GroceryAid is calling on the grocery industry to help close a widening awareness gap after revealing that just 4% of workers across the sector know the charity exists.
As pressures on the industry continue to mount, from retail crime and rising costs to inflation and growing concerns over employee wellbeing, GroceryAid Day (30 April) aims to raise awareness of the support available to all grocery workers.
Retailers, suppliers and businesses across the supply chain are being challenged to boost awareness of GroceryAid’s financial, emotional and practical support for colleagues facing tough times. The charity is aiming to double participation across the sector this year.
It hopes the initiative will reach more workers than ever before, spanning shop floors and factory sites through to head offices and distribution centres.
Lack of awareness
The annual awareness day comes despite rapidly rising demand for GroceryAid’s services. Knowledge remains “critically low”, with fewer than one in 20 grocery workers currently aware of the charity.
That comes as pressures on grocery workers continue to intensify. In 2024/25, GroceryAid supported more colleagues than ever before, with help delivered up 67% year on year. The charity spent more than £6.5m on welfare, including financial grants, counselling, debt advice and legal support, while its 24/7 helpline delivered over 5,300 in-the-moment counselling sessions.
Chief executive Kieran Hemsworth said GroceryAid Day was a key opportunity for the industry to close the awareness gap. “Every day, we see the difference our support makes to colleagues going through tough times, whether that is financial hardship, emotional distress or a sudden change in circumstances,” he said.
“But we can only help people who know we are here. There are hundreds of thousands of grocery workers who have no idea that free, confidential support is available to them. GroceryAid Day is the industry’s chance to change that”.
‘The help you’ve earned’
Last year, 193 businesses took part in GroceryAid Day, and the charity is urging retailers, wholesalers, suppliers and independents to double that number in 2026.
Retailers, suppliers and other businesses are encouraged to share messages internally, display printed materials in stores and depots, and use social and digital channels to spread the word. The charity said even small actions could make a “life-changing difference” for colleagues going through tough times.
The push builds on GroceryAid’s wider efforts to make its services more accessible, including a recent rebrand under the tagline “The help you’ve earned”, designed to reinforce that support is a benefit grocery workers have earned and are entitled to, rather than charity.
Businesses can download toolkits and materials via the GroceryAid website.
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