RETAIL ENVIRONMENT
Store attacks are worsening according to retail charity
Attacks on shopworkers are worsening amidst the rise in retail crime, with two in five shouted at, spat on, threatened or hit every week, leaving half feeling unsafe at work, but one in four don’t report abuse, according to charity Retail Trust.
The charity’s respect retail campaign, backed by major retailers, is now urging for the scale of abusive incidents not to go unrecorded so staff get the support they need.
Staff from over 200 retailers, including Tesco, H&M, Co-op and John Lewis, have spoken out against the shocking wave of assaults and theft that is making them feel unsafe, anxious and likely to quit the industry.
The Trust’s Respect Retail campaign was launched during the annual Respect for Shopworkers Week (13-19 November) this year, which was founded by the shopworkers’ trade union Usdaw and is now supported by a wide range of retail stakeholders.
The Retail Trust’s survey of more than 1,600 retail workers found:
- Two in five (41 per cent) are now shouted at, spat on, threatened or hit every week, and nearly half (47 per cent) are left feeling unsafe at work.
- A further 64 per cent said confronting a shoplifter had caused the abuse, and think incidents have increased in the last two years, and 56 per cent thought the rising cost-of-living was to blame for shoppers taking out their frustrations on them.
- Another two thirds (67 per cent) want stricter penalties for customers who abuse shopworkers, and a third (33 per cent) believe the police should be taking more action.
The Retail Trust, which runs a well-being helpline and provides counselling and financial aid for retail workers, is urging for incidents not to go unrecorded, as one in four (24 per cent) admit they don’t report abuse. Of these, more than two thirds (38 per cent) didn’t feel like it would help and nearly a quarter (23 per cent) said they had been put off by a previously unhelpful response from the police.
A further 28 per cent said they didn’t know how to respond to or report abusive incidents.
Rates of abuse have risen from last year, when 34 per cent told the Retail Trust that they experienced it weekly compared to 41 per cent this year.
The rising intolerance epidemic is backed-up by a new YouGov public poll for the Retail Trust, which found that 68 per cent of shoppers admit to having got annoyed with a shopworker, delivery driver or somebody working in customer services. Of these, 20 per cent admitted to raising their voice or losing their temper.
More than one in five shoppers (22 per cent) said they’ve felt scared or intimidated in a shop due to the behaviour of others, but over half (53 per cent) said they would speak up on behalf of a retail worker or confront the perpetrator if they witnessed abusive behaviour.
“In-store abuse happens to us daily,” revealed a 34-year-old customer advisor from Essex who spoke out on the condition of anonymity.
“One customer…started threatening me saying, ‘Give me what I want or I will slam your face through the desk.’ Then he punched me in the face."
“I am looking to leave retail because it doesn’t seem worth it. I suffer with panic attacks and often need to leave the shop floor because I can’t function. Unfortunately, customers have learnt that if they yell, scream or get abusive, they often get exactly what they want. If we employed a zero-aggression policy it might help, but police need to take assaults seriously.”
“The pandemic really accelerated things but it’s been getting worse since,” added Moses, a 42-year-old department store manager from Essex. “I have a different physical altercation every week over absolutely nothing."
“I made the decision to move to a department store from a supermarket because I read that it had more security guards. It was a decision I made while sitting in A&E, waiting for stitches in my forehead after a banned shoplifter attacked me. I’ve been physically attacked 20 or 30 times in the last two decades.”
Others told the Retail Trust they had been spat on or followed home and Julie, a 61-year-old store manager from Hampshire said: “I have worked in retail for 23 years and I have never known it so bad. In town, there are groups of between eight and 14 teens who come in every day and cause havoc. They run through stores, pushing over floor stands and hitting passers-by or store workers with sticks."
“I was threatened by a guy five months ago who said, ‘I will flob down your throat then kill you.’ That was because he was trying to return an item that he had stolen 15 minutes previously for cash. We have incidents like this two to five times every day. I’m quite thick-skinned, I’ve been around a long time, and I go home and my other half says you shouldn’t have to put up with that, but it’s become part of my job.”
“Thousands of shopworkers are contacting us to say they now fear for their safety, and this is simply unacceptable,” said Chris Brook Carter, chief executive of the Retail Trust.
“Every day we’re hearing from people who have been shouted at, spat on, threatened or hit at work, sometimes several times a week, so we’re very concerned. One person told us they were hit around the head by a shoplifter with a metal basket, another was knocked out cold by an angry customer, and this is on top of the vile insults and threats handed out on an all-too-regular basis."
“As a country and a society, we must get better at bringing an end to this terrible behaviour, making sure every incident is recorded and acted upon, and above all, ensuring that our colleagues across the country get the protection and support they need."
“Our message at the Retail Trust is clear. Abuse is never part of anyone’s job and if you’re a retail worker encountering abuse, threats or violence, please do report this to your manager and call the Retail Trust’s well-being helpline if you need any support dealing with your experiences,” he added.
