If Your Aldi Seems Short-Staffed, It's Probably Intentional — Here's Why

A few things set Aldi aside from other supermarkets: Obviously, there are the low prices (and sometimes unknown brands that come with them), as well as the seemingly random selection of home appliances and kitchenware offered as part of the Aldi Finds specials. But one other difference you may have noticed is that Aldi stores often have very few employees working, sometimes as few as five for an entire store. Some anecdotal reports suggest that sometimes the number is even lower.

The fact that Aldi stores operate with such a minuscule number of staff is a common talking point (or perhaps a complaint) among employees commenting on forums and job review sites. Why is this the case? The most obvious explanation is apparently true: It reduces costs. 

Aldi's U.K. site acknowledges explicitly that this tactic is employed to keep prices low. The company says its staff are expected to rotate among a wide range of functions. A single employee may do everything from stocking shelves to working the cash register, compared to other supermarkets that keep each employee locked into a single role. The company claims this makes it so shoppers won't have to wait for help, as staff can switch functions. Whether this claim holds true is dubious, as there is no shortage of customers complaining about how there's only one cashier or empty shelves, as well as a number of employees reporting they're overworked.

Aldi has a few tricks to make sure its stores can function with relatively few employees. Some of these logistical choices are perhaps obvious. For example, the reason Aldi staff don't typically pack your groceries into bags is to prevent cashiers from wasting time in order to push more customers through. In Germany, where discount supermarkets like Aldi dominate, there are countless viral videos and blog posts about how fast customers need to bag their groceries so they don't clog up the checkout line. Staff are even assessed by their ability to process a certain number of items per hour, as a performance incentive. Many items are placed on shelves in their original shipping boxes to save time for shelf stockers who do not have to remove individual products.

There are some other tricks that are perhaps less obvious. The way you need a quarter to unlock shopping carts? That's deliberate, so you have an incentive to return the cart, ideally making it so staff don't spend as much time retrieving them from parking lots. Aldi stores also don't typically publish their phone numbers to avoid time spent on phone inquiries. Plus, the store also carries far fewer products than many other supermarkets, which reduces time spent stocking. Aldi also doesn't have a deli counter to keep headcount low. It may not always be convenient, but these methods contribute to the chain's comparatively low prices.