There are many studies showing that night shift workers experience more mental and physical health issues than day shift workers. Obviously, some things absolutely require night shifts, such as hospitals, but not stores and restaurants. Convenient, sure, but not necessary. So in a socialist country that prioritizes the well-being of workers, do you think these non-critical 24-hour establishments would exist?
Some sources on the health effects of night shifts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Well, local convenience store franchise in Poland is experimenting with fully self-service shops (with workers just restocking), which within a socialist economy might just work
Companies in China is trying this too, as are 7-11 and Amazon (I’d boycott that last one out of principle though). Pretty interesting stuff, some are basically giant vending machines while even more advanced ones are actual stores that are completely unattended or only have a few staff, and use computer vision to track what you’re taking and charge your account automatically. I honestly prefer the former, but both are better than hiring cashiers and working them half to death.
Yes, Żabka (the “”“Polish”“” convenience store franchise) is trying the Amazon kind, with machine vision and pre-registration in an app. In a socialist system we won’t need as many anti-theft/checkout measures.