Singaporeans spill insider secrets about their previous jobs you probably wished you knew

If you're in the habit of buying breads and buns that are placed in the innermost rows of shelves with the thinking that they are fresher, you may be on the right track. 

"It's true that the freshest buns or breads are placed behind instead of in front," said Anne*, who once held a job at a bakery chain in Singapore.

And if you want to get your baked goods for cheap, it pays to go to the shop within the hour or half an hour before they close. Some confectionery shops will hawk their baked goods at a steal to avoid having to bin them, or worse, put them up for sale again the next day (yes, it happens).

One perk about being in a particular job, especially in the retail or customer service industry, is being privy to information that others probably wouldn't know. So we mined some of those around us for information on the jobs they held previously, not just for the goss, but to glean some useful tips as well.

We have to add though, that some of these jobs were dabbled in years back and practices may have changed. 

*Not their real names

SUBWAY HACK

"My husband used to work at Subway up till recently, and people may not know that you can actually ask for the dressing for your sandwich to be packed separately. This way, your sub won't be soggy if you choose to eat it much later. Not many people know that you can actually ask for a maximum of three sauces to be put on your sandwich, too.

"And it's terrible, but people have also requested for the buns to be hollowed out, maybe for a 'low-carb' option, or so that more veggies can be stuffed into the sandwich. But it really creates unnecessary work for staff (not to mention a waste of food) and I wouldn't recommend it." - Candice

GET CAKES FROM THE FRIDGE, NOT THE DISPLAY

"[In cases where the sales staff will have to select the confectionery for you] always request for the cakes placed at the front of the display [nearest to the customer] as there is a higher chance of them being from a later batch.

"And to ensure that you get a whole cake with a longer expiration date, request for cakes from the fridge and not the display." - Tricia*

ONLINE TICKETING TOO FIDDLY? CALL THEM FOR THE BEST SEATS

"I used to work part-time at the call centre for an online ticketing agent many years ago when I was studying. While it was a commonly used channel for buying tickets, what many didn't know was that we could select the seats for customers from our system. This was unlike buying from the website where you can only select the section you want.

"Well, I obviously tried to pick the best seats possible every time, but if customers were being rude, I'd just let the website do the selection for me." - Bryan

MORE SAUCE, PLEASE

"When you dine at Fish & Co, you can always ask for the garlic butter sauce that's used to cook their garlic lemon butter mussels. Servers won't automatically offer it, but customers can always make the request and they will have to bring it to you.

"And if you are finicky and want freshly fried fries instead of spuds that could have been cooked in a huge batch a while ago, try requesting for fries without any of the spice powder that's usually sprinkled over it." - Ilyas

INSTANT FOOD AT RESTAURANTS

"I waitressed at a Japanese restaurant more than 10 years back, where I learnt that not all things, such as miso soup, and some sushi toppings, are made from scratch.

"Processes may have been improved, but I wouldn't take sushi from the conveyor belt as it may have been sitting there for a while. You can actually order it from the menu instead. But you'd have to watch the server like a hawk to ensure he doesn't simply take the item from the belt and serve it to you.

"Also, if your order is taking a while to come, it may be because the chef is cooking a large batch of the same item to save them time." - Min Lee

BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU LEAVE YOUR PRINTS

"I had a temp job at a photo print shop in 1996, where I developed rolls of film and printed the images out one by one based on their light exposure. Meaning, I see all your photos (it's a great job for voyeurs, by the way.)

"Once, a tourist sent a roll for processing, and one of the photos was of a woman lying naked in a bathtub. I mentioned it to my supervisor, who 'confiscated' the print and told me not to print a second copy for the tourist.

"Tip: Use a digital camera, or buy your own printer. If you're the artsy-fartsy sort and like old-school roll films, don't take any shots that you don't want others to see." - Kar Peng

WHEN IT PAYS TO PAY MORE

"I used to work at an e-commerce site that sells luxury bags and we'll have to take the bags out of the dust bags to inspect and take measurements.

"Due to the lack of space, the bags may end up on the floor, lined up beside our desks. When moving around in our chairs, the wheels would sometimes roll over these bags, especially the smaller-ticket items that come in large quantities.

"The higher-priced items (such as Hermes or Chanel) or small leather goods usually come in smaller batches and can be placed on our desk without obstructing us and won't end up on the floor.

"So I'd say be wary of 'rough handling' when you buy products online, but that could be said of what happens at brick-and-mortar shops as well, just without the benefit of on-site inspection. A good thing is that returns within a certain timeframe after purchasing an item online are usually entertained." - Jamie*

candicecai@asiaone.com