Narrative:

Upon landing we taxied to [assigned] spot awaiting for the assigned gate. Once the outbound plane was clear we taxied up to and held short of the safety diamond awaiting ground personnel. Upon arrival the lead marshaler haphazardly attempted to marshal us in; during which time she attempted to indicate that she desired the aircraft to enter a left turn. However; her arms were not positioned in a uniform fashion; or remotely close to what one would expect to have from proper signaling technique. So much so that the wand in her right hand was completely pointed behind her perpendicular to the ground. The wand was not visible to this flight crew from the flight deck; at this point; I discontinued the taxi; and informed the ramp tower that I would be unable to move until I received the proper signals; and were able to see the wand.once the ground agent returned her wand to a visible location I continued the taxi. However; it was at this point that the ground agent allowed her unprofessionalism to put the aircraft and its crew and passengers well-being in jeopardy. Almost immediately after I began taxiing; it was an apparent frustration with me stopping; and refusing to follow her unapproved marshaling style she very rapidly; abruptly and with no just cause signal an immediate stop by throwing an 'X.' the ground agent did this without just cause. There were no immediate threats within the safety diamond; behind; in front of; or adjacent to the aircraft. Clearly; in the interest of safety; I immediately and without hesitation complied with the stop signal. Eventually; she indicated the proper technique for the aircraft to continue. Upon stopping; I requested to speak to a ramp manager; I waited for nearly 45 minutes and no manager showed up.it is my belief that the haphazard approach that is given to the ground operations is a severe risk to the liability of our company; but more importantly; to the safety of our passengers; crewmembers and other personnel.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CRJ-900 Captain reported a ramp agent not following SOP during marshaling.

Narrative: Upon landing we taxied to [assigned] spot awaiting for the assigned gate. Once the outbound plane was clear we taxied up to and held short of the safety diamond awaiting ground personnel. Upon arrival the lead marshaler haphazardly attempted to marshal us in; during which time she attempted to indicate that she desired the aircraft to enter a left turn. However; her arms were not positioned in a uniform fashion; or remotely close to what one would expect to have from proper signaling technique. So much so that the wand in her right hand was completely pointed behind her perpendicular to the ground. The wand was not visible to this flight crew from the flight deck; at this point; I discontinued the taxi; and informed the ramp tower that I would be unable to move until I received the proper signals; and were able to see the wand.Once the ground agent returned her wand to a visible location I continued the taxi. However; it was at this point that the ground agent allowed her unprofessionalism to put the aircraft and its crew and passengers well-being in jeopardy. Almost immediately after I began taxiing; it was an apparent frustration with me stopping; and refusing to follow her unapproved marshaling style she very rapidly; abruptly and with no just cause signal an immediate stop by throwing an 'X.' The ground agent did this without just cause. There were no immediate threats within the safety diamond; behind; in front of; or adjacent to the aircraft. Clearly; in the interest of safety; I immediately and without hesitation complied with the stop signal. Eventually; she indicated the proper technique for the aircraft to continue. Upon stopping; I requested to speak to a ramp manager; I waited for nearly 45 minutes and no manager showed up.It is my belief that the haphazard approach that is given to the ground operations is a severe risk to the liability of our company; but more importantly; to the safety of our passengers; crewmembers and other personnel.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.