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  • irishtimes.com - Posted: September 4, 2008 @ 10:29 am

    The nicest staff in the country?

    Conor Pope

    Walking into work today I was struck (for the thousandth time) by how incredibly friendly, good natured and upbeat the people who hand out the Metro and Herald AM freesheets are. Even the ones who are off duty smile and salute you on the street. I can’t imagine it is a particularly engaging job to stand on street corners in the rain handing newspapers to grumpy commuters. And while I can’t be certain, I’d imagine it probably doesn’t pay a whole lot and definitely involves very early starts. So why are they all so pleasant all the time and why aren’t they being headhunted to work in our retailers, call centres, airlines and civil service?

    • 17 Comments »

    1.
    September 4, 2008
    10:47 am

    I concur. A very pleasant lot.

    It could be because they’re giving stuff out for free, therefore everyone loves them, therefore they are very happy.

    Comment by Neill
    2.
    September 4, 2008
    11:22 am

    You should ask them why they dont go for better paid jobs in retail, call centres airlines and civil service.

    The Metro/herald am job appears to have no onus on the hard sell of call centres, no paranoid boss like a retailer eyeballing you every five minutes to see if you’re stealing anything or slacking off, no abusive customers as in airline queues complaining about the copy of the paper they were allocated or someone losing their copy. But, it certainly doesnt afford you a lifelong pensioned employment to sit on your arse pretending you’re doing something for the better of the city.

    So hats off to them, they seem to be enjoying their “work/ life balance” that so many people crave these days.

    Comment by paul m
    3.
    September 4, 2008
    12:10 pm

    I’ve got to disagree Conor – the staff on my route to work are damn near aggressive. I don’t particularly appreciate having a paper shoved in my face three or four times on a hundred yard stretch – which happens regularly whether I am walking or cycling.

    Comment by Catherine
    4.
    September 4, 2008
    1:21 pm

    Neill – you might be right about the connection between giving free stuff away and happines. I’ve always thought working in a cake shop would be a most pleasant experience. Everyone you’d be dealing with would be happy – no-one can be grumpy buying a cake!

    Catherine, I suppose they can be a bit persistent alright, but at least they’re smiling!

    Comment by Conor
    5.
    September 4, 2008
    1:59 pm

    They should be required by law to fund a paper recycling bin at every location that they distribute the freesheets. The amount of paper/trees going into these publications is crazy.

    Comment by Serial Complainer
    6.
    September 4, 2008
    2:04 pm

    I love it when you get the Herald Am and Metro people side by side vying for your custom…sometomes I dramaticcly extend both my arms and grab both papers at the same time…seems to amuse them.

    Comment by Sean D
    7.
    September 4, 2008
    2:13 pm

    Would agree with Catherine: it does get irritaing when you are going to work in the rain, still half-asleep, and they are constantly shoving papers in your face ‘Marning! Metro!’, EVEN WHEN YOU ALREADY HAVE ONE.

    Comment by Quint
    8.
    September 4, 2008
    2:17 pm

    Not in my case Conor, they’re too busy yelling “Metro” repeatedly to smile!

    Then again, this is the Abbey Street bus/Luas hellhole interchange I’m talking about, it’s not exactly the most pleasant of work environs.

    Comment by Catherine
    9.
    September 4, 2008
    2:32 pm

    Herald AM / Metro people are happy and friendly because they do not have to suffer the abuse and general idiocy faced on a day to day basis by staff in customer service / retail / airline industries.

    The civil service is a law unto itself, so I exclude it from my above comments.

    Comment by markg
    10.
    September 5, 2008
    12:27 am

    I often cycle past a point in the city centre where there are a few of the good folk handing out the paper. We get an Olympic-style relay going where the freesheet becomes the baton and they sprint alongside me with a smile and a friendly hello. Great craic altogether and we’re yet to drop one! But seriously, their smiles are infectious. Free and infectious. I’m all for it. We should all smile more often.

    Comment by NaRocRoc
    11.
    September 5, 2008
    12:31 am

    hey,stop the civil service bashing please…:p

    Comment by ciaran
    12.
    September 5, 2008
    9:16 am

    They are pleasant because they are not Irish !

    Comment by Jonathan
    13.
    September 5, 2008
    11:08 am

    @ Jonathan (#12), what a stupid comment.

    Comment by NaRocRoc
    14.
    September 8, 2008
    2:27 pm

    Totally true – I love them, and it amuses me greatly when they try to hand me a paper in the mornings as I speed by on my bike – always gives me a grin on the way to work!

    Comment by Neil
    15.
    September 9, 2008
    9:43 am

    I find them very pleasant, but the papers themselves are awful. However, try running the freesheet gauntlet in London… horrific.

    Comment by Rob
    16.
    September 9, 2008
    11:53 am

    And soooo exceptionally good looking. Especially the girls around the Spire. It was lashing rain this morning and such smiling pretty faces were a such a pleasant and welcome sight.

    Comment by Smitten
    17.
    September 11, 2008
    3:57 pm

    hmmm I gave out free papers for awhile and was being paid about 15 euro an hour for it. That puts a smile on your face at 7am!

    Comment by Triona

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