Gamestop & Female Discrimination

[ickybodclay]

There's a lot of girl gamers on clraik, so I thought this would be an appropriate topic. I was at Gamestop tonight and there's 3 guys working, 2 of them flat out ignored me while talking to some guys that weren't even buying anything; I came to return a game that didn't work and look into more of their gamecube selection. So I wandered around aimlessly looking for the aisle with the gc games.. Finally the third guy the "nerd" looking one helped me out and said he would print a list because they were behind the counter. I was like finally! He was very nice and helpful but the other two were complete douchebags and I also noticed how they were ignoring other females in the store. Honestly not the first time I've noticed this behavior at Gamestop. Wondering if any of your girls have had similar experiences!

[yamakracker]

That is not discriminating, that's what we'd call poor/bad customer service.
Happens to all of us D:
and I personally don't blame 'em, since we don't know what's wrong with them or their problems etc,etc.

[ickybodclay]

That is not discriminating, that's what we'd call poor/bad customer service.
Happens to all of us D:
and I personally don't blame 'em, since we don't know what's wrong with them or their problems etc,etc.

Lol when they are only doing it to females in the store it is discrimination. If they did that regardless of gender its poor customer service. Also, your problems shouldn't interfere with your work ethic; money is money regardless of race, sex, age, etc. Honestly if you treat customers badly because of personal problems you should be fired because you are costing your establishment money. There's lots of people willing to work that will also treat others with respect.

[J_L_K_64]

so the employees were discussing gaming matters with potential customers? and didn't have time to step away from that to handle your matters?


sounds to me like they were either trying to make a sell, or were helping previous customers, just cause people ignore chicks don't make it sexual discrimination ya know?

[I_royalty_I]

I know when I go into a store, I want the employees to leave me alone unless I have a question..then I will go to them and ask them xD

[J_L_K_64]

I know when I go into a store, I want the employees to leave me alone unless I have a question..then I will go to them and ask them xD

^that, when i go shopping, 90% of the time i know exactly what i want, and i wanna get in and get out, no bsing, unless i know who's working, then i'll bs for hours, lol

[ickybodclay]

Well, there was more than one guy like I said there was 3 guys working one was chatting up those guys and it was obvious they weren't buying. One guy was being useless and the other guy like I said assisted me after awhile. Honestly guys if you see someone needing help and I was literally /ignored/ [I did ask about their games] you would get it. And how is ignoring your female customers (and not guys) not sexual discrimination again? But anyways lol all these guys are coming against what I said I was just looking for people who had same experiences.. Not someone trying to debunk my experiences that weren't there.

[Solgaleo]

:\ I hate to agree with the boys here...but....

Are you sure that they were ignoring you because you were female? Do you know if they were friends with the other people they were interacting with?

Have you been there all the time when they were working...to see if they ignore other people?

IMO, it seems like bad customer service

[ickybodclay]

:\ I hate to agree with the boys here...but....

Are you sure that they were ignoring you because you were female? Do you know if they were friends with the other people they were interacting with?

Have you been there all the time when they were working...to see if they ignore other people?

IMO, it seems like bad customer service

Yes I know thats what they were doing; I did not expect to have to explain myself this much over an event that was already stressful to me for one it's stressful because I dealt with female discrimination in MMO's all the time ( girls are worse than guys, etc etc.) and to deal with that in real life after quitting MMO's on a pretty regular basis by chains such as gamestop. I was trying to find companionship in someone who had been thru something like that BECAUSE of being a female, therefore by sharing I would feel somewhat better about what has happened but this is the result so yeah I regret even posting this..

I thought this forum would be more supportive but all i've felt is tore down in this thread. I understand you guys don't know me that's fine, but if it was you in my shoes I would try to understand your situation and if I couldn't share an event of my own I would either move on or give you my condolences; instead of trying to factcheck nitpick whatever you want to call it. You may not be trying to be rude but when someone is sharing something emotionally damaging one of the worst things you can do is that.

[Slasher]

Maybe it's bad services. When I'm going to game shop employees are asking every clients, male and female if they need help.

[Sci_Girl]

I am going to have to agree with simple bad customer service and not a sex discrimination act. Some people are just dumb and do not want to work so they will avoid customers we have all had that experience at some place at some point in time. But if you did not hear their actual conversation, like Zoroark said they could be friends, they could be using a simple sales tactic of chatting someone up about something unrelated to a game in order to build a rapport with the customer so they are more likely to make a sale. Unless there was a plethora of people coming in and out of the store being helped before you and they still ignored you in that case this is basically bad customer service. In the working world the sexual discrimination is going to be a hell of a lot worse compared to a small game shop if that was indeed the case.

[Kristin]

I'm going to agree and also disagree. I have felt some sexual discrimination at our GameStop before, but our GameStop is also known for its terrible customer service.
I've found that if I mention that I'm buying something for my husband (whether I am or not), it usually gets me the service I need.

[J_L_K_64]

Yes I know thats what they were doing; I did not expect to have to explain myself this much over an event that was already stressful to me for one it's stressful because I dealt with female discrimination in MMO's all the time ( girls are worse than guys, etc etc.) and to deal with that in real life after quitting MMO's on a pretty regular basis by chains such as gamestop. I was trying to find companionship in someone who had been thru something like that BECAUSE of being a female, therefore by sharing I would feel somewhat better about what has happened but this is the result so yeah I regret even posting this..

I thought this forum would be more supportive but all i've felt is tore down in this thread. I understand you guys don't know me that's fine, but if it was you in my shoes I would try to understand your situation and if I couldn't share an event of my own I would either move on or give you my condolences; instead of trying to factcheck nitpick whatever you want to call it. You may not be trying to be rude but when someone is sharing something emotionally damaging one of the worst things you can do is that.



let me just say that i don't see anyone deriding you here, or belittling you or anything, however, there aren't a whole lot of bad feelings for ya either, honestly, we don't know what happened there, and we are all just giving our points of view, nothing wrong with that, everyone has their own point of view on everything, if a robber robs a bank and 20 people are there, there will be 20 different stories of what happened.........ya know?...........

anyways............ most of us have had that happen to us, being ignored at a store, some like it (me & I_royalty_I), some don't, don't matter, you deal with it and move on, yeah it's a bitch and it shouldn't happen, but it does, that's life, life ain't gunna be a picnic the entire time, you're gunna have bad spots, and dealing with those rough patches are what makes you the person that you are

[Ryan~]

I just want to point out this isn't even really a big deal. You got ignored. Yes, it sucks. But don't let it bother you. People are mean. People are rude. It's life.

You may have been discriminated against. But in all odds, guys are going to want to help a female customer out. Guys like chicks. They were probably just busy. Don't let it bother you :)

[Sci_Girl]

Depends on the guys, some are the stereotypical "geeks" and may actually be afraid of women because they simply may not have much experience interacting with them. And if that type of guy worked in a game shop he may hope that another employee talks to a girl rather than him because he is simply not that comfortable talking to women. It has happened to me lol. I asked question about some game for my bf and he was stumbling his words and saying umm umm a lot and turned beet red. Not sure what his deal was but he was definitely not ignoring me and he did have that demeanor that he almost scared or nervous to talk to me.

[J_L_K_64]

Depends on the guys, some are the stereotypical "geeks" and may actually be afraid of women because they simply may not have much experience interacting with them. And if that type of guy worked in a game shop he may hope that another employee talks to a girl rather than him because he is simply not that comfortable talking to women. It has happened to me lol. I asked question about some game for my bf and he was stumbling his words and saying umm umm a lot and turned beet red. Not sure what his deal was but he was definitely not ignoring me and he did have that demeanor that he almost scared or nervous to talk to me.

no, you're just an imposing figure in person, lol

[ASAP]

I typically go inside with my boyfriend and allow him to make the purchases. Prior to doing that, I did notice many of the male staff were unwilling to help me or grew tense as I asked questions or for help.

[Ryan~]

So, they're most likely scared. Right?

[Cara]

Next time do this:

1. Pick up object, most likely a game.
2. Proceed to throw at guys head
3. Laugh and walk out

People like them don't deserve jobs.
*facepalm*

[Ryan~]

I bet if you stole something, they'd talk to you then :D

[ASAP]

They'd probably call for a police officer to talk to you lol.

[Ryan~]

More people to talk to you :D

haha, seriously though. Don't steal things and don't let this affect you.

[aca]

The employees at Gamestop are generally incompetent at their job, seeing as how most of them are teens and young adults with little to no experience in the workforce. Or they don't take their job seriously.

[Ryan~]

I would go as far to call them incompetent. The ones around my house are very knowledgable and always help people, even women.

The older customers are the incompetent ones usually. Not know what game system is which or which game is which.

[bob25]

I have been to multiple gamestops in North Carolina, South Carolina, and West Virginia and everytime i walk into a gamestop I will be harassed by the employees if I need help with anything CONSTANTLY even if I tell them I dont need help and when a girl walks into the store they completely ignore her that seems pretty discriminatory to me I've had to help girls myself because the employee wouldn't answer their questions but I don't know maybe you don't consider it that way but I'm pretty sure the definition of it is treating one type of a person better than a different type of person because of them being different in some way such as gender, race etc....

[Neuropathy]

I wouldn't say that was discrimination, more like being incompetent. =\ I do agree with what the others said about wanting to be left alone unless I had a question, though.

I applied to work in a gamestop once... they ended up hiring a guy who knew little to nothing about anything. THAT pissed me off.

What REALLY boiled my kettle(yup, just said that) was working at Circuit City in the computer department... Guys would ask me to talk to a man. I just kinda looked at them thinking... I've been building, troubleshooting and repairing computers since I was fourteen... Seriously? I'd usually go find the most computer illiterate employee I could find.

For some reason my boss started scheduling me on the registers after that. XD

[Chi]

As someone who works at the aus equivalent EB Games where female staff outnumber the male staff (4 vs 1), I can tell you they weren't ignoring you because your female.

You probably should have just walked up to the counter and look like you had a question or were going to buy something. I rarely approach customers because most of them just want to look and the ones that need help are either mothers or people really shuffling through games to find a particular one. I ask people how they are but if they don't really respond I leave them alone. Furthermore I often chat about latest games with the regulars and its usually a group discussion even if they come by and visit after school and are not necessarily buying something. Its the fun part of working at a games shop :P

[Chookity]

EB Games is probably the equivalent in Canada too, I don't think I've ever really gotten ignored in there before. I generally don't have people coming up to me and try to make a sale, but if I do have a question or want to talk about something they're usually super nice about it. I think it'd be weird if I went into an EB Games and the clerks stopped a conversation with a guy they were already talking to to come over to me. Actually that would probably irritate me because then that would seem like I was singled out for being a girl D:

[Sammich]

I'd have to say that wasn't discrimination, just general unhelpfulness. You see it all the time in department stores and such. The idea that females don't play games is almost extinct, and isn't taken seriously 99% of the time.

There's a reason "girl gamers" are frowned upon.

[sarahbella]

I haven't really had that experience. Usually when I go into a gamestop there is a female working there. Even when there isn't, I couldn't really say I've been "discriminated" against because I go in being a female. xD.
I've actually been hit on by a guy working there, he was into a lot of the rpgs I was trading in. xD.

[Meircdragon]

I know how you feel, I get really mad when see females carrying everything while males just lazed around... this isn't personal discrimination, I'm talking specific people in my life.
When I think about it my head just boils up and I feel like I want to explode :L

[Ryan~]

Some women CHOOSE to do things like this. Some women carry their own things to be "independent".

When I see a woman cutting grass, it confuses me.

Women belong in the home, with the family. Men belong at work, and doing man things like fixing cars and yard work.

[crimson24]

They hardly ever hire females :/ They treated my girlfriend like an idiot because she went in and bought me Catherine for my Birthday :/ As if she didn't know what the hell she was doing in their

[zombchan]

I know this is a little dead, but can I just add, as a female who worked for GameStop for close to three years (I was an assistant store manager):

1. Believe me, the employees do not want to harass every customer who walks in (I saw a few people mentioning that they just want to shop in peace and if they have a question, they'll ask)- but Gamestop Corp (btw, GameStop and EB games are the same company. GameStop purchased EB Games) harasses employees to "engage" the customer meaning we had to get out from behind the counter and walk over the every customer. The tapes get reviewed, and if they don't see you engaging customers, you get to hear about it.

2. If you get ignored, it's probably not because you're female. It's probably because a) you looked like you knew what you wanted or b) they were trying to make a sale. or c) were really involved in their conversation with other customers. I know at my stores, the guys would always get caught up in their conversations. I generally fall into the stereotypical "girl who plays video games" category. I don't like shooters- because I'm terrible at them. Give me my Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and Dynasty warriors and I'll be happy. Give me my stereotypical girly games- Harvest Moon, Sims, Lego, etc. and i'm over the moon. In my store it worked out well that way- it left the boys to talk to the guys about shooters and such, and I handled the parents with young children, grandparents, and girls like me. I had my few that liked the same games and would talk to me about it, but generally, it's very stereotypical there.

3. I liked doing the heavy lifting when I worked there. Not that I was great at it. But i really enjoyed processing shipments and fending for myself- proving my right to be there (of course..I was one of the most competent on staff, so all the managerial duties fell to me). The only think I didn't do was climb on the ladders- because I have a phobia of ladders. And my staff and customers knew that (I was known as "Gamestop girl. Which was really weird for me whenever I was out, not at work, and people would say "HEY Gamestop girl! How are you?").

there is a lot of stereotypes in the company and the clientele. I'm sorry you guys had awful experiences, but I'm pretty sure that was either bad employees...and little to nothing to do with gender.

as an aside, I think the funniest thing that happened, on this topic, while I was working for Gamestop, is one night a guy came in and i went over to see if i could help him with something. He refused to talk to me, because I was a girl, and was really certain I didn't know anything about video games. So he stood and waited for my one employee to be done talking to another customer and proceeded to ask him in depth about the PS3. my employee didn't HAVE a PS3 and really didn't know the answers to his questions. So he said "You know, let me think about that...hold on" and then shouted my name. I looked up and my employee asked the questions to me, which I answered. The guy was staring at me dumbfounded. My employee said to him "Yea man, she's my boss. And I'll be honest with you, I don't have a PS3. But you know who does? Her. So if you want to know about them, I'd suggest talking to her."

-shrugs- Just my little 2 cents from a former employee.

[Chi]

1. Believe me, the employees do not want to harass every customer who walks in (I saw a few people mentioning that they just want to shop in peace and if they have a question, they'll ask)- but Gamestop Corp (btw, GameStop and EB games are the same company. GameStop purchased EB Games) harasses employees to "engage" the customer meaning we had to get out from behind the counter and walk over the every customer. The tapes get reviewed, and if they don't see you engaging customers, you get to hear about it.



-start rant-

The GameStop/EB sales push is annoying. We are constantly told to approach every customer and literally push a sale or atleast a preorder. In aus we have EB World and literally its just a reason for EB to push more sales directly to your email. To top it off in Australia there is a 50% mark-up on all games. Yep. I love working with games and some of the people that shop there. Its nice to just randomly chat about things, but I hate the company and how it rips off people and I feel terrible for doing so -end rant-

[Khelddar]

Chi , how did i not know you where aussie? lolz

Yer i get all my games from ozgameshop.com, Most gamers that do there research and can be bothered waiting for like a week buy from them. It comes from the UK but they are the same region as us. Unless i want the game really badly then ill go to eb or somewhere, It's not just EB that ripe you off (but they are the worst) it's the same with Game, Kmart etc.

If you work at like box hill or doncaster that would be a little freaky

[Chi]

Lol, No I'm currently living in Tasmania :< How sad. Im originally from Sydney though. I personally don't buy ANY of my games from EB Games. Digital is the way to go, and amazon for PS3 games that I really want. The only game I purchased was Dance Central 2 and that is about it :D

[Becka]

Lol EB Games here in Australia the guys are very nice. They also employ girls.

I always flirt with them idk why they're usually hot nerds but anyway. I go in there to buy neocash like ALL THE TIME. And they don't seem to laugh, poke faces or act retarded about it :P And I'm almost 19, so they have a right to feel weird about me buying something to do with neopets.

Chi

I was there 5 months and NC was so hard to find there. And then one day in Ulverstone at Woolworths I was like.. What the heck? THEY SELL NICKELODEON CARDS?! And they worked with Neopets. And they give 3 boxes, not 2 :P

[KillaKayleen]

Ha, alot of times I go in there, and they don't know what i'm talking about, and talk to me like i'm stupid, just bc i know more than they do lol!!! it does piss me off, but my new gamestop iv been going to only has 2 guys that iv seen, the rest are girls :)

[Phasma]

No problems on my end.
The gamestop I go to the guys are nice, I applied there though and didn't get hired, but I'm pretty sure it's because more people applied and were probably more qualified than I was at the time.

I could have had a 20 minute conversation with one of the guys working there if it weren't for the people waiting in line after me!