It goes without saying that the 2020-2021 holiday season was more different than any other holiday period in modern memory. Many of us had to spend our very first December holidays without extended family and friends, which meant not traveling to the usual destinations for Christmas and New Years, or experiencing the season’s normal festivities. For the past almost-year, the COVID-19 pandemic has made us all grow more accustomed to spending extensive time at home, but more recently there’s been an emotional toll that has certainly hit harder than ever over the holiday season. One that speaks to loss and isolation during a generally much happier time.
For many families in essential businesses, that toll has taken an especially larger effect this holiday season. In addition to the absence of loved ones this winter, employees who spent their holidays working overtime on their feet, pulling long shifts while fearing possible daily exposure to COVID-19 have been particularly struggling. As cases have soared throughout the U.S.’s second wave of the pandemic, the mental and physical cost has been damaging for employees in high-hazard industries such as manufacturing, warehousing/logistics, food processing and healthcare. Tack on this year’s unique holiday shopping that saw record-high online ordering compared to in-store retail, and the demand has been especially strenuous for essential employees in order-fulfilment work environments.