The Rude Costco Behavior That Leaves Employees Feeling Like Maids

Grocery store employees, we're sorry. You've been upfront with the public, letting us know the customer behaviors you really hate; from arriving minutes before a store's closing time to leaving perishable items in non-refrigerated aisles. And you've told us that talking on the phone at checkout or touching certain foods with our grubby hands are among the surest ways to earn a less-than-polite name at a grocery store. Now, Costco staffers have taken to social media to inform us about another bad habit that's getting their collective goats. Namely, leaving food sample containers and other trash strewn throughout the store's aisles.

In a thread on the subreddit r/Costco, employees have voiced their frustration about having to pick up after customers throughout the store. A post from last year shared an image of a plastic cup containing murky liquid and a crumpled paper sample container perched atop beverage cases, with the post summing up employees' feelings succinctly: "Members, we are not your maids. We have trash cans in every aisle." 

Redditors on this thread (and a separate thread on the same topic) quickly offered their two cents on customer littering. "I [watched a] lady put her trash in one of the bread racks," wrote one poster. "I was looking right at her and she watched me look at her and she still did it and I said there's a garbage can at the end of the aisle and she just left there and walked away." A few Costco employees offered a tough but most likely effective solution: "Memberships should be more exclusive and revoked for the people doing this."

The Costco employees in these Reddit threads are correct: Trash goes in trash cans, which are (according to them) distributed throughout Costco locations. But are they actually? More than one Redditor on these threads noted that trash cans at their local Costco did not proliferate to the degree described by employees. One individual wrote, "None of the Costcos I go to have trash cans anywhere but the sample tables. Puzzled." Another comment concurred, noting, "Zero trash cans at my Costco. Only at the food court." 

Others took different tacks in regard to the Costco refuse problem. Some were pragmatic to a fault: "So move it to the trash and be the better person," snapped one go-getter. Others took a somewhat resigned tone: "That's Costco shoppers for you, unfortunately." And a few decided to pull no punches with statements like, "I always see this as a donation to job security for the staff. For the same reason you should not push your cart back yourself." We're going to assume that last one was said in jest.

All this to say: Dispose of your trash at Costco in the same way you'd do so in your own home — quickly and neatly. If cans aren't available beyond the sample stations or food court, toss it in an outside trash barrel when you exit the store. Leaving refuse in an aisle or on a shelf isn't one of the things that could get you kicked out of a Costco, but if the comments are any indication, it's also not going to win you any fans among the employees.