Other Sales Assistants and Salespersons
This unit group covers Sales Assistants and Salespersons not elsewhere classified. It includes Door-to-door Salespersons, Materials Recyclers, Rental Salespersons and Street Vendors.
Behind the counter at the hire yard
You are a rental salesperson at a family equipment hire yard on a busy Saturday, with tradies, gardeners and first-timers all arriving at once. It is 8am. The yard is full of utes and trailers, there is a queue at the counter and the machines that came back last night have not been checked yet.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
I want to hire the biggest machine you have for the weekend. I am going to pull out some old fencing and a few trees in my backyard. How hard can it be? Just point me to the keys.
Give him the biggest machine, since he knows what he wants and it is his money
Callan struggles with a machine too large for his backyard. He damages a fence and the machine, and the yard is left with a bill and a complaint.
Ask about the job and space, recommend a smaller machine and show him how it works
Callan realises a smaller machine will suit the job better. He listens to the demonstration, finishes on Sunday and brings it back clean.
Tell him he is not experienced enough and refuse the hire, since he might hurt himself
You are being careful, but Callan walks out feeling talked down to. He hires from a competitor, who does not ask any questions at all.
I am bringing this back a day early. By the way, it was already cracked when I picked it up, I think. I did not notice at the time. I hope I do not have to pay for that.
Take her word for it, and mark the machine as returned without checking the record
It is a friendly gesture, but the machine's record is now incomplete. If the crack is new, the next customer may be blamed.
Tell her she broke it and must pay, without looking at the record
The pick-up record shows a crack noted at the start. Mrs Papadakis was right, and you have accused a customer who did nothing wrong.
Check the pick-up photos and notes with her, then record what you find
The notes show a small crack was already recorded. She is relieved, and the record is clean for the next customer.
I cleared out my late uncle's shed and there is a bit of everything in the trailer. A few old gas bottles, some paint tins and a rusty drum I could not open. Where do you want me to unload it all?
Tell him to unload everything in the main scrap pile, since it all goes in the end
The gas bottles and drum are mixed in with ordinary scrap. Someone handling the pile could be injured, and the whole load has to be sorted by hand.
Take the scrap, leave the bottles, paint and drum on the trailer, and call your supervisor
Wei is told to wait, which is right, but the trailer sits in the entry lane and slows the yard. A designated spot would have helped.
Keep the unknown items on the trailer and get your supervisor to say where they go
Your supervisor directs Wei to a hazardous-waste drop-off nearby. Nobody is at risk, and the scrap pile stays clean.
How it went
By evening the machines were checked, the records were clean and a risky load had not been mixed into the pile. Whether you rent, sell on the street or recycle, this work asks you to be friendly, observant and safe. Which of these would you choose?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: The stall that closed early
A fictional case set in an equipment hire yard, a Sunday market and a scrap and recycling depot in a fictional country town.
The situation
Samira ran a street stall at a night market, selling cold drinks and ice cream cones. The evening was hot, the crowds were big and the takings were the best of the season. About an hour before closing, she noticed the display fridge was not as cold as it should be. The temperature on the little display was creeping upwards. Every drink and every tub of ice cream she had left was worth money, and the queue in front of her was still long.
What they did
Samira checked the fridge with a thermometer and saw it was no longer in the safe range. She stopped serving ice cream and told the queue why. She moved what she could into a cooler she kept for emergencies, and sold only items that could safely be kept at room temperature. She threw out the ice cream that had been in the warm fridge and wrote down what she had binned.
How it turned out
She lost most of the evening's takings, and felt it. The next market day, the council's inspector stopped by for a routine check and asked about the fridge. Samira showed her written notes. The inspector said she wished all stall holders kept records, and Samira had a repair done before she next opened.
What would you do?
- Why did Samira throw out the ice cream when the queue was still long?
- How would you decide what is worth losing for the sake of safety?
- What would you like or dislike about running your own stall?