4 minute read
Cover Story
by 55 North
The fight back
Sector reacts as new aggravated offence protecting shopworkers comes into force.
This week saw new provisions come into force to make attacking an individual who serves the public, including shopworkers, an aggravated offence.
The provisions, introduced in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, have been welcomed by the whole of the sector. They bring England and Wales into line with Scotland, which enacted similar legislation in 2021.
ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: “We are pleased that the government has introduced this new aggravated offence to provide additional protection to individuals serving the public following years of campaigning from ourselves and organisations from across the industry, this is a significant step forward but will not solve the problem by itself.
“Crime is one of the biggest challenges faced by our sector and these incidents have significant financial and emotional effects on the individuals and the businesses involved and should not be seen as part of the job. All incidents of crime against our sector should be reported and it is important that appropriate and proportionate action is taken by the justice system when these incidents occur.”
Meanwhile, the NFRN – which also lobbied MPs in Westminster for years for a change in the law to protect shopworkers – also welcomed the Act’s introduction. Its National President Jason Birks said: “Attacks against store owners and their staff have been increasing for a number of years, so I am pleased that we are now being given the same protection in law as other frontline workers. Being attacked verbally or physically while just going about your daily business should not be tolerated and seen as part of the job.
“The important thing now is that the police and the Crown Prosecution Service work together to ensure this new law is an effective deterrent and not just a piece of paper. It’s essential that retailers report all incidents to highlight the scale of the problem, and the police response has to improve if retail crime is to be tackled head on.”
However, retail trade union Usdaw called for more action to ensure that abuse, threats and violence against shopworkers are taken seriously after another survey found that incidents are on the increase. The call came as figures from The Institute of Customer Service revealed that 44% of frontline service staff have experienced hostility from customers in the past six months, a rise from 35% in February.
Paddy Lillis, Usdaw General Secretary, said: “This survey is further confirmation of the scale of the problem retail staff face on a daily basis. Usdaw’s latest research found that nine in 10 retail workers suffered abuse from customers last year, with far too many experiencing threats and violence. Particularly concerning was the one-third increase in assaults.
“The government has taken a step in the right direction by making the assault a public-facing worker a statutory aggravating factor when sentencing. However, that relies on the police responding to incidents, the CPS prosecuting the case and a guilty verdict. Regrettably, too many incidents do not get through to sentencing, which is a big part of why nearly twothirds of shopworkers say they are not confident that reporting incidents will make any difference.
“Faced with such appallingly high levels of violence and abuse, and with shopworkers’ almost complete lack of confidence in the ability of the system to give them the protection they need, much more needs to be done.
“The government must provide the coordination needed to ensure that retail employers, police and the courts work together to make stores safe places for our members to work and for customers to shop.”
