I responded to a post in the dollar stretcher news letter about this and then thought that this might be a good place to start a movement against this trend.  The grocery stores, save the cost of cashiers and baggers, and in this time of very difficult employment opportunities contribute to the unemployment problem.  In addition to putting much more money in their corporate pockets, they don't pass that savings on to the consumer.  Does your grocery store give you a rebate for scanning and then bagging your own groceries?  Mine sure as heck doesn't.  My grocery store started off with 3 "self serve" aisles and now has six that means at least 12 employees out of work, as cashiers and baggers, and considering all the hours they have to cover it's probably more like 24 employees on the unemployment roles.  24 employees without health insurance coverage too.  I for one will never use one of these aisles, and I hope that we can start a movement in which all of us will avoid them.  The average folks who keep these huge conglomerates in business, just have to stick together to protect the jobs of their employees.  Fran McCarthy

 Personally I agree with you, besides, I feel awkward using them, and I think our world is becoming far too automated with faceless transactions. I know there are people here who like them and say they're faster and more convenient, though. 

Maybe someone else will chime in; I'd like to hear other thoughts about this.  

I don't like jobs that were lost to put them in... nonetheless, I find them convenient, especially as the King Sooper's stores I usually shop at (all 4 of them, depending on where I am) have stopped having express lanes open when I shop (usually on my way home from other things, which means about 8 pm) - and since I live alone and usually only buy perishables during the week, I'm not willing to wait for someone with a full cart so I can buy milk and fruit. 

Pat:

I feel awkward using them, and I think our world is becoming far too automated with faceless transactions.

I can't stand them and it takes me forever to use them. My husband likes the self check out when he only has a couple of items and wants to quickly get through. We have friends who choose that option even if they have a cart full.

The grocery store we use doesn't have the self-scanners but we do have to bag our own. Their prices are much cheaper than the stores in our area that have checkers and baggers. We have to go where the prices fit our budget.

The once or twice we tried to use the self-scanners at Wal-mart they didn't work right, so never bothered with it again. Shopping is irritating enough without duking it out with a machine. Edey

Fran McCarthy:

that this might be a good place to start a movement against this trend

I refuse to use them. They give no rebate and when the program is firmly established, it will most probably increase their profits. I am giving my labor for free.

Unfortunately, I "predict" that in the future they will be almost the only way to purchase groceries or any product. I cannot see into the future, but I can read about the past. One book I picked up a good number of years ago, was authored by a women who tried to warn people not to purchase items with bar codes. She said that they were part of 666. By the time I read the book--and the very reason I bought it, bar codes had been printed on just about everything. I am not computer literate, but was told due to the binomial number of 6, the bar code was indeed based on 666. Bar codes seem almost laughable to worry about with chips and RFID tags.

My small town has no self scanners.  Baggers and carry outs, and they insist on carrying out your items--even if it is just a gallon of milk.  How rare is that? 

I'm not for machines taking over peoples jobs.  On the other hand, if the store employs people as cashiers and eliminates self-serve machines, they should then have enough cashiers for convenient, fast check-out.  I quit shopping at K-Mart because everytime I went there, it seemed there was one cashier for the entire store. And of course, when you walk in, no one is in line.  When you're ready to check out, there's people lined up.

If anything, I rally that they follow Aldi's lead and have super-fast cashiers, and you take care of bagging yourself.  No self-serve machine needed.  After years of "crap, I picked the slow-as-molasses cashier", and the cashier who chit-chats with customers when there's a long line of people waiting, and the cashier who gets exasperated with me for bringing my own bags, and standing in the express lane while the cashier checks out someone with 50 items... well I didn't like using them, but I have to admit I've gotten pretty good at the self-serve system. 

wow carry out service for just milk, thats great. though safeway does ask if you have a certain number of items if you would like car service. plus they will help if you ask anyways. 

superstore put in self serve cashiers and they get ripped off all the time because they are too cheap to have a cashier supervising them.  prefer cashiers but I normally shop at safeway and they are nice.

rolo:

Baggers and carry outs, and they insist on carrying out your items--even if it is just a gallon of milk. 

How spoiled is that! Good for you! (I think about moving in your area. :-)) Just yesterday I went grocery shopping with my 81 yr old father. I had to ask the cashier for a bagger, because I would not have been able to get him and me out and bagged without the help. The women came, and said she only have five minutes and then she was going home as she was done for the day. I ended up bagging all of mine with the cashier helping. This is not a discount store such as Aldi's.