I don't agree on that front. Checking out of the store is not automatically someone else's job - it's work that needs to be done for the relationship to be ethical. Just like people clean after themselves, they can also mark their own items and pay what is owed.
I've seen alot of comments along the lines that if you're not stealing when using self checkout lanes then you're being scammed. I'm a little swayed by the opinion, to be honest. It didn't used to be that there was only two lanes (out of 12) open during prime time shopping in all grocery stores, but it is now. Grocery stores found out they could just offload that part of the job onto customers for free.
Versus the time I have to spend scanning and bagging my own goods, waiting for the attendant to come over and punch in some magic code every time the machine whacks out over the weight, getting a manager to come over and provide an override for coupons, or to purchase alcohol or tobacco? Yeah no, self-checkout lines are a special kind of hell.
Maybe the average HN'er doesn't do any serious grocery shopping, say to feed a large family, but there's no way I am taking a cart full of groceries to a self checkout line, I'd rather wait. Sure, for buying 10 items or less, they are OK.
I prefer cashiers who are paid well to do their jobs, rather than subsidizing companies that refuse to pay living wages and just threw in the towel. Try checking out an ALDIs sometime to see how truly blissful being rung up at their checkout lines are.
I would never attempt to ring up a $500 cart of groceries for feeding a family on my own. And I do buy those. Also, I generally prefer the cashier experience.
However, I do occasionally need to get just an item or two. If I'm at a store that has a self-checkout, it seems to be faster for that.
Also, the checkout at ALDI is an impressive demonstration of efficiency. CostCo seems to have a similar philosophy.
