‘I have to tell y’all no’: Walmart picker reveals the little-known reason they won’t give you substitutions for your items

A Walmart worker wants customers to know it's absolutely not their fault whenever shoppers don't receive substitutions for items that are out of stock.

In a viral video with over 406,900 views as of this writing, TikToker Promise The Mermaid (@promisethemermaid) showed how substituting items can be tricky.

Many may be quick to blame workers for their incomplete orders, but this clip shows that there is more to the story.

Here's why you may not receive substitutions

Those familiar with ordering groceries online understand that products may sometimes be out of stock.

Whenever that happens, shoppers anticipate they will be provided with a substitution.

However, it appears that Walmart's system may make the substitution process difficult.

"I'm picking groceries for Walmart," the woman began, "and I just want y'all to see it's not always the associate's fault."

The shopper showed off a customer's order that included a pack of Great Value Taco Seasoning Original.

"And we don't have it," the worker explained.

The closest item she could find within the original's price range was another pack of Great Value Taco Seasoning Mix that had different packaging.

When the worker tried to scan the item, she received an error message from the system that indicated the item was not a valid substitution. The same thing happened when she tried to scan other packs of taco seasoning.

"So I kind of just have to tell y'all no because I've sat here and scanned all of these seasonings, and not one of them will work," she explained.

Customers are sometimes unhappy with substitutions

The Daily Dot has previously reported on many customers being shocked by the substitutions they received when items were out of stock.

One woman called out her male Instacart shopper after he made substitutions that seemed to make little sense. For example, he purchased one large orange to substitute a bag of clementines and a single cucumber to replace a bag of mini ones.

Male Instacart shoppers have even been accused of using "weaponized incompetence" to avoid working hard.

Another customer said her shopper substituted kiwis for lemons.

@promisethemermaid send help!!! it should go to the exceptions team and we pray they can force one to go out ???????? btw this isn't my department I'm just a helper #instacartshopper #shipit #walmart #fyp #grocerydelivery #deliverydriver #fypシ ♬ original sound - Promise The Mermaid????????‍♀️

Viewers respond

In the video's comments section, many were relieved to find out the system was to blame and not workers.

"Thank you for this because I be thinking they just don’t wanna look," user SimplyUnBothered commented.

"This definitely made me feel a lot better because I thought Walmart just hated me," user Anna wrote.

Others urged Walmart to fix the issue.

"Seems like Walmart needs to fix this issue. I shop for instacart and that system allows us to substitute whatever we choose," user Renee Mapes said.

The Daily Dot reached out to Promise The Mermaid by TikTok comment and direct message and Walmart by contact form for comment.

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The post ‘I have to tell y’all no’: Walmart picker reveals the little-known reason they won’t give you substitutions for your items appeared first on The Daily Dot.