New polling for Unite the Unite finds a majority of the public have noticed supermarket food shortages and believe employers should pay truck driver more.

68% of the public have noticed empty supermarket shelves in recent weeks, to 28% who say they haven’t noticed.

When asked who they hold most responsible for shortages, the largest number, 48%, named the Government, with supermarkets and the truck drivers themselves only held responsible by 14%.

The public believes a combination of factors, COVID-19 (73%),  Brexit (70%) and low pay (57%) are all significant factors in the shortages being seen in supermarkets. 

56% of the public believes employers should pay truck drivers more than they currently do, with 26% believing they should be paid the same as current and 7% believe they should be paid less.

Fieldwork Dates

• 10th – 14th September

Data Collection Method 

• The survey was conducted via online interview. Invitations to complete surveys were sent out to members of the panel.

Population Sampled 

• Adults aged 18+ in the UK

Sample Size 

• 2164

Data tables:

S-21-000536_Unite V1