Aussie retailers are suffering greatly when it comes to their mental health and wellbeing, particularly since the commencement of Covid-19.
Research via SuperFriend, ‘Spotlight on the Retail Industry 2020’ finds that two in three (66%) retail workers have experienced a mental health condition.
Retail is the second-highest proportion of any industry, behind the hotel and food services industry (68%).
Among the statistics, casual workers were hit the hardest (70%).
Anecdotal evidence reveals that the general public has been a major cause of stress, when it comes to retailers.
One in five admitted to finding their jobs ‘highly stressful’, most commonly in Victoria.
As a result of this stress, 23.4% of retail workers considered a career change.
“2020 has been a year of extremes for retailers, with some retailers experiencing record sales, while others quietly folded amid empty shopping centres and from significant loss to revenue,” says CEO of SuperFriend, Margo Lydon.
Ms Lydon’s views were echoed by CEO of Rest and SuperFriend Board of Director, Vicki Doyle, “It’s been such a tough year for Rest members. So many retailers have faced economic uncertainty or even shut down, and those who continued to have had to change their working practices dramatically.
“This has hit retailers in regional and rural Australia as well as in our big cities.”
Ms Doyle touches on the positive aspects.
“It’s not all doom and gloom.
“In our study, retail workers have clearly identified a wish list of positive work-related changes they would like to continue in the future.
“Through our partnership with SuperFriend, Rest is providing workplace mental health support to our members and staff. 2020 has shown us all just how important it is to have these supports in place, and I hope that the retail sector’s small gains in its thriving workplace results gain even more traction in 2021.”
Visit SuperFriend to learn more.