Struggles Retail Workers Go Through

Psychology of Employment Relations The management in industries that hire low-skill workers, including retail industries, have a duty and responsibility to provide a decent, reasonably stress-free work environment, and the workers they hire are more and more expected to have some skills and competencies in advance of being hired.

This paper reviews the changes and challenges that relate to the retail employees and their work dynamics, and how management is responding to those challenges Low-skill employment is in flux -- Stress is commonplace One of the most serious issues that low-skill workers face is of course earning enough money to put food on the table, pay the rent, clothe the children and put gasoline in the auto.

In many instances, low-skill workers in the retail industry have more than one job, and this pressure to earn sufficient money for a family causes stress. These retail workers often face "…job insecurity, short -- and split-shifts, unpredictability of hours, low wages and benefits," and moreover these workers often must "juggle multiple jobs" in order to survive (Zeytinoglu, et al., 2004). Recent surveys in Canada reflect the fact that "occupational health" is negatively impacted by "casual work"; and roughly 20% of workers in this research paper are "stressed" (Zeytinoglu, 517).

The stress increased when poor management decisions are made that impact workers, Zeytinoglu explains; for example, in the retail trade worker benefits and earnings have been on a downward trajectory, and employers are consistently "reducing hours or work" while they extend the hours that the stores are open (521). For workers who have young children, arranging child care and helping children with school-related issues are especially challenging when "split shifts" and "intermittent scheduling of work" are the norm (Zeytinoglu, 521).

And for female retail workers, because many low-wage / retail environments are "male-dominated," they often face "…harassment, prejudice and sex stereotyping," all of which increase stress symptoms (Zeytinoglu, 522). Beyond the occupational stress that is commonplace among retail workers, the authors explain that there is "employment strain," which relates to the "uncertainty" in jobs, earnings, scheduling, location of employment and the "precariousness of the household demands" (Zeytinoglu, 523).

These conditions and issues for low-skill workers are not going to go away any time soon, but employers should be aware of the difficulties retail workers (especially part-time workers) constantly face. On the subject of stress in the retail workplace, Professor Carmen Chasovschi explains that the last century has brought "…major and revolutionary changes in the daily life rhythm," and as a result "all of us" are under the pressure of "physical and psychical stressors" in the workplace (Chasovschi, 2013).

As a result, stress is being considered an "occupational health issue" and in the retail workplace there are specific conditions and issues that lead to stress, the author explains. In this peer-reviewed research paper, the author interviewed 64 people in a large retail store in Balti, Republic of Moldova, and a questionnaire was also part of the research. About 10% of the retail workers said they were "very satisfied"; 29.68% were "quite satisfied"; 51.56% were "satisfied"; and 7.81% were "quite dissatisfied" (Chasovschi).

The most common stress factors included poor communication, behavior of supervisors, "demanding physical tasks" and the author asserts that "direct managerial measures" should be put in place to reduce the stressors experienced by employees (Chasovschi). Work itself should not be linked to stress, the author asserts, but stress eventually leads to "burnout and exhaustion," and management must recognize these factors and use "soft measures" to reduce stress.

Assumptions from the past are challenged Meanwhile, in the peer-reviewed journal Management Revue the authors suggest that some of the assumptions that have always been expressed about low-skill jobs may no longer be valid.

The questions posed by the authors include issues regarding the strategies that a part of hiring low-skill workers and what role do supervisors play in dealing with employees who have few if any skills? This research was done in Western Germany but it is quite likely that the issues presented and strategies for hiring low-skill workers are universally experienced, whether in the U.S., the UK, or other Western countries.

For example, what are the requirements when it comes to being hired for a retail position? A survey conducted in 2002 shows that 60.7% of employers expect the applicant will have reading skills; and 53.3% expect an employee to be able to write well (Jaehrling, et al., 2005). Thirty-one percent of the positions offered in the survey required "heavy physical work"; in 29.3% of the jobs heavy lifting played no part at all; and in 36.3% of the jobs math skills were required on a "daily" basis (Jaehrling, 392).

Only 25.5% of low-skill jobs in Germany required computer skills, but the above-mentioned skills were not the selection criteria most mentioned by employers in this research. What mattered most to employers surveyed were: a) "reliability and punctuality" (80% of employers); b) "motivation" (66%); and c) "knowledge of the German language" (65%). That data having been reported, Jaehrling posits that "low-skill jobs [are in] flux"; by that she means that the demands made on low-skill workers are "changing," and workers in this positions are being expected to do more.

Low-skill workers are more often in "direct contact with customers," and that places "increased demands on employees' social competencies" (Jaehrling, 396). What this means in terms of solutions vis-a-vis correct management approaches is that companies will expect low-skill workers to have more skills -- than was traditionally expected -- prior to being hired, as opposed to the past strategies in which nothing much was expected of retail and other low-skill workers in terms of experience and competencies.

Healthy work organization interventions -- possible solutions? In a scholarly article published by the British Psychological Society (Journal of Occupational and Organisational Psychology) the authors report on establishing "teams" in 11 retail stores in order to test interventions that would improve work organization in those sites (Dejoy, et al., 2010). Using those eleven stores as places for the interventions and ten other stores as controls, and by conducting employee surveys at 12-month intervals, the researchers' goal was to promote "…improved…and healthier work organizations" (Dejoy, 142). The.