While it’s probably fair to say that every major workplace has a few rogue slackers, that can’t be true for people working in picking and packing roles, because we all know that shopping is work arduous.

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Beyond the ethics of treating human beings like robots, the obvious danger of this working model is the risk of someone harming themselves. You are now more likely to be injured working in the wholesale grocery, alcohol and tobacco sector than if you work in a coal mine, according to data from Safe Work Australia.

Additionally, this model is bad for the company’s financial results. According to his annual reportin 2022, Woolworths had 197,773 employees. During this same period, 62,433 employees resigned. This represents a turnover rate of 31.5 percent, more than three times the national average.

In a 2016 studyResearchers have found that micromanaged employees are more likely to become disengaged from their work and have higher rates of absenteeism and resignation than workplaces where staff are happy and well-treated.

Amazon is another prominent company that has led the way in treating workers like disposable cogs in the profit machine. In 2022, it also experienced personnel problems. The company’s executive has been warned that it could run out of staff by 2024 if it does not tackle the extremely high churn rate (150 percent per year) of warehouse staff who pick and pack the online orders.

Initially, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos thought high churn was a good thing, saying high staff retention rates would lead to a “march toward mediocrity.” It may be this mentality that led managers at a Colorado Springs warehouse to create a makeshift barrier around the body of Rick Jacobs, a 61-year-old employee who died of cardiac arrest on the floor of an Amazon warehouse just before his shift ended.

As Jacobs’ co-workers clocked in for the new shift and got to work packing orders at a breakneck pace, they had no idea that their friend was dead, much less that his body was still in the building, or that they literally worked around him.

It is difficult to understand why this course of action was taken for any reason other than prioritizing goals and profit. I don’t know about you, but personally, I’m more than happy to wait an extra day for my delivery if it allows a deceased person to be treated with dignity.

This robotic approach also had harmful physical consequences. In March, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that its warehouse workers were disproportionately likely to suffer serious injuries, accounting for 79 percent of injuries among warehouses with more than 1,000 employees. And in June 2024, the company was fined $6 million ($9 million) for failing to disclose its productivity requirements to its employees at two locations.

But the other major risk for Woolworths is how customers react to this news. Because between its apparent disregard for customers, manifested through alleged price gouging, its former CEO’s cover-up, and now its treatment of employees, it’s difficult to justify supporting the supermarket giant, or allowing it to continue to enjoy its duopoly status.

Victoria Devine is a retired award-winning financial advisor, best-selling author and host of Australia’s #1 financial podcast, She’s on the money. Victoria is also the founder and co-director of Zella Money.

• The advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions regarding investment or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice, which takes into account their personal circumstances, before making a financial decision.

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