The Work Bench · Retail Salespersons

Keep up with promotions and policies

The task, from O*NET: Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices.

Typical length 25 minutes. Time split: documents 50%, in person 50%. About 472,305,255 hours a year of desk work across the US go to this task.

Passes, one attempt by Claude Fable 5.1. The rubric was written 2026-10-01 03:24 UTC, before the attempt (2026-10-01 03:40 UTC); the grade came last (2026-10-01 03:47 UTC).

One attempt at one task on one date, with constructed material: it is not a statement that the job, or this task in a given workplace, can be done by AI. The rubric, the attempt and the grade were made by the same model in one session, in that order; a person's check of a sample of grades will be published beside them.

The brief

You are a sales associate at Fairmont Home & Garden, a mid-size hardware and garden store. Before Saturday's opening the floor lead has handed you three updates: this week's promotions sheet, a memo changing the return policy, and a loss-prevention notice. You have about 25 minutes to read them and produce two things. First, the two-minute huddle notes you will read to the four associates on your shift: what changed and what they must say to customers. Second, a one-page register card for taping at each register: the promotion codes and exclusions, the mulch deal, the loyalty extra, the price-match rule, and the return rules by category. Use only what is in the sheets. Where the sheets conflict with each other, flag it for the lead rather than guessing.

The material

Constructed for this example; the names, figures and documents are invented.

PROMOTIONS SHEET, week of October 5 to 11
- 20% off all patio furniture and umbrellas (department 42). Code PATIO20. Excludes clearance (yellow tags) and special orders.
- Buy two, get one free on 2-cubic-foot bags of mulch, any color (SKU family 11-xxx). The free bag is the lowest priced. Limit 9 bags per customer.
- $15 off any power tool over $99 (department 18), code TOOL15. One per transaction. Cannot be combined with the manufacturer rebate on the blue-label drills.
- Loyalty members get an extra 5% on the patio promotion when their card is scanned. Not on mulch or tools.
- Price match (unchanged policy, restated): we match a local competitor's advertised price on an identical in-stock item, shown on the printed ad or the competitor's website that day. No match on clearance items or on marketplace sellers.
- Footnote at the bottom of the sheet: 'Patio special orders placed this week also qualify for PATIO20 if paid in full at the time of order.'

RETURN POLICY MEMO, effective October 5
- Returns with a receipt: 90 days for a full refund to the original payment method. Unchanged.
- Returns without a receipt: store credit only, at the lowest selling price of the item in the last 90 days, and a photo ID is recorded. Previously cash up to $50. Maximum three no-receipt returns per customer per year.
- Power equipment (mowers, trimmers, generators): 30 days, unused, in the original box. Used equipment goes to the service desk, not the register.
- Live plants: trees and shrubs, one year with receipt (unchanged). Annuals and vegetable plants are now final sale.
- Special orders: 20% restocking fee unless the item is defective. New.

LOSS PREVENTION NOTICE, October 3
- Two incidents last week of tag switching on power tools: yellow clearance tags moved onto full-price drills. On every yellow-tag sale in department 18, check that the SKU on the clearance tag matches the SKU printed on the box.
- The receipt check at the exit for any unbagged item over $75 continues.
- Do not confront or follow a suspected shoplifter. Call the manager on duty on channel 2.

The rubric, written before the attempt

1. The huddle notes cover every change: the three promotions with their exclusions, the loyalty extra, the no-receipt return rule (store credit at the lowest 90-day price, ID recorded, three a year), annuals and vegetables final sale, the special-order restocking fee, the power-equipment rule, and the tag-switching check. Evidence: All of those items appear in the huddle notes.
2. The register card is a usable one-page reference: codes PATIO20 and TOOL15 with their exclusions, the mulch mechanics (lowest-priced bag free, limit 9), the loyalty 5% on patio only, the price-match rule with its two exclusions, and the return rules by category. Evidence: Each item is on the card in short form.
3. The conflict between 'excludes special orders' and the footnote on patio special orders is flagged for the lead, not resolved by the associate. Evidence: An explicit flag naming both lines and asking the lead to rule.
4. The loss-prevention instructions are stated correctly: match the clearance tag's SKU to the box SKU on every yellow-tag power tool sale; the receipt check for unbagged items over $75; never confront or follow, call the manager on channel 2. Evidence: All three present, with the never-confront rule intact.
5. Nothing is invented: no promotions, dates, percentages or policies beyond the three sheets. Evidence: Every figure and rule traces to the material.
6. The huddle notes can be spoken in about two minutes and are in plain words. Evidence: Roughly 220 to 340 words, short sentences, no jargon.

The attempt, one pass, unedited

Claude Fable 5.1, written 2026-10-01 03:40 UTC from the brief and the material only.

HUDDLE NOTES (read to the shift, about two minutes)

Good morning. Three updates before we open.

Promotions this week, October 5 to 11. Patio furniture and umbrellas, department 42, are 20% off with code PATIO20. It excludes yellow-tag clearance and special orders. Loyalty members get an extra 5% on patio when we scan their card, patio only. Mulch, the 2-cubic-foot bags: buy two, get one free, any color, the free bag is the lowest priced, limit nine bags per customer. Power tools over $99 in department 18: $15 off with code TOOL15, one per transaction, and it cannot be combined with the manufacturer rebate on the blue-label drills. Price match is unchanged: identical in-stock item, a local competitor's printed ad or website from today, no match on clearance or marketplace sellers.

Returns changed today. With a receipt, nothing changes: 90 days, full refund to the original payment. Without a receipt, it is now store credit only, at the lowest price the item sold for in the last 90 days, and we record a photo ID; no more cash up to $50. A customer can do three no-receipt returns a year. Power equipment, mowers, trimmers, generators: 30 days, unused, in the original box; anything used goes to the service desk, not the register. Trees and shrubs still have one year with a receipt, but annuals and vegetable plants are now final sale, so say that at the register when you ring them. Special orders now carry a 20% restocking fee unless the item is defective.

Loss prevention. Last week someone moved yellow clearance tags onto full-price drills, twice. On every yellow-tag sale in department 18, check that the SKU on the tag matches the SKU printed on the box before you ring it. The exit receipt check continues for any unbagged item over $75. And as always: never confront or follow anyone you suspect; call the manager on duty on channel 2.

One question for the lead: the promotions sheet says PATIO20 excludes special orders, but the footnote says patio special orders placed this week qualify if paid in full at order. Until the lead rules, tell customers we will confirm.

REGISTER CARD, week of October 5 to 11

Codes
- PATIO20: 20% off patio furniture and umbrellas (dept 42). Not on yellow-tag clearance. Special orders: ask the lead (the sheet and its footnote disagree).
- TOOL15: $15 off any power tool over $99 (dept 18). One per transaction. Not with the manufacturer rebate on blue-label drills.
- Mulch, 2 cu ft bags: buy 2, get 1 free, any color. Free bag is the lowest priced. Limit 9 per customer. No code.
- Loyalty: extra 5% on PATIO20 items with the card scanned. Not on mulch, not on tools.

Price match
- Identical item, in stock, local competitor's printed ad or website shown today. No match on clearance or marketplace sellers.

Returns, from October 5
- With receipt: 90 days, full refund to the original payment.
- No receipt: store credit only, at the lowest selling price of the last 90 days. Record a photo ID. Maximum 3 per customer per year.
- Power equipment: 30 days, unused, original box. Used: send to the service desk.
- Trees and shrubs: 1 year with receipt. Annuals and vegetables: final sale.
- Special orders: 20% restocking fee unless defective.

Yellow tags in dept 18
- Tag SKU must match the box SKU. If it does not, call the manager on channel 2. Never confront or follow.
- Exit receipt check: unbagged items over $75.

The grade

Graded 2026-10-01 03:47 UTC against the rubric above, by the same model.

Overall: passes. Complete and faithful. The huddle notes run long for two minutes if read slowly; the register card is tight. The attempt caught the planted conflict and left it to the lead.

How the examples are made and graded: the method. Every task of this job, with its length and when it comes within reach: Retail Salespersons.