Wholesale and Retail Trade Program

What are our priorities?

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Wholesale and Retail Trade (WRT) Program works with partners in industry, labor, academia, trade, and professional organizations focusing on issues relevant to WRT workers including:

Reducing ergonomic injuries and illnesses, especially among aging workers.
Preventing violence.
Reducing motor vehicle related injuries and fatalities.

What do we do?

Use surveillance data to identify risk factors related to priority areas.
Conduct research on worker health and well-being to make recommendations on the best ways to manage and structure work to prevent musculoskeletal disorders.
Evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of engineering controls and prevention methods to prevent workplace violence.

Create evidence-based guidance documents, tools, and resources to help employers and workers
Collaborate with stakeholders on research to understand risk factors, develop interventions, and distribute resources to employers and workers.

What have we accomplished?

Published NIOSH Science Blog from Brick and Mortar to Beyond: Protecting Workers in the Wholesale and Retail Trade Industries.
Organized a violence de-escalation course for workers employed in retail and wholesale to both NIOSH partners and colleagues.
Collaborated with Loss Prevention Foundation to update Loss Prevention and Asset Protection Credential Certification Course with COVID and future pandemic-related guidance.
Provided updates on SARS CoV-2 vaccines and up-to-date CDC guidance to business leaders and employees through the CDC Vaccine Task Force/NIOSH Essential Workers team, via multiple presentations, one podcast (Answers from Experts on the COVID-19 Vaccines), and extensive outreach.

What’s next?

Publish Workplace Solutions document on violence in WRT.
Develop a peer-reviewed review of both literature and Bureau of Labor Statistics to determine fatal and nonfatal injuries within the WRT sector between 2017 and 2021.
Develop violence prevention materials for WRT workers.
Publish trade magazine article on workplace e-recycling hazards.
Publish blog with NIOSH Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities (TWU) program on safety and health issues related to WRT and TWU workers. WRT offers home delivery of grocery and other retail items. This blog will offer safety information for drivers.
Develop a Retail Safety and Health Resource document providing information for employers about workplace safety, health, and well-being.

Logos for HHS, CDC, and NIOSH. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Mention of any company or product does not constitute endorsement by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

At-A-Glance

The Wholesale and Retail Trade Program provides leadership to prevent diseases, injuries, and fatalities in wholesale and retail trade workers. This snapshot shows recent accomplishments and upcoming projects.

Overexertion & adverse bodily reactions-related nonfatal injury incidence rates for wholesale, retail sectors, & private industry*

Overexertion & adverse bodily reactions-related nonfatal injury incidence rates wholesale, retail sectors & private industry

Falls-related nonfatal injury incidence rate for wholesale, retail sectors, & private industry

Falls-related nonfatal injury incidence rate for the wholesale, retail sectors, & private industry

Transportation-related nonfatal injury incidence rates for wholesale, retail sectors, & private industry*

* Data source: Incidence rates for nonfatal injuries & illnesses involving days away from work per 10,000 full-time equivalent workers. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016 – 2020, Table R8.

To learn more, visit
www.cdc.gov/niosh/programs/wrt
July 2022