I made a delivery to the BCD office in Campbelltown. The delivery instructions specified: "BCD Level 1 - Meet in Lobby." As a delivery driver, I encounter many different building layouts, so I assumed there was a main reception or lobby area on Level 1, as indicated in the instructions. Upon entering the building, I was greeted by a receptionist and another worker who arrived at the same time as me. They attempted to contact the female staff member I was delivering to. A few moments later, she arrived and, in an entitled tone, said, "You were supposed to meet me in the lobby." She avoided eye contact, was extremely dismissive using her phone when interacting with me, and conveyed a sense of superiority through her tone, body language, and overall demeanor. I apologized for any misunderstanding and explained that I had assumed there was a separate waiting area on Level 1, as some buildings do have designated lobbies on different floors. However, she completely dismissed my explanation, appearing visibly annoyed. In an overly condescending tone, as though she were speaking to a five-year-old who couldn’t follow basic instructions, she stated, "No, the lobby is downstairs." It was clear she had no interest in understanding the miscommunication and instead wanted to assert dominance over the situation. After returning to my vehicle, my colleague informed me that the same staff member had initially approached our car in an aggressive manner, demanding, "Do you have my order?" without so much as a greeting or introduction. As my colleague tried to respond, the staff member was on her phone, dismissively engaging in the conversation without giving her full attention. When my colleague informed her that the delivery was being made to Level 1 as per the app instructions, she huffed in annoyance and aggression and went upstairs—where I later had the unpleasant interaction with her. This situation was a simple case of miscommunication, which could have been resolved with basic professionalism and courtesy. As an organization that serves vulnerable communities, I would expect BCD staff to demonstrate a higher level of compassion and kindness in all interactions. However, this experience left me feeling as though, because I am a delivery driver rather than a paying customer, I did not deserve the same respect. While this particular incident does not reflect or assess BCD's core services, it did occur within their workplace, during business hours, involving a BCD employee. I hope the organization takes steps to educate staff on the importance of treating all individuals—whether clients, delivery personnel, or the general public—with respect. How staff handle small miscommunications speaks volumes about how they might treat actual clients facing more significant challenges. I did contact BCD’s feedback department and spoke with a very kind and professional representative. She assured me that the matter would be addressed internally but based on my previous experience working in this sector, I understand that there may be limitations to what can be done, especially if this is embedded in the workplace culture. That said, based on my interaction with the rude staff member, I assume this is how she regularly treats others and, as a result, will not care about this feedback, may not even see anything she did as wrong, or even see this as insignificant due to her lack of empathy. Regardless of whether she takes accountability for her actions or not, I genuinely hope that whatever stress she is going through, she is okay. Nonetheless, I encourage BCD to reinforce empathy, compassion, and kindness as fundamental values in staff training. At the very least, every individual interacting with BCD staff during work hours should be treated with basic courtesy. UPDATE: I’m disappointed by BCD’s response. The instructions were "BCD Level 1 - Meet in Lobby," not "Meeting in the Lobby Downstairs". While diplomatic, the response lacked an authentic apology for the workers unkind behavior - only sorry you felt this happened.
