Blog #443: Neurodiversity in the Retail/Supermarket Industries and Why I Want to Teach Grocery/Retai
- Jeffrey Snyder
- Jun 3, 2024
- 3 min read
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Ever since I left the Supermarket Industry and for that matter, the retail industry almost a month ago, there has been something in my mind about wanting to share my firsthand experience of working in the industry that can benefit not just veteran grocery executives and workers, but also all executives and workers in the retail industry too.
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I bring this up because there is a continuous major issue with placing neurodivergent/developmentally different individuals in the workplace as some job placements specialists and even families believe that retail/grocery is the only place for their loved ones who are neurodivergent/developmentally different. I will say that the first thing I want to teach retail and grocery industries is that working with the general public can be very overstimulating.
When I first got into retail, I was essentially forced into accepting the fact that I would be dealing with the public without anyone taking into consideration of the fact that it can be bothersome. I get that some families believe that their neurodivergent child/loved one needs to have human to human interaction and while that is true, you can’t just force it without thinking of how the individual/child is going to react.
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Let’s face it that working in customer service was sometimes hell for me: the fact that I had to believe the ideology that the customers was always right was always not the best fit, but it fit over time. Still, you have to look at things from the perspective of a neurodivergent/developmentally different employee. I mean, sure there may be some parts of the job that are the only fit such as bagging groceries and nothing more.
But, what if the individual wants to do more? Such as working in the back, stocking shelves or even wanting to work the overnights? The truth is that there is while retail may be the best and only fit, it is the decision of the individual and the individual alone to decide how to work in it.
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And it doesn’t have to be the stores themselves that the individual can work in: when I worked at my day job of 14 years, one of the areas that I felt that neurodivergent individuals could thrive in is working in a distribution center/warehouse. I mean, the company I worked for had a distribution center in Assonet, Massachusetts that some believed was only for company truck drivers. But you could have a neurodivergent individual picking out items because of their organizational skills or the fact that they have an attention to detail.
Plus, if you work at my day job’s distribution center, you are part of a union, the Teamsters union, so you can be sure that the individual is going to be well cared for. Plus, I’ve always had an affinity for my day job’s tractor trailers.
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But I feel that going to retail/grocery companies is and should be a major part of Going the Distance because it’s an issue that needs to be taken to heart.
If you are a grocery company or retail company, I strongly encourage you to reach out to me today because there is a lot I can offer to help make your business accommodating for neurodivergent/developmentally different individuals. Plus, again, I have firsthand knowledge and experience, so it’s not like you are getting someone who is just tooting their own horn.
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Catch you all later!!
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