Graphic by Dylan Collison
Grocery store employees at Dorothy Lane Market (DLM) in Springboro experience the stress of the pandemic firsthand as they struggle to keep shelves stocked.
When the panic buying started
“When the pandemic first started, I do not think anybody in the store was ready for the amount of product to sell so fast,” said Wright State student, Matthew Cavender.
Cavender is a meat cutter and second shift store manager at DLM.
“I was barely able to keep up with how much we were selling and we were not ready to be hit that hard,” Cavender said.
Grocery store employees were the first to feel the effects as customers started to buy large amounts of products. Grocery stores and their employees found themselves largely unprepared.
“At the beginning of it all, it got so busy that it felt like we were working through the holidays, but far busier than ever,” said Ora Fields, a second shift supervisor at DLM. “Items were flying off the shelves at a rate I had never seen before.”
“I worked the day that Governor Dewine announced the closing of everything and we were very understaffed because no one was expecting it,” said Emma Van Zant, another employee at DLM. “I knew it was going to be crazy. We had so many people coming in.”
Many grocery store workers understood why customers started to panic buy. They also believe that some customers went a bit over the top.
“When it first started it was a little frustrating since we couldn’t keep our shelves stocked and people were continuously asking for items that we had sold out of,” said Fields. “I understood where they were coming from though, mainly because most people who are alive today have not lived through an event like this. It’s a scary and unsettling thing.”
The calm after the storm
“Soon after that, with restrictions being put on items, it felt as if it was normal business,” said Fields.
As the pandemic continues, stores are starting to catch up on previously sold out supplies. They are also putting more procedures in place to keep workers and customers safe and healthy.
“We also are only allowing in so many customers at a time and only allow one person per household, so the store doesn’t appear to have many people in it, but we are still selling a lot of product,” said Cavender.
According to Cavender, workers have to wash their hands and sanitize all of their surfaces every 30 minutes.
The company is also hiring temporary help in order to stock the store and keep up with demands.
Many of the workers at DLM are between the ages 16 and 18. Their parents do not want them working until the pandemic is over, according to Van Zant.
Appreciation
Appreciation for still having a job is common among grocery store employees, like others who work on the frontlines.
“I think that this pandemic has helped me appreciate medical workers and other essential workers such as grocery store workers,” said Cavender. “These jobs are easily taken for granted and this pandemic has shown us just how vital these jobs are.”
Aside from working, this pandemic has helped some realize just how much they have to be thankful for.
“I am 100 percent thankful for my job, friends and family,” said Fields. “Without my job I would find myself in quite the financial disaster, and without my friends and family the cabin fever would have gotten to me a little more than it did.”
Being an essential worker
Many store employees never thought they would be considered an essential worker.
“In all honesty, I never would’ve considered myself to be an essential worker, but looking back now it makes a lot more sense,” said Fields. “Grocery stores are the main source of everyone’s essential items to live, so you can’t just take that away.”
According to Van Zant, petitions are circulating to get grocery store workers considered as frontline workers.
“It’s all very shocking,” said Van Zant. “I would not have expected it.”
Learning
Despite this being a hectic time for grocery store employees, it’s a great time for them to learn from those in leadership positions.
“Being on the same page as customers and employees and taking everything into account and what each of them are saying is really important, especially during times like now,” said Van Zant.
According to Fields, the most important thing is staying cool, calm and collected.
“The biggest thing that I have taken from my manager and tried to replicate to the guys I work with at night is keeping morale high,” said Fields. “Of course everyone is scared, nervous or worried, but I walk in every day to smiling faces and laughter.”
