Retail has long been known for its intensity, but in today’s labor market, the real strain is showing up in the workforce. Behind every checkout counter and shift schedule is an employee managing more than just the job—many are carrying the weight of stress, fatigue, and feeling undervalued.
Most retailers are aware they’re facing a talent problem. But many still miss the deeper issue: well-being, a critical factor in retention and performance. According to the Retail Employee Sentiment Index from Workvivo, while a large majority (80%) of frontline retail workers show up to work daily, only a small minority (22%) feel valued by their employers.
The disconnect is clear: showing up doesn’t mean people are doing well, and it has consequences. The CDC Foundation reports that productivity losses stemming from absenteeism cost U.S. employers $225.8 billion each year, or $1,685 per employee. Yet the traditional fixes—annual reviews, bonuses, or shallow wellness perks—aren’t moving the needle.
This article breaks down how traditional wellness models in retail are falling short—and what progressive employers are doing differently. You’ll learn where outdated approaches are costing businesses, which interventions are gaining traction, and how to build a well-being strategy that meets your workforce where they are.
The old wellness playbook is broken
Retail’s historic model for worker wellness was transactional: offer some perks, encourage balance, and assume resilience will follow. But today’s labor landscape is far more complex. Employees aren’t just looking for gym vouchers or mindfulness videos. They’re looking for psychological safety, flexible policies, and managers who can respond to stress in real time.
Burnout is especially pronounced in retail because of its inherent volatility. Foot traffic shifts week to week, staffing is often lean by design, and customer-facing roles bring added emotional load. Deloitte’s 2023 Global Retail Workforce Study reports that nearly 60% of frontline retail employees experience emotional exhaustion at least once a week.
Worse still, many retailers don’t have a clear definition of what well-being looks like in their context. Without clear key performance indicators or outcomes, most initiatives drift toward low-impact efforts—meditation apps, lunch-and-learns, or posters in the break room—that fail to shift the culture.
Mental health…a workforce strategy issue
In a tight labor market, mental health access and support have become critical levers for attraction and retention.
Consider this: a McKinsey article indicates that employees experiencing poor mental health are four times more likely to leave their jobs within a year. In retail, where turnover already averages 60% annually, the math is sobering. Keeping just 10% more employees each year could save larger retailers millions in rehiring and training costs.
Retail leaders are starting to respond. Walmart, for example, significantly expanded its emotional well-being benefits, providing associates and their families with access to mental health professionals at no cost. This included doubling the number of free counseling sessions from 10 to 20 per person per year, available to all U.S. associates, starting on their first day of employment, regardless of whether they are enrolled in a Walmart medical plan or not. Meanwhile, Target introduced manager training programs to help leaders identify signs of stress and burnout in their teams.
But the real challenge is the mindset. Unless mental well-being is treated as a core business risk, initiatives will remain siloed, underfunded, or misaligned with actual employee needs.
Visibility and data must go deeper
Traditional engagement surveys often rely on lagging indicators—things like exit interviews or year-end feedback. But well-being requires more proactive signals. That’s where pulse surveys, anonymous check-ins, and real-time feedback platforms come in.
Tech-enabled solutions like Workday Peakon and Culture Amp are now being deployed in retail settings to capture continuous data on employee sentiment. These platforms allow human resource leaders to see patterns by region, role, and tenure, and act before problems spiral.
However, data alone doesn’t change behavior. Companies must invest in analytics fluency at the manager level. Gallup states that only one in three retail supervisors says they feel equipped to interpret workforce data. Closing that gap is essential for frontline change.
Middle managers are the make-or-break layer
No matter how advanced the tech or how generous the benefits, well-being programs will falter without capable managers on the ground. In retail, store and department leaders have an outsized influence on employee experience.
Yet many of these managers are promoted based on tenure or operational performance, not their ability to lead with empathy or emotional intelligence. As a result, interventions often fail at the point of execution.
Training can shift this dynamic. Walgreens recently piloted a program focused on “people leadership” for store managers, which included conflict resolution, trauma-informed communication, and energy management.
Embedding these skills in retail leadership development is a necessity.
The new playbook: integrated, contextual, continuous
A successful well-being strategy in retail doesn’t exist in isolation. It integrates across the business—from scheduling to safety to recognition.
Integrated means looking at the full work environment. Are schedules predictable? Are workloads realistic? Is there physical safety and rest time built into shifts? These factors influence mental health just as much as formal programs.
Contextual means understanding the diversity of needs. An 18-year-old part-time cashier will need different support than a 45-year-old logistics manager. Well-being strategies must flex across demographics, roles, and store formats.
Continuous means that the support is always on, not just activated during crises. This includes mental health first aid training, peer support networks, and regular team check-ins embedded into store routines.
No, your employees aren’t fine, but they can be
The retail workforce is tired—and hiding that fatigue behind resilience. The old ways of supporting well-being no longer meet the demands of today’s environment, but the industry has options.
Retailers that treat employee well-being as an operational priority—backed by data, training, and leadership alignment—are seeing measurable gains in retention, engagement, and productivity.
The thesis holds: your employees aren’t fine. And the evidence is there. But with the right strategy, culture, and tools, the sector can build a new kind of resilience—one grounded in visibility, empathy, and sustained support.
