Protecting Grocery Store Workers And Shoppers From COVID-19

Grocery stores across the country are hiring hundreds of thousands of workers to meet the demands of increased shopping amid COVID-19, but the staffing boom also means more workers are risking infection from higher levels of public interaction. What is being done to protect those workers and shoppers from the spread of COVID-19? 

The industry doesn’t have the best track record here. Studies show a large percentage of grocery store workers report going to work even when they’re sick. According to “Shelved,” a 2014 UC Berkeley labor research center report on the industry, 65% of California grocery store workers said they’d gone to work while sick, with almost 60% admitting they’d done this for three days or more.

The most important focus now is curbing the spread of infectious disease, says George Benjamin, MD, president of the American Public Health Association. “Obviously, if you’re symptomatic, if you have a fever or cough, you should stay home,” he says, but stores also need to have the right policies in place to keep their workers healthy.

“I continue to argue that paid sick leave is the most effective strategy to allow them to stay home,” says Benjamin. While grocery store employee unions and organizations like the National Partnership for Women and Families have been advocating for paid sick leave for grocery store workers, there is no federal requirement for paid sick leave, according to the Department of Labor. Many short-term and part-time employees are also not covered by the Family Medical Leave Act nor do they have paid sick leave as a regular benefit.

Stores should also be thinking through their sick leave policies for workers who have less immediate contact with people who are infected. What if a friend of a friend has been diagnosed but you’ve only had contact with the first friend? What about a neighbor? While there’s no magic answer, says Benjamin, stores need to craft clear policies about degrees of contact and make sure those policies are clearly communicated to their employees.

There are other scenarios to consider too, says Benjamin, who thinks grocery stores should be thinking carefully about what to do if an employee or a customer were to get sick in the store itself. Whatever stores had in place previously for these situations, Benjamin says they should rethink those policies specifically for COVID-19, “so that your workers feel secure.”

Unionized grocery store workers are far more likely to have access to paid sick leave, but most grocery store workers do not belong to a union. In California, for example, though grocery store workers have a higher rate of unionization than other retail employees, the unionization rate and grocery store wages have decreased in recent years. 

Several grocery chains are now offering more competitive benefits. Target is offering increased wages and sick leave, for example, as are Safeway and Stop N Shop, two chains that negotiated terms with their workers’ union, United Food and Commercial Workers. 

Healthy store workers keep shoppers healthy too, which is why public pressure may nudge more supermarkets to extend sick leave and other healthcare benefit to their employees during this crisis, even to short-term and part-time workers. A representative for Balducci’s, a chain that is also hiring, said that employees would not be penalized for taking sick leave for COVID-19 symptoms or quarantine.   

In addition to paid sick leave policies, Dr. Benjamin says there are other measures stores can take in order to keep workers and shoppers safe. As a starting point, businesses should look to the CDC’s COVID-19 recommended business guidelines available at the CDC website, he says, and then tailor those guidelines to their specific environment.  

Stores can implement a number of policies to increase distance between workers and shoppers, as well as between shoppers themselves, says Benjamin. Delineating space on the ground at checkout, for example, is one way to keep shoppers apart from each other. “That helps customers, and also helps maintain some order in the line,” he says.

Stores can also limit the amount of shoppers going in at a time and close down entirely for restocking. “This allows you to wipe things down that need to be wiped down, and bring your cleaners through first.” Speaking of cleaners, Benjamin says stores need to be aware that maintenance workers are also on the front lines here in serving the public, even if indirectly by cleaning up after them. 

Many grocery stores, including chains like Balducci’s and King’s, are specifically hiring for third shift stockers and sanitizers who will work in the store when the public isn’t there. A number of Safeway stores are implementing space limits at checkout stations too in order to keep some distance in place while people are checking out.

Fatigue is a significant problem for workers, warns Benjamin, because tired workers are more likely to make mistakes and stop following important safety protocols. To mitigate that risk, grocery stores should make sure their worker are taking ample rest breaks.

“Make sure workers have lots of places to wash their hands on a regular basis,” urges Benjamin. Workers should have mandated break times for washing hands in particular, he explains, because having a specific place and time for hand washing helps ensure that the guidelines are actually followed. “Every hour or every couple of hours seems reasonable,” he says.

Stores should also consider closing down self-service food stations during this time, says Benjamin, “particularly where people have to touch stuff with their hands.” There’s a much higher chance of coming in contact with pathogens in these stations, he advises. 

Customers can also do their part during this crisis. Use credit cards instead of cash if you can, or even automatic pay with smart phones, to minimize personal contact with workers. Call ahead to ask what’s in stock in order to avoid additional trips to the market. When you call, ask store managers about their employee healthcare policies, particularly their sick leave policies. Protections for healthy workers help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace, and that can help shoppers stay healthy, too.

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