Days of a Kuwaiti Bank Teller

Today the shady character from my previous story returned to the branch.

I was away from my counter and concealed in my favorite dusty corner with my favorite coworker, FunnyGirl. FunnyGirl is so named because she has a knack of turning everyday occurances into hilarious tales. A simple drive to work becomes a madcap car chase. A visit to a restaurant results in outrageous modes of flirting and humiliations in front of the other sex. She was telling me of her latest mall exploits when the Trainee showed up and told me someone was asking for me. When you hear that someone is asking for you in the branch 90% of the time it's not a good sign. Customers only ask for you if they've come to complain.  

"Who is it?"

"I asked him but he wouldn't tell me his name."

"Is he a regular?"

"No. I've never seen him before." 

"Did he seem angry?"

"No."

"Annoyed?"

"No."

"Did he ask for me brusquely or casually?"

"He seemed worried. He asked if you were transferred to another branch. When I told him no, he asked if you had the day off. I told him you were here and then he seemed to relax."

Curious, I went out to see who it was. No one was waiting for me. I asked the Meeter-Greeter if she'd seen the guy.

"It was the same man who was staring at you the other day." 

One of the more frustrating traits I find in our loan officers is that when they make a promise to a customer, they don't deliver. I don't know who's in charge of their training but when I first started on the job I was repeatedly told to underpromise and overdeliver.

Today, a loan officer had the audacity to blame a trainee for his inability to meet his commitments. He summoned the customer into the cubicle that masquerades as his office and notified him that the trainee was the reason the work was being held up. I only found out because the customer stormed up to me and demanded to know why the trainee hadn't prepared the requisite forms for his application. 

Needless to say, I was incensed when this happened. It's completely irresponsible of him to turn the trainee into a scapegoat and to waste a customer's time. You can lose customers over silly incidents like these. Customers get upset when they take the time to come to the branch and find out they're there for nothing. They lose faith in you and the next time you call them in they may not be so eager to show up.

Unfortunately, our manager doesn't seem to share my opinion on the matter. The loan officer got huffy after I confronted him about it and brought up the issue at our end of the day meeting. The manager thinks I overstepped my boundaries and shouldn't be teaching the loan officer his job. It doesn't matter that I've seen this behavior before and the subsequent results. All that matters is that loan officer doesn't get sulky and so refuse to bring in new business.  

Working as a teller is sometimes akin to working as a bartender. A myriad of people find themselves at my counter. The more time they spend there, the more likely it is I will hear a personal tale. Some of these counter confessions are heartbreaking, while others are added to a list of things I wish I didn't know.

A good teller manages to both console and run transactions. I confess, I'm not always a good teller. Every so often I need to break for five just to regain my composure. I've always seen the world through rose-colored glasses; the eternally foolish Pollyanna. These confessions bring my world tumbling around my ears. 

"I got laid off three months ago but my parents are unaware that anything's changed. I need to use my savings to pretend there's still a salary being transferred to my account."

"My wife passed away during the Invasion. She was murdered. I've remarried since but I don't love her the same way I loved my first wife. I would give anything to have her back."

"My stepsister's dying of cancer. She doesn't know that I found out. She hasn't told our father yet and now that I know her secret I don't want to see her. I'm scared of death and dying."

"I owe a lot of people money because I have gambling problems."

"When I was studying in London I met and married a Jewish girl. My parents don't know. When I graduated they arranged for me to marry my cousin. I take regular trips to London to see her."

"My four year-old cousin was raped by her uncle. Her father knows but he didn't tell the mother. They told my cousin it was a dream and she shouldn't tell her mother about it. They're worrying about a grown up being unable to accept reality and destroying an innocent child's life in the process."

"I married my husband out of obligation. The man I love is poor and my family wouldn't let me marry him. They don't know that my husband cheats on me."