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Reduction in operating hours emerges as an alternative for supermarkets and wholesale clubs to reorganize schedules, absorb impacts of a possible 5×2 workweek, and avoid additional pressure on prices paid by consumers.
Supermarkets and wholesale clubs may reduce operating hours during the week and on Sundays to adapt to a possible shift from a 6×1 schedule to a 5×2 workweek, without fully passing on the increased personnel costs to prices.
Supported by the Santa Catarina Association of Supermarkets (Acats), the proposal was discussed during ExpoSuper in Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, and aims to reorganize teams if the weekly work hours decrease from 44 to 40 hours.
Most wholesale club stores currently operate from 7 AM to 10 PM on weekdays and from 8 AM to 9 PM on Sundays, according to the entity.
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Under the proposed alternative, service hours would change to 7:30 AM to 9:30 PM during the week and 8 AM to 7 PM on Sundays, reducing the need for additional staff.
If current hours are maintained, the shift to a 5×2 schedule would increase personnel costs by 9% to 10%, states Acats, which could pressure consumer prices.
5×2 Schedule May Change Supermarket Routine
For José Koch, vice-president of Acats, reducing working hours would allow absorbing part of the impacts of the new workweek without compromising customer service.
According to him, the widespread adoption of the measure would also help avoid competitive imbalance between chains operating with different structures.
“What is the million-dollar question to not absorb all these costs and have to pass them on to prices? We have to be smart,” said the vice-president of Acats.
In Koch’s view, small adjustments in store operations can improve schedule organization and workers’ quality of life without causing significant changes in customer experience.
Sunday Concentrates Part of the Impact on Schedules
Reducing hours on Sundays appears as one of the central points of the proposal because shortening the workday would allow operation with just one shift and facilitate the distribution of weekly days off.
With this setup, Acats evaluates, employees could work two Sundays and have two Sundays off throughout the month, without significantly increasing the need for new hires.
“This makes it easier because only one shift will be mandatory with the new law. So, this resolves the issue of Sundays off because workers will be able to have two Sundays off and work two,” said Koch.
Despite the discussion in the sector, the proposal depends on the progress of the topic in the National Congress, as the change from the 6×1 to 5×2 schedule is still treated as a possibility under debate, not as a rule in effect.
Hourly Work Enters the Debate in Food Retail
Another alternative discussed by the supermarket sector is the creation of an hourly hiring model in Brazil, advocated by the Brazilian Association of Supermarkets (Abras) as a complement to the potential adoption of the 5×2 schedule.
This format also has the support of Acats, which sees hourly work as a way to fill schedules during periods of higher activity, especially on weekends, holidays, and peak hours.
Without additional flexibility mechanisms, the entities assess, the reduction in working hours could increase the difficulty of hiring workers, affecting large chains and small supermarkets with leaner teams.
Koch states that the sector faces a combination of pressures, including rising costs, inflation, changes in consumption, tax reform, and new technologies.
In this scenario, the work schedule has become one of the most sensitive topics for store operations.
If approved by Congress, the potential change would broadly impact the economy.
Therefore, supermarkets advocate for rules that allow for operational adjustments without automatically increasing the final cost of products.
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