Wine glasses, fake grass: Retail staff fear being put at risk for 'non-essential' work

Thursday, 19 August 2021

Staff at some Mitre 10 stores are worried about the number of them being called in to fulfil online orders.

First Union says retail workers at big name retailers like Mitre 10 and Kmart are being put at risk by being called in as Level 4 essential workers to backfill confectionery shelves or pack wine glasses.

On Wednesday stressed workers at the Warehouse and Noel Leeming questioned the need for them to be called into work to pack online orders for essential items.

First Union said the Warehouse had tightened up its criteria and sent some workers home.

But now it was getting reports from staff at other major retailers. At Kmart, one worker photographed orders they were fulfilling of fake grass and champagne flutes.

At the tail end of Covid-19 alert level 4, those who lost work were more likely to feel depressed and alone, and people in essential roles were more stressed and angry.

* What's an essential worker, anyway?

* Wellington today, August 19: Mandatory masks required at essential stores, how to get a Covid-19 test

Others questioned the need to bring in so many workers. One former worker at a Wellington Mitre 10, Courtney Martin, said former colleagues were telling her they were sweeping floors and filling shelves.

Champagne flutes ordered online and filled by a Kmart worker under Level 4 this week.

“I think it's an unnecessary risk knowing how much we don't know. Any customer could have come in who's been to Auckland and given it to an employee, and the Delta variant is so contagious.”

Workers at Petone, Upper Hutt and Porirua Mitre 10 were sent a text asking “all staff that can assist” to turn up for work. Those who were vulnerable or unable to attend were asked to speak to their managers.

A current worker at the Mitre 10 Petone store, who asked to remain anonymous, said asking so many staff to come in from all over Wellington was “ridiculous”

“The other branches in Wellington are doing the same. They say we need to stay two metres apart but with around 150 staff, how can we do that?

“We have to wear masks and sign in with the app tracker. But we are only cleaning our departments and putting stock away. I don’t see why this is necessary if we are not going to do click and collect until Level 3.”

An Auckland Mitre 10 worker, who also asked not to be named, said that during last year’s Level 4 lockdown, much fewer people had been required to work.

“I just feel the roles we are doing at the moment could be done by a smaller skeleton staff of say six to eight people rather than 40 people travelling to work.”

Artificial grass, one of the items in an order a Kmart worker claims to have been asked to fulfil under Level 4 lockdown.

However, the worker said his store was refusing to fulfil orders for non-essential goods.

Workers at some retailers like Kmart are all being asked to come in, raising child care issues for some, Ben Peterson says.

That was not the case at other retailers. A Kmart worker emailed First Union pictures of orders they were fulfilling showing artificial grass and champagne flutes. Kmart has been contacted for comment.

Martyn Lockyer, a director of the three Mitre 10 stores Porirua, Upper Hutt and Petone stores, deferred all comment to Mitre 10 New Zealand, and the national body said its stores were independently owned so made independent decisions.

However, Mitre 10 NZ did not “endorse any store having more team members than needed to operate as an essential service”.

“Under Level 4, we’re able to fulfil online orders for essential products via contactless home delivery and essential trade supplies, to manage the flow of inwards goods and to water plants and seedlings.”

The chain said all stores that were operating were expected to use strict health and safety measures including mandatory mask use, physical distancing and hygiene protocols.

Ben Peterson, the national organiser for First Union, said all Kmart store workers were also told to come in, which was putting real pressure on those with children to look after, and the type of work some were doing was questionable.

“It’s not in the spirit of what we saw the last lockdown and the worry for us is it’s only going to take one or two cases of people who are positive to come in. Especially in the stores, the retail stores are not well designed for social distancing, you have quite small stock rooms and things.”

“Retail workers should not be called in to stock chocolate bars on checkout aisles, or pack up online orders for champagne flutes to send out to consumers at home.”

First Union was seeking to commitments from retailers it worked with that staff should only be attending work to perform truly essential services during Level 4.

It has also started a petition calling for all workers to be compulsorily paid during lockdown while required to stay home and self-isolate, or where employers were considered non-essential or choosing not to apply for a wage subsidy.