70% of Frontline Workers Report Rising Concerns with Injuries on the Warehouse Floor
Zebra Technologies, today released the findings of its latest Warehousing Vision Study titled, “Elevating Every Move: The Formula for High-Performance Warehousing.” Frontline workers clearly communicated the benefits of automating warehouse operations and the risks of not automating fast enough.
According to the study, 63% of warehouse leaders plan to implement artificial intelligence software and augmented reality within five years. In addition, 64% plan to increase spending on warehouse modernisation in the next five years, and 63% plan to accelerate their modernisation timelines by 2029.
Interact Analysis projects global warehouse square footage will increase by 27% to 42 billion square feet in 2030 from 33 billion square feet in 2023. Warehouse labour spend is also expected to show long-term expansion projected at a compound annual growth rate of 7% through 2030.
As this expansion continues and daily order volumes increase, feedback shared by frontline workers suggests that warehouse leaders will need to move a bit faster to expand workforce capacity:
85% of associates say, “If my employer does not invest in technology to improve warehouse operations, we will not meet business objectives.”
74% of associates are concerned they are spending too much time on tasks that could be automated.
72% of associates are concerned about safety on the (increasingly busy) warehouse floor with 70% specifically worried about injuries.
69% of associates reported there is a lack of qualified staff on the warehouse floor and express concerns about fatigue and physical exhaustion.
Read the full study here