Some 23 per cent of customers have witnessed the physical or verbal abuse of shop staff, which can include racial or sexual abuse, physical assault or threats with weapons, according to the trade body the British Retail Consortium, quoting from its survey data polled by Opinium. The BRC complains that the UK is seeing record retail crime, and that violence and abuse against shop staff is rising.
The BRC points to Labour’s Crime and Policing Bill that is going through Parliament, and says that retailers hope this will play a vital role in protecting retail workers from harm and tackling what the BRC terms a surge in theft. The Bill includes a stand-alone offence whereby the assault of a retail worker will be a separate crime. The Bill also seeks to remove a £200 threshold of ‘low level’ theft, which has been parter of a longer-term perception that police do not attend to reports of shop theft where the value of goods stolen is under £200.
Delivery drivers
The BRC states that this Bill needs to go further and protect all retail staff working in customer facing roles, including delivery drivers, like the Workers Protection Act passed by Holyrood and covering Scotland. Retailers are having to equip their drivers with personal safety devices to alert the police of their whereabouts, and DNA spit testing kits, the BRC adds.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC, pictured, said: “Seeing incidents of theft or abuse has become an all-too-common part of the shopping experience for many people. While an incident can be over in a matter of seconds, it can have life-long consequences on those who experience it, making them think twice about visiting their local high streets. Criminals are becoming bolder and more aggressive, and decisive action is needed to put an end to it. The Crime and Policing Bill is a crucial step in providing additional protections to retail workers. However, in its current proposed form, it does not afford all retail workers the same protections as those working in Scotland, where delivery drivers are also protected. The Bill must protect everyone in customer facing roles in the industry.”
