The Hardships of Being a Bank Teller

Quite possibly the most critical piece of the banking puzzle, tellers are the face of most banks. Ninety-five percent of the time you go into your bank (if you actually go into it at all), you will meet with one of the customer service representatives, or tellers, as they are most commonly called. There are many things you probably don't know about your ordinary bank tellers. What are they? I'll let you know today.

Most tellers are underpaid.

I know that many tellers in my area make around $9 an hour and up. If they're really experienced, they may make $12 an hour. Personally I think they are under paid for the work load they carry: perform transactions for customers, answer phones, solve small problems, balance their drawers, organize money, meet sales goals... the list goes on and on. Without tellers, banks would have a hard time being in business.

Even the best tellers make mistakes.

I remember a few years ago I made a deposit into my savings account with the second bank I had an account with. The teller added a zero to the end of the deposit, so instead of depositing $1,000, I had deposited $10,000! I thought it was my lucky day until the next day when I checked my account and the money had been taken out and the mistake corrected. Believe me, they'll fix the mistake.

Tellers take a lot of abuse. They aren't there to make your life difficult. They are trying to protect your money.

They can't help it they have to charge to cash a check. They don't make the rules about holds. Your ID is not tattooed onto your forehead, so when they ask for it, they need it! Chances are, the teller is going to recognize you if you throw a fit or are nasty. Also, they are going to remember you more if you overdraw your account all the time and are asking for refunds. Be responsible with your bank account!

Tellers (or any bank employee for that matter) DESPISE when someone walks in the door 5 minutes until closing.

If you've got a check to cash or a simple deposit to make it's not too bad. But for goodness sake, if you have your life savings worth of change to cash in, or you are wanting to open an account, don't expect to get the same treatment as if you had come in earlier in the day. They want to go home, too.

These are just a few things that you probably didn't already know about bank tellers. Good or bad, just remember they are people too, just trying to do their jobs the best they can. Treat them as you'd like to be treated, and I'm sure they will take the best care of you!