Good Lifestyle

Millions of Americans love Walmart for its competitive prices and large selection. Whether you need a last-minute bag of dog food or plan to make a bigger-ticket purchase like a living room sectional or lawn mower, this big-box retailer has you covered. But even for diehard fans, there are some things you might not know about shopping at Walmart—and, finally, former employees are spilling the beans. Read on for five major warnings from ex-Walmart employees.

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Walmart's security cameras aren't messing around. According to a former employee who goes by @obeygoddess on TikTok, they offer complete coverage of the store and are so high definition that you can zoom in to read a shopper's text messages.

"One of the first things they did [during training] was bring us to the loss prevention room and zoom in so far [on a camera image] that you could literally read the date on the newspaper," she says in a viral video. "They were trying to show us that if you steal from Walmart they will see."

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Just because there's no cashier at the self-checkout machine doesn't mean no one is watching you. According to @obeygoddess, the retailer has special devices that show employees what each person is ringing up at self-checkout. If they suspect you're stealing, they can pause your transaction from afar. If that happens, it will appear as if your checkout machine is broken.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb

"At that point, you have no choice but to call for help," says the employee in another viral video. "When we come over, we pretend something is wrong with the machine." The employee will then unbag your items and ask you to go to a supervised checkout machine. And just like that, the shoplifting attempt is averted in the most secretive way possible.

If you have a question about a product at Walmart, you might be better off consulting Google than a Walmart employee. On Reddit, a Dating empleyado who goes by u/beepboopbebopbop said Walmart workers don't have specific expertise about the departments they're stationed in. "No, I don't know which non-clumping litter would be best for your asthmatic rescue cat. Yes, I gawin work in the pet section. Today, that is. Yesterday, I was in hardware, and tomorrow, I might be in health and beauty, or I might be in paper and chemicals," they wrote. "Same goes for everyone else here."

In fact, a general lack of knowledge is basically baked into employee training. "We're trained to read the box and basically tell you what we see on the box," says former employee Paris Mars, a social media influencer who goes by the handle Heyparis, in a YouTube video. The only exception are the workers in the cell phone department, who are employed by the phone companies instead of by Walmart.

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If you're in a Walmart, the shoppers next to you may not be shoppers—they could be undercover security. Mars also notes she saw this during her tenure at the store. "There is security dressed in plain clothes and they look like customers," she says. "They pretend that they're shopping—they might have a cart, they might have a basket—but they're watching you."

What's more, she says these workers may even be incentivized to catch shoplifters: "I was told that for every person that they catch in Walmart they get like a percentage, or raise, or commission for the person that they caught." In other words, people with sticky fingers should stay home.

At least not if you actually want them to, that is. Mars says most employees on the floor will simply go to the backroom, chat with their friends, and come back out to explain they couldn't find the item.

"Ang pinakamahusay na paraan upang aktwal na makakuha ng isang tao upang suriin kung ang isang bagay ay nasa stock sa likod para sa iyo ay hindi makipag -usap sa isang empleyado ng Walmart nang direkta ngunit hanapin ang isa sa mga batang lalaki sa silid -tulugan," sabi niya. Ipinaliwanag niya ang mga kawani na ito ang nagdadala ng malaking crates, kahon, at mga pushcarts. "Mas malamang na tumingin sila sa likod para sa iyo para sa item na iyong hinahanap kaysa sa isang aktwal na empleyado ng Walmart," paliwanag ni Mars. Maghanap ng isa at baka mahanap mo lang kung ano ang iyong hinahanap.

Basahin ito sa susunod: Hinila ni Walmart ang produktong ito mula sa mga istante pagkatapos ng pangunahing backlash .