Put the Frontline First. I Mean it.
In 2020, the frontline workers heard that they mattered and were shown appreciation for keeping economies from falling apart.
That changed quickly.
Everyone shifted into reverse once the world began to open the tiniest bit.
“Oh, yes. We do appreciate you. But we’d like to go back to the status quo, pay you meager wages, and work you too hard. That’s fine, right?”
This disappointing message was the overall sentiment everywhere.
During the pandemic, did you get hazard pay for working in a grocery store? Well, it got taken away. Companies made record profits but left their people (who showed up every day and risked their lives so that others could have food) out in the cold.
In 2023, we need to do better.
Just-in-Time is Not Working
Companies need to start paying their frontline leaders more and listening to what they need. They may need extra people on their floor.
Check out this comment I got recently on one of my posts –
“We are run ragged on a daily basis helping multiple customers at a time. I barely sit down to take a bite of my sandwich before I’m called to help in the department. It’s constantly a chaotic madhouse, yet we are “fully staffed” and using all of our budget.”
(Read that a few times and let it sink in. Did you get to sit down for lunch?)
I know; this is how retail works. Stores are budgeted at 100% at all times, so there is no wasted spending. It’s called “just-in-time” scheduling. It requires people to work at their max every single day.
But is this still working? Did it ever?
Yes, this is the business model we’ve handed leaders all these years, but we can absolutely change it.
The Call-in Shift
Remember the call-in shift? If you’ve worked in retail for a while, you know it. We’d schedule call-in shifts during peak hours. Associates would call the store two hours before their shift to see if we wanted them to come in. That way, we’d have extra support if someone called out sick or if we got a rush we didn’t expect.
The call-in shift was problematic for employees. Sure, most of my teenage staff didn’t mind them so much, but what if you need to arrange a ride or child care? Pretty hard to do with two hours’ notice.
Even the wording was precarious. We called the shifts “call-in,” not “on-call.” If you’re on-call, we have to pay you even if you don’t work. If you’re call-in, we don’t.
See?
In 2015 most retailers did away with the practice because Victoria’s Secret was being sued over it. I was concerned when we got word that we couldn’t schedule like this anymore. Call-in shifts saved our butts so many times. However, call-in shifts were not my favorite when I was an associate. Just give me my schedule so I can plan my life, please. I understood the complaints.
We adapted to business without the call-in shift. Now, we need to adapt again.
Just-in-Time is Not Sustainable
In the book Out of Office, authors Warzel and Petersen explore the ecosystem of work – past, present, and future.
How did we get here? What’s working? How can we make it better?
It’s a fantastic read – one I highly recommend. This quote about just-in-time scheduling is on target –
“…this type of scheduling wreaks havoc on retail workers’ mental health; it’s not sustainable to operate at full capacity for an entire shift. And when a rush of customers, unanticipated by the algorithm arrives, customers wait longer and get crankier, quality plummets, and stress goes through the roof. Everything goes to shit.”
“…when you have high turnover and burnout rates, you end up spending a whole lot of money on hiring, on training, and on medical bills.”
Their advice? Hire enough employees so that self-care is possible.
“It’s constantly a chaotic madhouse, yet we are “fully staffed” and using all of our budget.”
Change What No Longer Works
The way retail is structured operationally isn’t working anymore. When I had a full staff, it barely worked. As the commenter said above, “It’s constantly a chaotic madhouse, yet we are “fully staffed” and using all of our budget.”
Yes, I was “fully staffed” also but not when other stores weren’t. District leaders would pull from my store to cover other stores. Support leaders didn’t get the needed development because they were being shuffled to cover elsewhere.
An extra part-time key holder would’ve done wonders for my stress level, the development of the entire team, and customer support across the board.
What we’re doing now needs to be fixed. Will 2023 be the year we change it?
Or will companies continue the just-in-time scheduling model and work their frontline teams into the ground?
If you think union organizing will go away and people will continue to show up every day to a place where they feel overworked, overwhelmed, and exhausted – for a paycheck that barely covers their rent, you’ve got another thing coming.
It’s time to make careers work for people.
Companies, use your record pandemic profits and do something good. Let your stores hire help. Your customers will be thrilled, you’ll look like a hero, and you’re more likely to retain the talent you currently have.
During the pandemic we were forced to make decisions we never thought we’d make. We did it. We survived. Time to do it again – this time by choice.
No more excuses – it’s a new year – make change happen.
About Kit
Kit Campoy is a former retail professional turned freelance writer. She writes about Leadership, Retail, and Web3. Contact Kit for your content needs.