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Posted July 21, 2022

Warehousing Opportunities in Retail

By Grace Tino

The last few years have been record-breakers for retail industry changes. Among these changes are shifts in consumer shopping habits, increased demands, and expansion of the retail job market. Retailers are still challenged with a labor shortage resulting from the Great Resignation. This gives job seekers an ocean of opportunities, increased wages, sign-on bonuses, and new benefits packages. However, the e-commerce boom of recent years has stressed the importance of warehousing and logistics within the retail industry. Retailers are focusing their hiring efforts on warehouse workers to take on the rise of online shopping, and the jobs offer excellent opportunities for job seekers looking to get into the industry.

The boom in retail warehousing is tied to the uptick of e-commerce spending in recent years. E-commerce sales markedly spiked as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. A 2022 ARTS study found that e-commerce sales increased by 43% in 2020. The lockdown resulting from the virus pushed retailers to focus their strategies on online sales to meet consumer safety concerns. Consumers were quick to take to online ordering, especially same-day delivery options. A recent prediction from FTI Consulting estimated that online retail sales can reach around $1.07 trillion at the end of 2022. Additionally, their study also predicted that e-commerce sales will surpass $2 trillion by 2030. Shopping habits that emerged from the pandemic have remained even into 2022.

The BLS also found last September that warehouse employment hit the highest level ever recorded at about 1.25 million workers in the sector. The BLS more recently reported that 390,000 jobs were added in May in the United States. Of these numbers, transportation and warehousing added 47,000 jobs, and warehousing specifically added 18,000. The demand for warehouse workers, particularly in retail e-commerce, continues to grow throughout 2022, with no signs of letting up anytime soon. Prospective job seekers are in a perfect environment to get into the industry. While retailers are searching for more workers to keep up with consumer demand, they are also fighting the ongoing labor shortage that has been affecting logistics, transportation, and retail in particular. Job seekers have the chance to be more selective in their searches and wait for the right opportunity, pay, and schedules to meet their needs.

Retailers are offering new incentives to their warehouse workers amidst the tight labor market, including sign-on bonuses, increased pay, additional overtime pay, tuition support, and flexible scheduling. Some employers are not only offering tuition assistance but are creating their own educational training programs for their workers to assist them in climbing the ladder in retail logistics. These programs are an important step in creating a lifelong career path in warehousing from what was once seen as a “temporary” job. The NRF and ASCM certificates from these programs educate workers in skills such as warehouse design and optimization, which will be extremely desirable skills for workers in the industry as e-commerce continues to boom.

Why should you consider a warehousing path in retail? The answer is simple: the jobs are in high demand and will always be an important part of the industry. While many retailers and logistics partners are adding automated features to their facilities, these additions do not replace the work warehouse employees do on a daily basis. Roles such as pickers, packers, and shippers are dependent on the skills warehouse workers bring to the table. In fact, technological changes in warehousing are making the positions more dynamic. Smart technology assists warehouse workers in their efficiency and creates new opportunities for training; warehouse workers can gain important skills in the running and repairing of these systems to bolster their careers. This skill set can also translate to a tech-focused position in a warehouse. Other tools such as remotely operated forklifts and exoskeleton co-bots also open opportunities to job seekers that are elderly or disabled. As the warehouse sector of retail continues to advance, job opportunities grow alongside.

If you are currently searching for your next retail job, consider looking in the warehouse sector. Warehouse positions are in unprecedented high demand as e-commerce continues to grow. These positions offer excellent opportunities and new benefits to job seekers of all levels searching for a long-term career path in an ever-evolving industry.