Saratoga teller "Its only a nickel"

[NorCalGreg]

Originally Posted by Saratoga_Mike

Something new to complain about: the nickel hustle.

LOL "the nickel hustle".....a sharp mutual clerk can work that hustle 20 times in a day and score an easy dollar.

[FantasticDan]

Great thread! Very entertaining and interesting

[lamboguy]

the best hustle i ever saw was a guy going to work at the toll booths years ago way before the easy pass. he used to go to work with $3000 worth of Canadian quarters and used those to mix in with the change for a $1 once the guy paid his toll. the guy did it for over 20 years before he got caught. the guy wound up buying up buildings with the money he stole a little at a time and had quite a portfolio of properties

[reckless]

Originally Posted by SuperPickle

I am going to give the guy credit for attempting two of the most notorious teller moves...

1. The slow pay. "Here are your hundreds, here's your twenties, here's your five, stop me whenever you've had enough."

2. "I don't have any change" move

Some of my other favorites...

Calling out tickets to only realize the tickets he's punching are his.

Walking up to the window and he's just got his head buried in a program and doesn't move.

And on more than one occasion I've had gotten to the front of the line and teller has simply gotten up and walked away.

Can I guess this last one happened at Parx? (I know you are not me, but this has happened a bunch of times over the years to me and my friends. )

[alhattab]

Originally Posted by Bluto Blutarsky

The same BS goes on at Monmouth. Report it. They do follow up and discipline tellers at Monmouth.

I'm sure it pretty much goes on everywhere to some extent. I don't use tellers at all anymore unless in an extreme pinch, but I have seen the tellers in the Mth picnic area remind people they forgot their tickets, change, etc. Very courteous out there and recognize they are dealing with once-a-year types in many cases.

[citygoat]

I punched tickets in the early nineties. The only change we had then were dimes. I gave the extra nickel to the patron but was not happy having to work and lose money so some guy who is cashing can get his nickel. I don't ever take the change.....but I usually bet on Twinspires anymore so non issue for me.

[johnhannibalsmith]

Also done the job and never understood the rush to count bank before close and then have to get all put out by doing the job. I see it all the time, or at least used to when I dealt with tellers regularly. I understand that Saratoga (done it there too long ago) is a different beast especially on Travers day. But, for 99% of the tellers doing the job, it just borders on silly to not be able to have money at the ready AND your bank countable in less time than it takes to get a drunk customer to explain what the hell he means by 1,6, and 9 in the fourth for six dollars. You have a few minutes at least of mostly down time every so often. Pretty easy to group the coins/bills into round numbers (I used to make stacks of 5 nickels and keep the remainder out since you never need more than one at a time, bundle 20 singles in a rubber band, 25 twenties, etc, for example) in a few seconds here and there and voila - you can now spend a minute or two counting the entire bank at the end and stop spending quintuple the time arguing with customers over having to mess up your bank by making change. Then again, as was told to me long ago, tellers are either great or terrible since all it takes is a little effort. Some just don't seem to have it in them to make the effort.

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by johnhannibalsmith

Also done the job and never understood the rush to count bank before close and then have to get all put out by doing the job. I see it all the time, or at least used to when I dealt with tellers regularly. I understand that Saratoga (done it there too long ago) is a different beast especially on Travers day. But, for 99% of the tellers doing the job, it just borders on silly to not be able to have money at the ready AND your bank countable in less time than it takes to get a drunk customer to explain what the hell he means by 1,6, and 9 in the fourth for six dollars. You have a few minutes at least of mostly down time every so often. Pretty easy to group the coins/bills into round numbers (I used to make stacks of 5 nickels and keep the remainder out since you never need more than one at a time, bundle 20 singles in a rubber band, 25 twenties, etc, for example) in a few seconds here and there and voila - you can now spend a minute or two counting the entire bank at the end and stop spending quintuple the time arguing with customers over having to mess up your bank by making change. Then again, as was told to me long ago, tellers are either great or terrible since all it takes is a little effort. Some just don't seem to have it in them to make the effort.

Recovering perfectionists always give this kind of explanation for what they do.....I should know, I'm one too..

[Ocala Mike]

Back in the day (I'm talking '80's), it used to be even worse at NYRA. The really bad, dishonest clerks (all unionized) were segregated into a mutuel division called the "Bay of Pigs." That's a little offputting, right there.

[olddaddy]

Originally Posted by lamboguy

the best hustle i ever saw was a guy going to work at the toll booths years ago way before the easy pass. he used to go to work with $3000 worth of Canadian quarters and used those to mix in with the change for a $1 once the guy paid his toll. the guy did it for over 20 years before he got caught. the guy wound up buying up buildings with the money he stole a little at a time and had quite a portfolio of properties

Thats 12,000 quarters which would weigh about 150 lbs. How the heck could he manage that? Bring a wheel barrow in a tool booth?

[AlsoEligible]

Originally Posted by Milkshaker

I am not a cheapskate in most other endeavors that involve tipping, but absolutely feel uncomfortable with that concept at the mutuel windows.

My rationale is that I don't EVER tip the teller at the bank for being polite and handing over the $$$ that is rightfully due to me--so why should I tip for the same "service" at the track?

Right there with you. I tip very generously on professions where it's expected - bartenders, servers, delivery guys/girls, etc. 20% is the baseline, more or less depending on the quality of service.

But I hate this new expectation that we're suddenly supposed to tip everyone who works a low wage job. Airport shuttle drivers, baggage handlers, hotel housekeeping, tellers. Where does it end? At some point there's a line to be drawn between someone who is just doing their job, and someone whose primary goal is to provide customer service. The latter usually deserves a tip, the former does not. And tellers, in my mind, do not.

I've never tipped one, and I doubt I ever will. This game takes enough of my money as it is, I'm keeping every cent of what I manage to win back.

[EMD4ME]

Nothing worse than being down $6,000 for the day. Hit for $5,000 and then make a withdrawal for $4000 and have the teller look at you like WOW you killed em.

Not a problem at NYRA lately for me as I normally visit the same tellers. They know me. I tell them the truth. I'm down $1000 for the day, if I was up I'd tip you.

They understand.

Some in the past, didn't.

[thespaah]

Originally Posted by Milkshaker

I don't like to see jobs being squeezed out at the track.

But ever since the advent of self-service machines, then much later ADWs that you can use to bet at the track via your smart phone, I have been avoiding interaction with human tellers unless it is absolutely necessary.

Seen too much sketchy behavior over the years to feel otherwise.

On the rare occasions that I cash a tax ticket on-track, I have always been extremely leery of handing over my SSN to the "experienced" teller who usually works the IRS window. I almost feel as if I'm forced to tip at that point, just to try and give the person a reason not to use my SSN in some scam (although I truly doubt my $10 contribution makes any difference to a real crook).

I am not a cheapskate in most other endeavors that involve tipping, but absolutely feel uncomfortable with that concept at the mutuel windows.

My rationale is that I don't EVER tip the teller at the bank for being polite and handing over the $$$ that is rightfully due to me--so why should I tip for the same "service" at the track?

I've never hit a signer before.
I never tip mutuel clerks because the ones that are unionized probably make more per hour than I do. So no gratuity. But if I ever do hit a signer, I will probably throw the teller a ten or twenty spot. Just because.

[thespaah]

Originally Posted by alhattab

I'm sure it pretty much goes on everywhere to some extent. I don't use tellers at all anymore unless in an extreme pinch, but I have seen the tellers in the Mth picnic area remind people they forgot their tickets, change, etc. Very courteous out there and recognize they are dealing with once-a-year types in many cases.

I use tellers twice in a day. Once to buy a voucher. The other to cash it

[EMD4ME]

Originally Posted by thespaah

I use tellers twice in a day. Once to buy a voucher. The other to cash it

I agree. Only to withdraw some cash for the waiter (I tip him extra on awesome days as he is great guy) or at the end of a good day to reduce the amount of $ in the ADW.

Really no use (no offense).