Grocery store workers have been called frontline workers throughout the pandemic. At the beginning, at least, they were celebrated — thanked on local TV news and by their communities for risking their health to keep supermarkets open for the rest of us.
But the positivity has worn off, and new research shows they are suffering the mental health consequences of being on the frontlines — and the customer hostility that often comes with it.
Sabrina Helm is an associate professor of retailing and consumer science at the University of Arizona. She and a group of researchers have been surveying grocery store workers in Arizona since July of 2020, and they’ve found a persistent increase in negative mental health effects for them.
At the same time, mental health has gotten worse for everyone. During the pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention documented a 14% bump in symptoms of anxiety and depression among the general U.S. population. But Helm’s research shows those levels are more than twice as high for grocery store workers.
The Show spoke with Helm to learn more about her research and what it means for the future of the retail space in general.
