Abstract
This study aimed to explore how the work of supermarket cashiers affects their health and wellbeing. This study adopted a qualitative research approach, guided by a social constructivist framework, and utilised semi-structured interviews to gather data from ten supermarket cashiers in Alexandra. This study reveals that Alexandra supermarket cashiers face complex challenges that significantly impact their mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. Working in overcrowded and noisy environments hinders effective customer communication, causing irritation and exhaustion. Moreover, cashiers experience exhaustion from engaging in emotional labour to meet customer service expectations, which requires regulating emotions to display cheerful demeanours, such as smiling and greeting customers. Physical strains arising from performing repetitive tasks in confined workstations, are another challenge that impacts the wellbeing of cashiers. Managers and customers often frown upon cashiers who exhibit emotional or physical exhaustion, prompting cashiers to conceal their true feelings and physical discomfort while on the job. Cashiers constantly feel a sense of vulnerability to crime and increased infection risk from customer interactions and interacting with items that might be infected, which profoundly compromises their overall health and wellbeing. To cope, cashiers may fabricate reasons for taking breaks or seeking relief, hiding their genuine needs behind fabricated excuses. This study contributes to understanding the influence of supermarket cashier work on health and wellbeing, emphasising the need for employer support and interventions to mitigate these challenges.