Cashier Training

The job of cashier is one that is often sought out because it requires a minimal amount of training. Aside from basic courtesy and math, most companies can show you what you need to know about their registers in as little as an hour and a half. The more challenging aspects of being a cashier are often dealing with the customer, not with the money, as the cash register does most of the math and work for you. So, even though your math skills should be sharp, the amount of time you'll spend dealing with the customer face-to-face means that your interpersonal skills should be even sharper.

Instructions

1. Determine your current skill level. Cashiers must be skilled in customer service and basic math. Aside from these, cashiers must also be punctual to ensure that their register is being manned, responsible to ensure that all security tags are removed, merchandise has not been tampered with and the tender is legal tender, ethically responsible with money and able to stand for long periods of time and lift heavy packages, often up to 25 pounds. Training lessons on how to work a particular register are almost always provided by the company that hires you. Some companies like Target and Wal-Mart have developed their own training manuals on operating a cash register and becoming a good cashier. Others offer informal lessons on how to work their specific registers.

2. Attend lessons on customer service. These include how to greet a customer at your register, how far away you should stand from the customer (usually 10 feet), how to give the customer her total and change and how to handle any complaints or discrepancies in price or payment.

3. Attend lessons on how to use the register. This includes how to open and close the cash box, put the register in stand-by, close it for the night, scan an item, enter the item's bar code if it does not scan correctly and remove an item from the bill that has already been rung up.

4. Attend lessons on how to handle money and tender. This includes basic math skills, how to input how much money was handed to you into the register, how to run a debit or credit card, how to acknowledge coupons and gift certificates and how to handle food stamps.

5. 

   Attend lessons on how to perform other tasks a cashier may have to undertake. These include reloading phone cards, checking dollar bills to ensure they're not counterfeits, bagging items, scanning heavy or large items and checking personal identifications during the sales of tobacco and alcohol.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Wal-Mart Watch: Wal-Mart Cashier Training Manual