...well actually its mot of a "general worker" that means i go to the storeroom and more...so today i wasn`t much with the cahs - the director - because i and new and realtively slow - told a girl to be there instead of me but the girl didn`t listen.

I felt os depressed bad guilty and fearful and humiliated that it slowed down my work...PTSD got somewhat triggered and more..like ...my self hate and humiliation and all that in my head "you are stupid" got triggered again. Like i am so used to .

It was really crap. Something TOLD me that this wasn`t the right bill....but i was afraid of the woman. CRAP why lessons have to be learned that way?

I hate this feeling of humiliation and desire to just disappear. To not be on the earth. Stupid me! ugh! a lesson learned to be tough with the customers. Now how the heck am i going to be both checking those bills careful AND fast enough?? DANG i SO MUCH don`t want to be thrown out!

WTF does life want to prove me i am a squirt!?

[Sanada]

[B]Hi ladymacbeth.
Just because you did'nt see something quickly enough does not mean you are stupid, i worked in a busy bar and many busy cafes and in very busy kitchens.Making a mistake does not mean you are daft or slow or stupid.
If you need the job and are not comfortable behind the till, ask you're boss to be doing something else.
I had a case in a bar once where someone claimed they had paid for their drinks when they had not, it made me angry inside and it triggerd me into thinking it was my fault. Customers sometimes try things on to see if they can get away with it, its normally the one giving the fake bill who the most nervious because they are scared of getting caught (a bit like a shoplifter/thief). Dont let it trigger you, rise above it and see it for what it is, just another customer trying to get away by giving a fake bill (belive me, its the customer who is the most nervious). Dont be afraid to do you're job if you are behind a till.
People will try anything sometimes to get away with not paying for their goods properly.
I hope this helps.

I was once a waiter too, that came with the same stress with people not wanting to pay for their food.

Take Care.[B]

[Sanada]

P.S ladymacbeth, i was once an actor and did Macbeth (as well as a whole host of plays). Cool name.

[Omers]

BREATHE!!!!!
I was working at a mall one summer when a guy came to my store and tried to make a large purchase with a credit card with a very clearly female name on it. I caught it and called the police... But you know what? He had been to 18, yes, 18 stores before mine and no one caught it!!!!! The card was just about maxed out.
It happens, stores have insurance and stuff to cover things like that. Theft of all kinds is also built into the prices that we pay for everything.
It all comes with time and practice. I don't know anything about any currency outside of the US but here there are web pages and things that can show you quick ways to spot a fake.
I was also a manager for a while and while you get upset when these things happen you know they are going to happen... It is just part of the job. A good manager will help you learn the quick ways to catch a fake and move on.
As for confronting people when it happens, I often made an excuse to call a manager out to do that That is until I was the manager

[Irine]

thank you both.
I just want to do whatever they tell me i want to deal with everything.

[ladyjrnlist]

Dude, I sold beer to a 13 year old years ago when I was busy in a retail store. Turns out it was a sting. I got busted. They let me off with a warning. Thank goodness!! I even glanced at her ID first!!!!!
So, don't feel bad about this one at all. These jobs are difficult and people who do things like pass fake bills know to come in when you are already busy and distracted.

[unaluna]

ladymacbeth, you did an excellent job of stepping us through your exact feelings. When something like this happens to me, I can barely grunt out a I feel yucky to my T. I've read a million self help books, but this is just an amazingly clear, detailed, and beautiful description of the twists and turns of your emotions. (Only without stupid cliches like that, that crummy writers like me resort to!) I'm sorry you went through that, but what a lovely piece of art came from it. It's like a poem. Poetry slam poem, but still! (I have no idea what I'm talking about.)

[silverbells]

Hi LadyMacBeth: THEY SHOULD BE teaching you how to spot a phoney bill - and even I was relieved to read Omers' post about the fact that they should have insurance and that there's protection built into their prices - and I'm not even WORKING there! I'm really sorry this triggered all those feelings in you - that is NOT how a good manager would have handled the situation. SO blunt - it angers me to read it. I know you need the money, but ours is a free-market economy, which can mean big bucks for a store-owner, but it also means that YOU CAN WORK WHEREVER you want! It's easy to be convinced by some jerk-boss that we're not worth respect, and sometimes all it takes is knocking on one more door to find a boss who's a COMPLETELY different person. I'm looking for a job right now, and thought I'd found the perfect place to work, and the hiring manager was subtly rude to me (so subtle that I couldn't figure out if she really was rude or not) and I went literally two doors away and had my second interview today with the most WONDERFUL woman. I was in danger for a short time of getting depressed, but instead of letting that happen, I just put my pretty clothes back on and went to another place - and voila - it worked! DON'T let her color your opinion of your own value. I'm certain she's NO qualified judge of YOUR character, just from reading your post.

[Rhiannonsmoon]

Most folk who've worked in retail have taken a fake note at least once, or been ripped off....as Omers said "breatheeeeee" deep and slow, and let the experience pass. you'll know in future just to call the manager and have them deal with it. It's just as important to get the one passing the note as the note. You're armed should it ever happen again...