IS THERE A COMMON BASIS?
Rudeness is defined by one source as discourteous or impolite behavior; without culture, learning or refinement. That definition doesn't seem to allow for much wiggle room. An excellent definition and explanation is found in Wikipedia* which eloquently grants concessions for "..a display of disrespect by not complying with the social norms or etiquette of a group or culture." In other words, they suggest that we make allowances for different cultures who may have never experienced the same societal expectations as we have in our home country. Granted, there are probably certain forms of behavior that would be abhorrent to most cultures. Details not necessary.
So, are we expecting too much as foreigners, or do many Chileans fall into the definition above as displaying behavior without culture, learning or refinement? I believe it is a combination of both. Rudeness, like beauty, may be in the eye of the beholder.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Rudeness in Chile is displayed in several areas: driving etiquette, public interaction and customer service.
Driving etiquette: I faithfully avoid traveling into or out of Santiago during morning or afternoon rush hour and stay out of popular coastal beach towns during summer weekends. The reason being driver rudeness, exhibited in the overabundance of the "me first" culture, and my very low tolerance for bad behavior. Trying to merge into a lane of vehicles or being stopped from proceeding by vehicles blocking a green lit intersection shows Chileans at their worst. They will pull forward to block you from entering and most often ignore your entreaty to merge. It's all about "me". Another form of driving rudeness is much more dangerous and life threatening to all parties, excessive speeding and passing. Drivers will do dangerous and stupid maneuvers, such as passing on blind spots or curves just to get one car length further in heavy traffic. Again, as mentioned above, disrespect for their own laws and rules. (More in a future blog post.)
Public interaction: It took me awhile to realize why most businesses and government services have a "take-a-number" system. It goes back to the "me first" attitude. Without this system, it would be chaos with many people jockeying to get done regardless of who was there waiting before them. This system at least forces discipline in people and possibly over time will change the culture into more of a respectful, courteous one. Also, I can't understand why many Chileans are completely oblivious to others who are shopping in their immediate vicinity. Supermarket aisles are often blocked by people who leave their carts in the middle while they are browsing or are unaware that someone might be wanting to get by them in the aisle. More than once I have had to move someone's cart to continue shopping; like no one else exists.
Customer service (CS): Regardless of where you come from, I believe that everyone has an expectation of being treated well when you are the consumer. This is an ethos that has escaped most Chile businesses. Granted, good customer service has to be taught and expected from the top down, so I can't always blame the individual for not knowing right from wrong behavior. It is interesting that the most personable, prompt and helpful CS individuals are often found as baggers in the supermarket or waiters in upscale restaurants. Too often, low wages and a boring, non-challenging job leads to young,inexperienced, low-wage personnel, who could give a damn about the customer and rather stick their head in their cellphone.
A recent trip to the supermarket had my wife almost come to blows with one of the employees who, when we needed several of a particular item, stated that there was more in the back. She asked him to get a case and he went postal, claiming he was going to miss his bus and throwing his pen and clipboard on the ground. I guess the bus comes before the customer. He never complied and somewhat later the assistant manager did come to apologize after repeated attempts to talk with someone about this level of CS.
This segues into another facet of CS, trying to contact and/or complain to someone in charge. In all this time in Chile, when I have asked to see or speak to a manager of a store, they are always "busy" or "on the phone". It seems that they will do anything to avoid customer complaints or having to deal with their client's issues. Rude. By the way folks, don't expect most businesses, especially mom & pop types, to be open from 2-4 PM. Most be a legacy of the Spanish colonial siesta time. All that being said, just like anywhere else, find the places and people that treat you right as a consumer and stay with them, hopefully the others will change or disappear. Hope springs eternal.
Last customer service rant has to do with dealing with government bureaucracy, again a legacy of past times. To try and get important paperwork done, schedule a full day. The norm is that person 2 tells you that you are missing a document that person 1 or the internet failed to mention; do not pass GO, do not collect 200 pesos. Also, you most likely will have to go to 2 or 3 different locations to get a stamp, notary or some other nonsense. Once, for a seemingly easy task of a single document approval, I was directed to the Ministerio, then to Registro Civil and then to PDI, all with waits and all in different parts of town. If government truly wanted to be more efficient and helpful to citizens, they could easily have representatives of all these functions in one location. I pity the poor person who has to take a day off from work to accomplish a simple task. This is a different kind of rudeness on the part of government; my process right or wrong.
Public interaction: It took me awhile to realize why most businesses and government services have a "take-a-number" system. It goes back to the "me first" attitude. Without this system, it would be chaos with many people jockeying to get done regardless of who was there waiting before them. This system at least forces discipline in people and possibly over time will change the culture into more of a respectful, courteous one. Also, I can't understand why many Chileans are completely oblivious to others who are shopping in their immediate vicinity. Supermarket aisles are often blocked by people who leave their carts in the middle while they are browsing or are unaware that someone might be wanting to get by them in the aisle. More than once I have had to move someone's cart to continue shopping; like no one else exists.
Customer service (CS): Regardless of where you come from, I believe that everyone has an expectation of being treated well when you are the consumer. This is an ethos that has escaped most Chile businesses. Granted, good customer service has to be taught and expected from the top down, so I can't always blame the individual for not knowing right from wrong behavior. It is interesting that the most personable, prompt and helpful CS individuals are often found as baggers in the supermarket or waiters in upscale restaurants. Too often, low wages and a boring, non-challenging job leads to young,inexperienced, low-wage personnel, who could give a damn about the customer and rather stick their head in their cellphone.
A recent trip to the supermarket had my wife almost come to blows with one of the employees who, when we needed several of a particular item, stated that there was more in the back. She asked him to get a case and he went postal, claiming he was going to miss his bus and throwing his pen and clipboard on the ground. I guess the bus comes before the customer. He never complied and somewhat later the assistant manager did come to apologize after repeated attempts to talk with someone about this level of CS.
This segues into another facet of CS, trying to contact and/or complain to someone in charge. In all this time in Chile, when I have asked to see or speak to a manager of a store, they are always "busy" or "on the phone". It seems that they will do anything to avoid customer complaints or having to deal with their client's issues. Rude. By the way folks, don't expect most businesses, especially mom & pop types, to be open from 2-4 PM. Most be a legacy of the Spanish colonial siesta time. All that being said, just like anywhere else, find the places and people that treat you right as a consumer and stay with them, hopefully the others will change or disappear. Hope springs eternal.
Last customer service rant has to do with dealing with government bureaucracy, again a legacy of past times. To try and get important paperwork done, schedule a full day. The norm is that person 2 tells you that you are missing a document that person 1 or the internet failed to mention; do not pass GO, do not collect 200 pesos. Also, you most likely will have to go to 2 or 3 different locations to get a stamp, notary or some other nonsense. Once, for a seemingly easy task of a single document approval, I was directed to the Ministerio, then to Registro Civil and then to PDI, all with waits and all in different parts of town. If government truly wanted to be more efficient and helpful to citizens, they could easily have representatives of all these functions in one location. I pity the poor person who has to take a day off from work to accomplish a simple task. This is a different kind of rudeness on the part of government; my process right or wrong.
SUMMATION
As mentioned earlier, when living abroad one cannot expect a carbon copy of the culture they left behind. Allowances and adjustments must be made; it is an imperfect world. Living in Chile these past years has instilled a bit more tolerance in me but certainly not acceptance of rude behavior. Maybe if the sheep bleat loud enough, someone will listen.
As usual, comments are welcomed and you can sign up for email notification of additional posts and rants.
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