Learning to handle the occasional errant customer who does not want to wear masks and sanitising touchable surfaces every few hours. These are some of the things supermarket employees have had to learn to do since the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
We hear from two Branch Managers from Fairprice, whose daily scope of work involves managing the operations of the stores, among other duties such as evaluating sales performances. They share how work for them in supermarkets is different now.
How have things changed at the supermarkets since the COVID-19 outbreak? What are some of the difficulties you face?
Mr Frankie Tan, Branch Manager, FairPrice at Bedok North (A):
On several panic buying occasions, our staff had to be activated to work overtime to replenish stocks on the empty shelves. Cashiers had to step up and manage long queues, some even had to shorten their lunch breaks or were too busy to even go to the washroom.
During the Circuit Breaker period, customers had to wear masks to enter supermarkets but we still encountered some unreasonable and uncooperative customers, who did not want to wear masks, or pulled down their masks, so we had to ask them to leave the store. We also had to reason with customers who might get aggressive and impatient due to long queues at check-out lanes and temperature screening areas.
Mr Mohamed Amin, Branch Manager, FairPrice at Jurong East:
Overcrowding in supermarkets due to panic buying was the biggest challenge, where many essential items were emptied out by customers. We also encountered empty shelves and delayed delivery issues due to panic buying and the Circuit Breaker. We also need to cover extra duties, such as cashiers who have to step up to help replenish stocks for essentials items like rice, tissues, canned food, oil, noodles, and paper products.
As compared to the past, how has your work changed since the COVID-19 outbreak?
Mr Tan: To comply with precautionary measures, we have to ensure various measures are in place, such as making yellow markings on the floor to demarcate queue lines clearly, and putting up signage for customers queuing to pay at the checkouts.
We also place hand sanitizers at the entrance and all checkouts for customers’ use. We also have to ensure staff exercise social responsibility and monitor their health conditions.
Our staff must also reduce physical interactions such as gatherings or having meals in groups. Cleaning is done every four hours daily to ensure shopping trolleys, shopping baskets, check out areas, weighing areas and high touch surfaces are cleaned and sanitised.
We also provide a dedicated shopping hour (Priority Shopping Hour) for vulnerable groups such as Pioneer Generation members, persons with disabilities and pregnant women from 7.00am to 8.00am every Monday. We also need to limit our customers from entering the store when it is overcrowded.
Mr Mohamed: We have to recruit temporary staff to back us up in terms of additional manpower for contact tracing and temperature taking. We also have to make sure customers observe and comply with safe distancing when shopping and queuing in our store premise.
We also provide staff with personal protection equipment such as surgical masks, gloves and face shields as they need to perform temperature screening for customers. Staff also have to take their temperature twice a day during working hours and monitor their health.
What do you hope Singaporeans will understand about the work that you do now?
Mr Tan: I hope that Singaporeans do not rush to supermarkets to panic buy, as they can be assured that frontliners like us will try our best to serve the community and replenish high demand items.
We appreciate customers’ understanding and patience during this period and would like to urge them to shop wisely. We do hope that shoppers will co-operate by wearing a mask, observing safe distancing and do their temperature screening when shopping at FairPrice. Lastly, we will fight this pandemic together with all Singaporeans, #SGUNITED.
Mr Mohamed: As an essential service worker, I hope that Singaporeans would appreciate our job as frontliners and cooperate with us by wearing masks, practicing safe distancing, and taking care of their personal hygiene when they are at our stores.
I urge customers who are unwell to stay at home and cooperate with us if being denied entry into our store by our staff. By staying at home, it is to protect ourselves and loved ones.
