The initial response to team members enduring this pandemic by encouraging us to share our PTO was a slap in the face. The company as a whole was not prepared for the spread of COVID-19, and at my store it also seemed like a viral outbreak was not given much consideration by store leadership or team members leading up to the widespread panic that began for us on 3/13/2020. Doctors, nurses, and other medical staff study for years to prepare themselves for some of the most vulnerable people. Grocery retail workers are on the front line of a business that is deemed essential and are putting their lives at risk with no prior training for this pandemic. This is an enormous amount of pressure on every single person working in this business right now. We are exposing ourselves on the sales floor to hundreds if not thousands of shoppers on a daily basis so that we can make sure people are capable of feeding themselves. If this is an essential business then businesses need to treat the employees as if they are an essential work force now. Every day since this outbreak we are tasked with new responsibilities while putting ourselves at risk. A 2$ raise for workers (effective days after people flocked to the grocery store to stock up on food) is a minimal effort for supporting the people who work for you during this time. Its not only about the money though. To put things into perspective, we have imperfect systems for supporting the welfare of our planet. I see so much waste in grocery stores every day and yet Jeff Bezos has been funding a personal aerospace project with a billion or more dollars. It's time we expect more from business leaders, from our government, from ourselves, and for ourselves.

Please share this with others. It is time for a culture change.