MEDIA ALERT AND RELEASE - SDA launches new campaign and 5-Point Plan to tackle retail's psychosocial safety crisis
SDA - The Union for Workers in Retail. Fast Food. Warehousing
The SDA – the Union for workers in retail, fast food and warehousing, has launched a new campaign and 5-Point Plan in response to alarming new research that reveals the retail industry is under pressure with unacceptable psychosocial risks, from understaffing, to excessive workloads, poor workplace change management and increased customer abuse, placing workers at very high risk of harm.
The Under Pressure: The Hidden Cost of Retail report, based on a survey of more than 11,000 retail workers across nine sectors, revealed the extent of the crisis:
- 77% of workers are at high risk of harm from psychosocial hazards
- 72% report burnout – twice the rate across other industries
- 58% report very low well-being
- 49% intend to resign
- Only 6% would recommend their workplace to others
Inadequate staffing was the number one hazard across the sector, followed by other major risks including customer aggression, work overload, low job control and poor change management.
SDA National Secretary Gerard Dwyer said the research should be a call to action for government, employers and regulators.
“Retail is Australia’s second largest employing industry and the first job for many young people.
“Yet our research shows it is an industry under pressure with workers facing significant psychosocial risks.
“Understaffed, facing unsustainable workloads and rising customer aggression amidst a wave of technology-driven workplace changes, is driving stress, fatigue and burnout on a scale that is both unacceptable, unsustainable and unsafe. Psychosocial risks are work health and safety risks and need to be addressed.
“This isn’t just bad for workers, it’s bad for business. Unsafe, unsustainable workplaces mean higher turnover, higher absenteeism and lower productivity. We need urgent, industry-wide action.”
To tackle these risks, the SDA is launching a new campaign and 5-Point Plan for Promoting Psychosocial Safety, developed in collaboration with evidence-based research and extensive consultation with frontline workers. The plan calls for:
- Safe staffing levels – enough workers with the right skills to do the job safely, with adequate hours and coverage at peak times or when staff are absent.
- Sustainable workloads – realistic task expectations, with technology used to support workers, not intensify their workload.
- Support for frontline workers – proper training, clear role expectations, effective supervision and proactive responses to customer abuse.
- Consultation on workplace change – genuine engagement with workers and their union before changes are made, backed by thorough risk assessments.
- Collaborative work design – involving workers in the design of new technologies, processes and layouts to ensure changes improve jobs rather than undermine them.
Mr Dwyer said the SDA’s plan aligns with Safe Work Australia’s Code of Practice for managing psychosocial hazards and provides a practical framework for creating safer, more productive workplaces.
“We’re calling on government and business to work together with our Union to implement these changes.
“Better retail workplaces start with safe staffing levels and sustainable workloads. Listening to and supporting frontline workers reduces psychosocial risks and benefits everyone - workers, businesses and customers alike” Mr Dwyer said.
DOWNLOAD THE FULL RESEARCH REPORT HERE
UNDER PRESSURE – THE VOICES OF RETAIL WORKERS
Inadequate staffing
“We had an understaffing experience where we had our roster completely cut down to save on budget. We then ran out of pretty much every single product, as we also had some staff simply no-show at the store, which ended up with me pretty much running the entire store by myself on a Sunday with just two other people.” – Izzy, retail worker
“It has a very poor mental and physical impact, with more staff getting injured. Not being able to physically or mentally take on the information required to be safe to provide proper service” – Gayle, supermarket worker
Customer abuse
“It’s pretty bad. I’m abused by customers daily for not having enough staff. People get angry that there aren’t more of us to help, and they take it out on us. They come to the counter, can’t find staff, and there’s nothing we can do because we’re already dealing with a massive line of customers”– Kiara, supermarket worker
“We know who the aggressive customers are, and we just can’t approach them at all” – Helen, supermarket worker
Work overload
“You’re constantly jumping from one department to another trying to get everything done, and you just feel like at the end of the day, everything weighs on you, that you can’t get the job done”- Levi, supermarket worker
“We’ve lost a couple of young ones, it’s too much for them, but I’ve lost three senior operators. I don’t want to deal with it anymore” – Helen, supermarket worker
Lack of support
“It’s just absolutely exhausting. There are days where I just don’t want to go into work because I know it’s going to be busy, I know it’s going to be understaffed.” – Kiara, retail worker
“In the last ten years everything has changed. The workload has exploded, we’re short of staff, and we’re expected to pack, move, twist and lift fast. They want everything done so quickly. Even when I was injured, they pushed me to keep up as if nothing had happened” - Ahmed, supermarket worker
MEDIA ALERT
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WHAT |
The SDA – The Union for workers in Retail, Warehousing and Fast Food Workers will launch Under Pressure – The Hidden Cost of Retail, a major new research report and campaign highlighting the unprecedented pressure facing workers in retail today, the rise in psychosocial hazards and our 5-Point Plan for safe and healthy workplaces.
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WHO |
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WHEN |
12:30 pm Tuesday 26 August |
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WHERE |
The Mural Hall Parliament House, Canberra
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MEDIA CONTACT |
Media: Darren Rodrigo – 0414 783 405
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Contact details:
Darren Rodrigo – 0414 783 405 or [email protected]