The daily duties of a convenience store cashier are fairly straightforward. The customer ponders the multitude of preservative-laced delicacies and, upon deciding that four corndogs, a 44-ounce soda and nachos will hold them over for the evening, hands the items over to me to check out.
Nearly all customer-clerk encounters occur without protest, save for the occasional high price complaint (which is apparently my fault that something is priced 30 cents over his allotted junk-food budget), the always pleasant break-a-hundred-for-this-89-cent-purchase customer, and the person who feels they need to point out every flaw in the physical makeup and structure of the business.
Most of these instances trigger a reaction in me nothing more than a shake of the head and faint sigh. But, the one that tops the podium and makes me question my morals and my job duties is that of the pregnant smoker.
Cigarettes are one of the highest selling products in a convenience store. I am required to stock and count the cigarettes daily as well as record all sales. It is against the law to sell tobacco products to individuals under the age of 18 and I card everyone who looks under 30. Many of the customers that come in are regulars and I know what they want as they walk in the door.
Most of the time, customers ask for their particular brand of addiction-easers and I toss the pack(s) their way without so much as a shrug. They quietly thank me and go on about their business. However, there was one instance that made me question the written law as well as my own personal ethics.
Just like any other day, a woman came in to buy a pack of smokes. She was of legal age and I obliged to her request. No big deal, until I did a double-take as she left and saw the protruding baby bump I had failed to notice under her jacket when we were face-to-face.
What had I just done?
Generally, I am not a person who is quick to judge or make unfair assumptions about people, especially strangers. She could have simply been overweight or buying them for someone else. However, I was certain that she was pregnant, and they were for her; seeing her “pack” the box and slip one into her mouth on her way out only confirmed my suspicions.
I forced myself to stay put and resist the urge to confront her about her unquestionably irresponsible and unethical actions. Then, I had a similar train of thought about alcohol.
How many pregnant women had I sold beer or wine to?
How many women void of compassion for their unborn child had put me in the awkward and uncomfortable position of addiction supplier?
I have no interest in playing enabler, especially when the result is the harming of a human that is unable to defend itself from the barrage of carcinogens and immeasurable defects, stunted growth, facial abnormalities, central nervous system problems and mental retardation, to name a few.
I know that clerks at my store are allowed to refuse service if a customer is being unreasonably angry or rude, but I knew nothing about the policy on refusing to sell cigarettes and alcohol to an individual that meets the legal age requirements.
My manager was not present, so I decided instead to take a look at the legal side of the spectrum. I pulled out my phone and did a little research to find out if I was legally allowed to refuse service to a visibly pregnant woman attempting to purchase tobacco and/or alcohol products.
Sure enough, there are no laws that make it legal for a clerk to refuse to sell alcohol and/or tobacco to visibly pregnant women. The decision is left up to the business. If the business has a “We reserve the right to refuse service” sign, then the discretion is left up to the employee and would then have to be validated to the manager or owner.
However, I have read on several online forums, such as one on expertlaw.com, that refusing service to a pregnant woman could be seen as an act of discrimination, similar to declining service to someone because of sexual orientation or ethnicity, in which case the matter could end up in civil court.
Under ORS 471.551, all retail alcohol licenses require retailers to “post the pregnancy warning sign at the entrance to your business or at all points of sale.” The sign bears the message: “Pregnancy & Alcohol DO NOT MIX. Drinking alcoholic beverages, including wine, coolers, and beer during pregnancy can cause birth defects.”
There is no such sign, however, warning about the effects of tabacco. The warnings are placed on the packs themselves, that are hardly noticed as the pack is torn open in a frenzy.
Now, obviously I am not able to put myself in the exact mindset of a pregnant woman, but I like to think if I was caring for another human being growing inside of me that depended on everything I did and put into my body, I might be able to overcome my addiction. I know that the physical effects of addiction are strong and severe and difficult to overcome, but the well-being of an unborn child should always supersede one’s own selfish choices.
I realize it is not my place to judge others; my job is to shut up and give the customers what they want. However, it is my place to judge myself. I should have the choice to opt out of being in the situation of contributing to the harm of an unborn child. Unfortunately, I do not have the financial freedom to question the type of employment that I place myself in, but I should have the ethical freedom to question the types of customers that I do, or do not, serve.
There is one more piece of legislature which deserves some discussion: according to ORS 471.412, it is against the law to sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person, as he or she is not able to mentally make viable health decisions on their own behalf. The same could also be said of selling to pregnant women. If a woman is willing to drink or smoke while pregnant, it seems to me that they either don’t know about the inherent dangers on their unborn child, or they don’t care. Both cases provide an argument that she is not mentally able to make practical health decisions for her unborn child. A lack of education or empathy is, in my opinion, good cause to allow me to refuse service.
