Look idk about the rest of you but like
I read that George Floyd was killed bc they thought he passed a counterfeit bill
Which like, ok is a crime but not exactly HARMFUL TO ANYONE AT ALL
But THEN I read that it was a TEN-DOLLAR BILL and I just have to say, whomever called the cops on a black man over $10 is exactly as culpable for his death as the pig who did it
Also? I work in fast food. Here’s the procedure:
1) apologize to the customer that the bill is counterfeit, and you cannot accept it as payment. Tell them you must retain it as it will have to be turned in to the Treasury, but it is not legal tender.
2) if you have a counterfeit detection device like a pen, show the customer that the bill is fake. Alternately, tell them how you know it’s fake. (99 times out of 100 it’ll be a missing watermark or security strip.) Do not let go of the bill during this process.
3) the customer will probably be upset—and understandably so, if the bill was passed to them. Apologize again but restate that it is illegal for you to return it.
4) if the customer grows BELLIGERENT—by which I mean you or other customers are endangered—tell them that you can call the police to verify the bill is fake. DO NOT CALL YET.
5) if you have a Karen, you may have to call because she will not leave until you do, or may even insist on calling herself. If this is the case, clearly state that you have a customer who did not realize they were in possession of a counterfeit, but now will not accept it is fake. Follow directions. This customer is white approximately 100% of the time and is in no danger from police. Keep the bill visible (so Karen can’t claim it was bait-and-switched), but well out of reach. I recommend having some kind of clip behind the register where you can hang things for this.
5a) I have never actually had an encounter with a nonwhite person get this far. If it does, tell them you will have to call the police if they do not leave. DO NOT CALL UNLESS YOU ARE ACTUALLY PHYSICALLY ATTACKED.
6) if another form of payment is offered, accept it. The odds are EXTREMELY good that the person giving you the bill is not the counterfeiter.
7) offer to show the customer some common security marks to look for so they won’t get taken again. The watermark is a good one. I also like teaching them about the raised printing on the President’s jacket, because it’s a lot harder to fake.
8) your manager will know where to retain the counterfeit until it can be turned in. At my store, this involves writing FAKE or COUNTERFEIT or COPY on the bills and then taking them once a month to the bank for disposal.
LOOK AT THAT. NO HARM NO FOUL. NOBODY HAS TO DIE OR GET ARRESTED. IN FACT YOU CAN HELP THIS CUSTOMER TO AVOID THIS PROBLEM IN THE FUTURE.
George Floyd’s death was entirely preventable on the police end, but I want you to look at JUST HOW FUCKING PREVENTABLE IT WAS. Look at this. Look at it. I was trained in this from the time I was 21 and first took a job in a big city. It’s easy. It’s just basic customer service tenets but with added “I’m really sorry about this.”
He did not have to die, and that clerk is a co-conspirator in his death.
