19 February 2026
- Retail worker wellbeing fell and the number of staff working while unwell hit a new high last year, according to the latest Retail People Index
- Nearly half of staff were going into work unwell and 56% were at risk of leaving their jobs by the end of 2025
More retail workers ended 2025 feeling unhappier and at risk of working while unwell and quitting their jobs, as concerns around high employment costs, redundancies and rising levels of retail crime took hold.
The Retail Trust and global consulting firm AlixPartners’ new Retail People Index found wellbeing steadily dropped throughout 2025, from 61 to 57. The Index calculates average retail worker wellbeing scores out of a possible 100, with anything below 60 indicating people are struggling.
Meanwhile nearly half (49%) of staff went into work despite feeling ill at end of 2025, up from 40% at the start of the year and the highest level recorded since the Retail Trust and AlixPartners began tracking wellbeing nearly three years ago.
56% were also found to be a ‘flight risk’ in the final three months of the year, a measure showing the percentage of staff who may be looking to leave their jobs, compared to 47% at the start of 2025. And male retail staff were even more likely to quit, with a flight risk of 62%.
UK retail jobs fell to a record low of 2.76 million in September 2025, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, and there were warnings that rising employment costs and the new Employments Right Bill would lead to further job cuts. Separate research by the Retail Trust found 43% of retail staff were abused or attacked every week last year, a rise of 10% on 2024.
Chris Brook-Carter, chief executive of the Retail Trust: “Retail worker wellbeing failed to improve at any point throughout 2025, and there were also big increases in flight risk and the number of people working while unwell across the industry.
“Retailers cannot afford to see these measurements of wellbeing worsen or even remain the same this year. Budgets are naturally coming under strain, but employers must invest in new measures to help staff cope with ongoing uncertainty around their jobs, the stress of working within under-resourced teams and the fear of facing abuse on the shop floor if they are to help raise morale.”
Laura Bond, director at AlixPartners: “Retail leaders are operating in a tough environment where employee sentiment remains fragile. With wellbeing having declined across the industry last quarter, a sustained focus on the employee experience is essential. While numbers are falling, retail is still a people business, and it is encouraging that more organisations are starting to recognise this and prioritise meaningful action. The priority is now consistency and follow through.
“Equipping managers to build trust-based, rewarding relationships with their teams will be critical to embedding progress. Those organisations that create supportive, motivating work environments will be best positioned to build resilience, lift engagement and protect performance in the year ahead.”
The Retail People Index is created by measuring responses to the Retail Trust’s online happiness health check, delivered with employee engagement platform WorkL.
More than 2,300 staff were asked about their mental and physical health and how valued and fulfilled they feel at work last year to create an overall wellbeing score. Questions around pay, recognition, relationships with managers, work-related anxiety and workplace safety were among those used to separately help calculate the likelihood of them leaving their jobs or working while unwell.
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