Staff messing up orders!

[By2day]

Just wondering how people deal with staff messing up orders that you catch as its going out the door? Do they pay for it? do you eat the loss? Its very frustrating. How do you deal with it?

 

[durbancic]

Throw it away so they can’t be rewarded for their mistakes, or give it to the customer.

 

[smeagol8]

Legally, you CAN’T make the employee pay for it! (I know people do that, but it’s still illegal) But beyond that: I don’t quite understand the mistake…If the order has extra, unordered, unpaid for stuff included in it, you have to decide how that happened. Was it deliberate - that’s just theft, and the only solution is fire that employee. If it’s accidental, then try to figure out how to fix it: Does someone write orders in a confusing, illegible fashion? On POS generated orders, the same questions. Can you make the font bigger, better? Or is the problem that someone just doesn’t pay attention? Not all people are cut out to be in a reading orders, assembling orders position.

 

[By2day]

It is a problem with the employee not paying attention. Eg last night order for 4 pizzas, 2 Hawaiian and 2 meat lovers, she made 2 Hawaiian and 2 pepperoni, we called the customer and they wanted the pizza they ordered, because there was 5 lbs of wings also finished already we sent the order and made the 2 that she screwed up… we sent the 2 pizzas as a sorry for taking so long with your proper order. She came back picked up the new pizzas and brought them to the customer. I’m out 2 large pizzas and the extra wages to deliver the pizzas back to them.

I just dont know how to deal with this sort of thing, it costs me money but not as much as training a new employee… This type of thing happens all the time, I understand mistakes get made but shouldn’t the employee be held accountable in some way?

 

[d9phoenix]

If its constantly happening as you stated, what i have done in the past is write up the employee each time it happens. Once you get up to your limit of write ups in X time. I would fire the employee for the stated reason of failing to perform the job correctly. This way if they try to file unemployement you atleast have documentation to fight it.

In the long run this employee will cost you way more in food & labor then putting up with the mistakes every week. Mistakes are ok, they are how we learn and improve ourselves, BUT someone who constantly does not learn from their mistakes and does not care enough to learn needs to be fired and replaced.

If they do not care enough about doing the job right while standing next to you, just think of what they do when you are not around.

 

[bodegahwy]

1. If they can’t get a grip on this I can’t use them. Sorry… Good bye.
2. I can not take this kind of thing out of pay, but sure can (and do) make food cost a major factor in my manager bonus program… so, in the end if the managers can’t get control of this they end up paying.

Bonus is about 30% of my GM’s compensation so there is plenty to work with. Believe me, when I tell the manager that his bonus for the pay period (bi-weekly) is cut by $100 because food cost or labor cost was high they get a grip on it pronto.

 

[pizzachop]

Mistakes happen for 3 basic reasons:

-Lack of procedures
-Lack of training
–Lack of attention

The first two are my responsibility…

If proper procedures are in place and staff are properly trained, there is no other culprit than slackness.

Just decide how much slackness you afford and schedule appropriately.

 

[tguag]

Mistakes are ok, they are how we learn and improve ourselves, BUT someone who constantly does not learn from their mistakes and does not care enough to learn needs to be fired and replaced.

Bravo! learn from your mistakes or you are out! could not have said it better myself!

 

[By2day]

Thanks guys! It’s such a tough call because she is the most loyal, dedicated, hard worker you will ever find…just far from perfect!

 

[smeagol8]

You can’t replace that kind of employee! So I’m thinking you need to find a way to have someone else check her “accuracy” in making orders. If she gets insulted by your “lack of trust in her” , oh well, you tried…

 

[GotRocks]

You just Can’t fix Stupid, no matter how hard you try to. Is there another position that she could work? in one week, add up what she has cost you in extra labor and your food cost ratio, now multiply that by 50 weeks.

now lets look at all the upset customers that she has created by showing them incompetence, because that is what they see, and they will quit you because of her mistakes, word travels fast through the mouths of upset customers, real fast!