Stressed grocery workers are asking for a return to wage and safety measures they experienced early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The union that represents many of the region’s grocery store employees, UFCW 21, held a Zoom presentation with workers to talk about the challenges they are still dealing with during the pandemic. While the hazard pay offered by the many grocery store companies ended earlier this year, the workers said their work is still difficult.
The challenges not only merit bringing back hazard pay, but there’s also a need for more staffing and bringing back some safety protocols, said Tom Geiger, special projects director for UFCW 21. The UFCW 21 represents more than 46,000 workers in Washington state.
“It’s been an uphill battle,” Geiger said.
Tiffany Sanders, regional media representative for the QFC and Fred Meyer stores, said the workers have gone above and beyond to serve customers and communities during the pandemic and that the parent company, Kroger, has committed to continuing to provide resources and support.
Along with providing a variety of appreciation pay and hero bonuses that ended earlier this year, Kroger offered frontline workers $100 store credit and 1,000 fuel points in September and on Thursday, Nov. 19.
The company has also enacted new emergency leave guidelines, funded a financial assistance program and provided access to mental health services, she said.
Grocery workers are facing even more pressure this fall and winter. With new state restrictions that include a ban on indoor dining at restaurants, more people are heading to grocery stores. These customers are looking for safe conditions at the store, but are also dealing with pandemic fatigue.
Workers in the Nov. 24 Zoom presentation talked about not getting enough support from the company during this stage of the pandemic. The workers on the Zoom presentation represented QFC and Fred Meyer stores in the Seattle area.
Sam Dancy, who works at the Westwood Village QFC in southwest Seattle, said there was a strong effort made by the company to clean the store at the beginning of the pandemic, as well as encouragement pay. That focus has gone away and another issue — staffing — has become an issue. Reduced staff has made it more difficult to maintain the safety rules needed during the pandemic.
“We are no longer considered heroes, but zeros,” Dancy said, referring to the hero bonuses given out earlier this year.
Amy Dayley, a QFC worker in the Seattle area, agreed on the point about staffing, saying that early on they were cleaning all the time. She pointed out that the staffing hours are being cut even though stores are seeing plenty of customers during the current state restrictions.
“We want to be able to do the work, but there isn’t enough staff and time to do it,” Dayley said.
George Fearing, who works in the curbside pickup department known as ClickList for a Seattle QFC store, added that the hazard pay was welcomed in the spring, but is needed more than ever with so many more confirmed cases in every community.
Workers also talked about stress, particularly when it comes to interactions with the public. While they are very appreciative of the customers that follow the rules, particularly with face coverings and social distancing, confrontations with customers who refuse to put on masks wear them down and hurt morale.
While state government, workers and most customers are doing their part to create and enforce the rules to try and slow the pandemic, corporations need to do more to make sure everyone is following the rules, Dancy said.
