Are US Retail Workers Calling It Quits?

According to a recent Bloomberg report, retail employees in the U.S. are "fed up and quitting at record rates."

A McKinsey study from 2022 found that the quit rate for retail and hospitality workers is over 70% higher than the overall U.S. quit rate. "Low pay, erratic schedules and monotonous tasks have long been a challenge for the nearly 8 million Americans working in retail," Bloomberg noted, but things have been on a downward spiral since the pandemic.

Following health and safety issues, customer orneriness, and an increased onslaught in fulfilling online and curbside pickup orders, retail associates must now take on the brunt of shoplifting incidents sweeping the nation. This has caused somewhat of an exodus of retail workers who are choosing to quit their jobs.

There has been a distinct rise in the potential danger that employees have to face while working for retailers. Even if they obey company policy and avoid interactions with shoplifters, they might still be attacked, as in the case of an elderly woman “who’s had products being lobbed at her from the next aisle over while she’s straightening up,” according to NJ Pen.

Bloomberg stated that “nearly four out of five companies have seen a rise in ‘guest-on-associate violence’ over the last five years," per a recent survey from the National Retail Federation.

Additionally, Fast Company reported that “one-third of frontline workers felt unsafe at their jobs last year, while 40% are more worried about physical safety than they were a year ago. Last year, 76% of employers had a security incident, with 80% of banking and healthcare reporting an incident,” according to a study done by Verkada.

The study also notes how a “quarter of people have turned down job opportunities because they were worried about their safety, and over 50% of frontline employees say they plan to quit within the next year if their employers don’t improve safety.”

Adding to employees’ frustrations, USA Today shared that many stores have begun locking up a majority of their products in protective cases. This adds further work for retail associates, which can prove frustrating and time-consuming as they run from aisle to aisle, unlocking various products. It also risks putting them in direct contact with anyone planning to steal those products.

Smaller retailers have helped their employees by providing special de-escalation training to help them handle angry, frustrated, and rude customers. Fortunately, this "kind of training has become more widespread, but Patrick Fennell, an assistant professor of marketing at Kennesaw State University, has found that less than 65% of lower-level-employees have received such instruction. That compares to 82% of managers."

If turnover stays as high as it currently is — 95% for part-time retail workers "who make up the bulk of the in-store work force," per Bloomberg — staffing shortages might be imminent, and this could lead to shortened store hours, according to Nasdaq. Already, stores like Costco are relying more on self-checkout lanes, while McDonald’s and Chipotle have reduced hours in many locations due to staff shortages.

Having fewer workers in a store may also cause the employees who remain to feel more overworked and stressed, which could lead to a poor customer experience. Hopefully, with the projected holiday hiring season just around the corner and more measures being taken against retail theft, things will turn around before retail stores find themselves sold out of employees.