People Unveil The Sad Truth On How Working In Retail Has Changed Since The ’80s And ’90s
Interview
In this fast-paced world, change is inevitable. And when it happens, we’re often left wondering what else the future holds or maybe reminiscing about something it has already changed.
Members of the ‘Antiwork’ community recently took a trip down memory lane, comparing working in retail now and back in the late ’80s and early ’90s. They discussed what changed most, in their opinion, after this redditor suggested employees had it better back in the day.
Bored Panda turned to Dave Wendland, the Vice President of Strategic Relations at Hamacher Resource Group, to discuss the change in the retail industry over the last decades, and he was kind enough to answer a few of our questions. Scroll down to find his thoughts in the text below, where you will also find more information provided to Bored Panda by the OP during a recent interview.
Like most jobs, working in retail, too, has its ups and downs
Image credits: MART PRODUCTION (not the actual photo)
This redditor believes working in retail back in the late ’80s and early ’90s had more ups than downs compared to now
Image credits: Oxana Melis (not the actual photo)
Image credits: sq lim (not the actual photo)
Image credits: YepperyYepstein
The ever-developing technology is likely to evoke certain changes in regards to working in retail
When discussing what changed the most regarding working in retail, the Vice President of Strategic Relations at Hamacher Resource Group, Dave Wendland, emphasized four things, the first one being that today’s retail staff must be technically savvy.
“Having the ability to take on increasing amounts (and varied) responsibilities is paramount,” he said, referring to the second point. “Willingness to learn and embrace reskilling has become an imperative, too. Lastly, given staffing shortages (especially in the U.S.), demands on time, work schedules, and daily tasks have become more demanding.”
As for the possible changes in the future, the expert believes they are most likely to be related to technological developments. “Technology, in particular artificial intelligence, will play an increasingly important role in retail as it relates to repetitive tasks such as planogram compliance, inventory management, and price management. Additionally, the growing importance of eCommerce makes the requirement of retail to address consistency across various platforms and customer-facing interactions.”
Image credits: Karolina Grabowska (not the actual photo)
The OP felt like companies are running on the exhaust fumes of their former selves
“I wanted to find out if my suspicions were true that a noteworthy decline in working conditions and worker rights has taken place,” the OP told Bored Panda, revealing what made them start a discussion on the topic.
“Most retail workers now look demoralized and corporations all feel like they are running on the exhaust fumes of their former selves. Everything is deliberately short-staffed, staff often are scrambling to get everything done, and the focus just seems to be about shareholder profits.”
“It feels like corporations are neglecting both the employee and now even the customer, and focusing solely on its climb to the top,” the OP added. “My asking people about conditions was meant to find out if retail has always felt soulless and bare bones or if my memories of happier employees and more adequately staffed stores were potentially accurate.”
A recent survey by ResumeBuilder.com revealed that during the last holiday season, for instance, as many as 86% of retailers typically hiring seasonal staff were understaffed. Last year Forbes reported that, according to the vice chair of Deloitte, Rod Sides, the biggest pain point for retailers was at the store level, as roughly 74% expected employee shortages in customer-facing positioning.
Image credits: Jose Ismael Espinola (not the actual photo)
Some companies might not have enough employees to provide the customer with the best experience
Forbes pointed out that retailers nowadays are running fairly lean. That means they can’t provide the client with the best customer service, which might encourage the latter to turn to online shopping instead. To make matters worse, some stores nowadays might simply not be able to cater to the customers’ demand.
When it comes to what has changed about working in retail in regards to the clientele, the OP believes that the development of technology is likely to have had a cascading effect on clients’ behavior, consequently affecting the workers in retail.
“I believe people want a wider variety of options now, and more quickly than in the past,” they pointed out. “This change may have prompted corporations to adapt to continue to compete and have skin in the game, which has been taken out on the workers in the form of stripping everything to the bare bones.”
Image credits: Alexander Kovacs (not the actual photo)
The clients that retail workers have to deal with have likely changed, too
The redditor added that people—the clients—themselves have likely changed, too. “I do recall one person remarking that there are always multiple ‘Karens’ every shift now, whereas back then, maybe a Karen every now and then,” they said.
According to Wendland, shoppers nowadays are demanding and discerning. “They walk the aisles with their mobile phones in hand comparing prices, product features, and alternative items—making in-stock condition and remaining sensitive to pricing critical to a brick-and-mortar retailer’s success.”
“I hope that efforts are made to improve worker morale in retail, and not by offering pizza parties in the break room,” the OP told Bored Panda. “In my view, workers are often seen and treated as disposable—if not the most disposable—aspect of a company, and I wish that changes because in reality, without retail workers, there wouldn’t be any production. They actually are the most valuable part of the company.”
Image credits: Erik Mclean (not the actual photo)
People shared their views and memories, quite a few noticed a change for the worse
Some redditors believed that the situation was worse back in the day
It all started with the consumer wanting more for less. Sales clerk? Don't need one. I can go to Kmart and get the item off the shelf myself for less. Gas station attendant? I can save two cents a gallon if I pump my own. Auto parts counter person? I can look up my own parts and buy them on Rock Auto. You see the trend here?
I started working a toy store after moving, having experience in a small retail shop for 10 years. I loved it there, so I was sure I could work in a shop again. Oh boy I was wrong. I barely got trained, the person who trained me left me alone behind the counter after half a day, I was literally told we couldn't give people a lot advice because there was too much work to be done so we had to point them to an isle and go. Costumers indeed just interrupt you to 'quickly as a question' (which is never quick), got yelled at by a costumer at least once a day because of dumb reasons (item out of stock, item more expensive then on amazon, can't return item without receipt etc.). A lot of costumers don't treat you like a human being anymore, espcially in big stores. I could keep going... And for all of that stress you get minimum wage. Yeah, I would love to stand in a store with a smile on my face, but damn it's getting difficult...
The flip side of that is that if I can't find something in a store I'll approach someone stocking shelves to ask where it might be. I stand by them at a normal distance and wait for them to acknowledge me, but more often than not they don't. And when I say excuse me they acknowledge me with a grunt. It must be hard not to do that if you're getting grief from customers all day.
Load More Replies... We've simply entered a new and nastier stage of capitalism, fuelled by the internet-induced idea that everything should be available at short notice.
And that you can take down an establishment through the Internet. Along with the other things in the article, I think that has a lot to do with the change in vibe in stores. They have to put up with so much because people are so entitled and will blast them all over the Internet, many lying about things, and can hurt their business.
Load More Replies... It all started with the consumer wanting more for less. Sales clerk? Don't need one. I can go to Kmart and get the item off the shelf myself for less. Gas station attendant? I can save two cents a gallon if I pump my own. Auto parts counter person? I can look up my own parts and buy them on Rock Auto. You see the trend here?
I started working a toy store after moving, having experience in a small retail shop for 10 years. I loved it there, so I was sure I could work in a shop again. Oh boy I was wrong. I barely got trained, the person who trained me left me alone behind the counter after half a day, I was literally told we couldn't give people a lot advice because there was too much work to be done so we had to point them to an isle and go. Costumers indeed just interrupt you to 'quickly as a question' (which is never quick), got yelled at by a costumer at least once a day because of dumb reasons (item out of stock, item more expensive then on amazon, can't return item without receipt etc.). A lot of costumers don't treat you like a human being anymore, espcially in big stores. I could keep going... And for all of that stress you get minimum wage. Yeah, I would love to stand in a store with a smile on my face, but damn it's getting difficult...
The flip side of that is that if I can't find something in a store I'll approach someone stocking shelves to ask where it might be. I stand by them at a normal distance and wait for them to acknowledge me, but more often than not they don't. And when I say excuse me they acknowledge me with a grunt. It must be hard not to do that if you're getting grief from customers all day.
Load More Replies... We've simply entered a new and nastier stage of capitalism, fuelled by the internet-induced idea that everything should be available at short notice.
And that you can take down an establishment through the Internet. Along with the other things in the article, I think that has a lot to do with the change in vibe in stores. They have to put up with so much because people are so entitled and will blast them all over the Internet, many lying about things, and can hurt their business.
Load More Replies...
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