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As AI rocks entry-level gigs, Whole Foods exec says the billion-dollar grocer is offering workers the chance to become butchers, fishmongers, and pizza makers
About 1,300 Whole Foods employees have been upskilled in an artisan craft from fishmongering to cake decorating, offering unemployed Gen Z an alternative to corporate or trade jobs.
“What began as a single program with just a few hundred participants has grown into a portfolio of seven specialized training tracks, with more on the way,” Sonya Gafsi Oblisk, chief merchandising and marketing officer at Whole Foods, tells Fortune. Oblisk says that employee wages are increased when they enter the program, with pay varying based on their previous salary and apprentice track—unlocking not only specialized skills, but a stronger career pathway. “To complement this, programs like the [Whole Foods Market] apprenticeships remain critical to raising the bar on the art of retail…Apprenticeships are an accelerated career [driving] business results in the age of AI.”
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