Coming to a supermarket near you, Militia cashiers: Defending the fatherland, one receipt at the time…
Remember that Superior Organ for the Economy Nicolas Maduro created not long ago? Well, its head, Hébert García Plaza found out during an inspection tour that the real supply crisis in Venezuela is… that there aren’t enough check-out clerks in the supermarkets.
Forget about the tons of food in Puerto Cabello waiting to be unloaded from ships, García Plaza believes that empty checkout counters is a more urgent issue.
But never worry! He will implement a new 3-point plan that’s going to fix everything: Number 1: There’s this Bolivarian Militia. Number 2: Such militia has a large number of soldiers and Number 3: Those soldiers could go and serve as cashiers at the supermarkets.
No kidding, that’s the plan. It makes me wonder how they going to explain to the soldiers that asking people if they have sencillo to pay in cash or asking if they want the receipt for a natural or juridcal person somehow fits the duties of the Militia.
UPDATE: The plan is already underway in one State-owned Bicentenario supermarket in Caracas. The soldiers will get a five-day training and instead of their own uniform, they will wear T-Shirts with the eyes of the late comandante eterno.
Caracas Chronicles 
I wanna see some of those dim-witted assholes in uniform trying to operate a register. Be you that also at the end of the day, there will be money missing.
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Amen.
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Or perhaps the registers will be stuffed with individual baggies of cocaine.
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They must really, truly, think we’re stupid. There is no doubt in my mind now. And the irony is that even the long lines at supermarkes are partially their fault, because of the delays caused by the stupid state requirement to ask you for your cédula number and your home address when paying, or the perennial lack of sencillo, or the recurrent “no hay línea”, or… Granted, supermarkes could also hire more checkout employees, but still…
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Why the state needs to know what I bought at the supermarket is one of the many mysteries that i turn over in my mind as my precious hours on this earth drain away in these lines. What do they actually do with that information?
I am almost in agreement that these lines require a military solution. Or why don’t they just let el pueblo mismo check out its own groceries?
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Don’t tell me you actually give them your cedula and phone number?
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…..and half your purchases will become regalitos.
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Dear God, why hasn’t evolution changed stupidity into a painful, terminal disease by now?
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I know!
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I think the lack of cashiers is directly related to the new labour laws & the reduced hours of work that an employee can put in.
I know one large electronics store that simply closed their doors on Saturday so that they could comply with the new law. As many of their employees also receive commissions from sales as part of their salaries it’s not only a loss to the owner but also the majority of the employees.
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It was already a problem before the LOTTT, the law just made it worse.
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Gustavo, the new LOTT make it 10k times worse. unicasa, even if hey have some perks for the workers , as they will have they own transportation ( because public T just suck for example to Cumbres de Curumo) with the New law they don’t find no one to work, because less hours, less cesta ticket, etc, etc… so everything is a joke…
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So if Maduro is the “head of state”, what is this “superior” organ supposed to be??
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Looks to me like they are thinking with their behinds…
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If they convert militiamen into cashiers two inmmediate consequences will follow:
1. the lines will grow longer as the improvised cashiers learn to master the art of doing a job they known nothing about . (think of the size of the queue when the cashier is new)
2. Money from the cash registers will start dissapearing as well food items from the shelves which they ‘commission’ for their private use..
Thats really going to speed up distribution !!
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Would you like some cocaine with those Wheaties?
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No way…You know where to buy Wheaties? I’ve seen Special K, but Wheaties?
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Ni siquiera Special K. Cronch Flakes y de broma…
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the only thing the goverment seems to be good at is at building an image, therefore they think that by reducing the lines at a supermarket the “sensation” of shortages is going to be reduced since you won’t see the lines full with people with a dozen cooking oil/harina pan/ or wathever precious item have just arrive at the market in their hands. Don’t blame me, I’m just trying to find some logic behind yet another moronic state intervention in society that’s not gonna work.
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Despite all the mocking of what Garcia Plaza is doiung. those of you that live in Venezuela know that private supermarkets play the game of making life uncomfortable for consumers. One of those games is only opening half the checkpouts to créate huge lines in the supermaret. (Go to Excelsior Gama in Los Palos Grandes or Santa Eduvigis if you want to see for yourseleves).
The other “tactic” is to start filling the shelves with fresh merchandise at aound 10am so that if you arrive early the shelves look empty. Previously shelves were filled at night.
You jokers may complain aboutverifying what the supermarkets are doiung but you will be screaming to heaven when one of these cadenas is expropiated for participating in the “guerra económica”.
And Kepler – we don’t need your brainless comments as you have no idea about what is happening in Venezuela as you – like most others – live en el exterior.
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Arturo,
You really are beyond repair if you believe in that “guerra económica”. I wish you really tried to manage a supermarket in Venezuela. How come you are so disconnected with Venezuelan reality? Obviously, your lot works for the government.
You never had to work in a real job.
Employees are way too expensive under the current conditions.
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All those vested interests standing to lose everything if the revolution persists…but not willing to engage in dirty tricks? If you think there is nothing but fair play from your side Kepler, you must have a very low opinion of them.
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Yoyo, aprende a manejar una cantina, a pagar salarios, a analizar una balanza de pagos, a pagar impuestos. Luego me cuentas algo. Es como si estuviese hablando con un carajito que hasta ahora solo ha leído panfletos políticos y, de realidad, solo ha sabido que sus padres son desempleados en Inglaterra, pero que no tiene ningún punto de comparación con la vida real en el resto del mundo…todo se basa en su surfeo en la Red.
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First you approve a labour law that bans businesses from asking for overtime, and from firing workers who just don’t show up for their shifts. Then you say “jeepers, why these businesses aren’t staffed properly…ECONOMIC WAR!” and militarize them…se les ven las costuras, estimados amigos del 50 Cent Party…
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Yes, it’s possible that new laws have made it harder to control your workforce AND that businesses all over the country are dragging their heels, especially near election time.
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There are thousands of such businesses. They compete among each other. And you think they all keep ranks here, right? That would mean losing a lot of money…because if they do so…what, Yoyo? The opposition would win more seats and what? Or do you think a couple more mayors would provoke a regime change? And then what? Think things through, Yoyo, think things through.
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We know certain products become scarce mostly at election time. You can try and work that one out all by yourself.
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No, Yoyo: if you are going to come up here with a conspiracy theory, it is you who has to present the whole mechanism, not pretend you leave it to us to find out. Reality is that every time you present accusations as spurious and yet serious as this you just leave it at this. For goodness sake, try to be honest at least once in your life. Stand to it: make the effort to explain clearly how the mechanism will work, what is the plan of the evil “capitalism”. Do that. It is particularly stupid you don’t as you live in very capitalist England and support the Venezuelan regime without having to pay the consequences Venezuelans have to go through.
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Funny that the govt accuses private supermarkets of waging economic war by not having all paying counters manned ( which as already noted is largely due to irresponsible new labour norms that foster worker absentiism) but doesnt recognize that the impossibly long queues also ocurr in govt owned supermarkets . In fact the press reports that the first supermarkets benefitting from the govts policy of improvisng miliamen as cashiers are the Bicentenario Chain of supermarkets . Does this mean that govt supermarkets are also conspiring to wage economic war against the govt or that the govt is lousy at mismanaging all it touches ?? Including the economic conditions needed to ensure a sattisfactory supply of imported foodstuffs and other goods !!
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