Bagger
Encyclopedia
Bagger, sacker or bag boy, is an unofficial title given to a courtesy clerk at a supermarket
. The primary duties of a bagger revolve around putting groceries into a shopping bag
and then into a shopping cart
. Upon requests, baggers may take the groceries out to a customer
's motor vehicle
or supply other forms of service. Some baggers in stores will do this unless the customer refuses and wishes to bring their own groceries out.
Depending on the store, other duties may include cleaning the store, cleaning the bathrooms, collecting carts, sweeping the store, fixing and maintaining the bottle recycling machines
, giving customer assistance, putting items customers initially intended to purchase but changed their mind about at the register back on the shelf (usually called "back shop", "returns", "go backs", "orphans", "perishable returns", "reshop" or even "call backs"), and reorganizing products on aisles to make a neater appearance (commonly called "breaking down", "blocking", "facing", or "conditioning"). Some courtesy clerks can perform maintenance in the stores, such as minor plumbing, electoral, landscaping, child care, elderly assistance, and many more jobs. The duties vary vastly depending on the store and union
regulations, and some of previous duties, in fact, are actually prohibited from being done at some stores by a courtesy clerk due to union contracts. The title of bagger is the result of an extensive evolution of the position of "courtesy clerk". The title "bag boy" was adopted for some time, until it was finally shortened to "bagger".
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
. The primary duties of a bagger revolve around putting groceries into a shopping bag
Shopping bag
Shopping bags are medium sized bags, typically around 10-20 litres in volume , that are often used by grocery shoppers to carry home their purchases...
and then into a shopping cart
Shopping cart
A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...
. Upon requests, baggers may take the groceries out to a customer
Customer
A customer is usually used to refer to a current or potential buyer or user of the products of an individual or organization, called the supplier, seller, or vendor. This is typically through purchasing or renting goods or services...
's motor vehicle
Motor vehicle
A motor vehicle or road vehicle is a self-propelled wheeled vehicle that does not operate on rails, such as trains or trolleys. The vehicle propulsion is provided by an engine or motor, usually by an internal combustion engine, or an electric motor, or some combination of the two, such as hybrid...
or supply other forms of service. Some baggers in stores will do this unless the customer refuses and wishes to bring their own groceries out.
Depending on the store, other duties may include cleaning the store, cleaning the bathrooms, collecting carts, sweeping the store, fixing and maintaining the bottle recycling machines
Reverse vending machine
A reverse vending machine is a device that accepts used beverage containers and returns money to the user . The machines are popular in places that have mandatory recycling laws or container deposit legislation. In some places, bottlers paid funds into a centralized pool to be dispersed to people...
, giving customer assistance, putting items customers initially intended to purchase but changed their mind about at the register back on the shelf (usually called "back shop", "returns", "go backs", "orphans", "perishable returns", "reshop" or even "call backs"), and reorganizing products on aisles to make a neater appearance (commonly called "breaking down", "blocking", "facing", or "conditioning"). Some courtesy clerks can perform maintenance in the stores, such as minor plumbing, electoral, landscaping, child care, elderly assistance, and many more jobs. The duties vary vastly depending on the store and union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
regulations, and some of previous duties, in fact, are actually prohibited from being done at some stores by a courtesy clerk due to union contracts. The title of bagger is the result of an extensive evolution of the position of "courtesy clerk". The title "bag boy" was adopted for some time, until it was finally shortened to "bagger".