By Julie Savoie, Senior Director, Work Force, Talent & Sustainability, FMI
Grocery stores are a pillar of American communities –offering access to healthy and affordable food and providing residents economic opportunities through meaningful, local jobs.
Even as labor has been a persistent challenge for the industry, grocers are making great strides in attracting and retaining workers to fill various vital positions. In fact, the average turnover for all food retail employees fell in 2023 to 58% from a historic high of 65% amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Food Retailing Industry Speaks 2024 report.
Investing in Talent
Food retailers increasingly prioritize investing in their workforce. More than 90% of food retailers offer improved wages and salaries to boost hiring and retention of full-time employees, while nearly two-thirds offer improved benefits to full-time employees and 65% offer flex time.
That’s just the beginning. Healthcare eligibility among full-time staff is almost universal. Eighty-two percent of food retailers offer employees a 401(k) with employer match and 42% offer access to financial education. Investing in employee training and development is also top of mind for grocers, with many presenting opportunities for employees to learn and acquire new skills.
Career Pipelines
But food retailers aren’t just focused on current employees – they’re looking at the future talent pipeline.
There is a wide breadth of career paths in the food industry: store management, merchandising, food manufacturing, food branding and marketing, sustainable packaging development, AI technology, data analysis, retail dietetics, and supply chain management, among many others. Even entry-level positions can serve as a springboard to high-level careers with numerous stories of industry CEOs who started off bagging groceries in-store and today lead board of director meetings.
Through programs like the Inspiring Careers in Food initiative, a partnership between the FMI Foundation and Junior Achievement USA, food retailers offer younger generations a sneak peek at potential career opportunities in the food industry.
In most of the programs, students can explore a wide range of careers – from cashiers or forklift operators to corporate roles – and then receive immersive, real-life experiences. Whether running a storefront, managing an inventory system, or learning about the different work tasks involved in operating a food retail business, K-12 students are introduced to, inspired by, and prepared for success early on.
All told, workers are the bread-and-butter of the grocery store, and the industry is making incredible strides investing in talent. The grocery industry has always been essential, and it continues to provide unique and rewarding career paths with a wide range of benefits for American workers.
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