4 minute read
Retail Violence
by 55 North
UNDER ATTACK
Retail violence remains high, but local shops are fighting back with recordinvestment in crime prevention measures, research shows.
Abuse, threats and violence against shopworkers remain high and confidence in reporting incidents is low, trade union Usdaw’s annual survey reveals. The survey of nearly 3,500 retail staff shows that in the past 12 months:
● 90% have experienced verbal abuse;
● 64% were threatened by acustomer;
● 12% were assaulted;
● 61% said they were not confidentthat reporting abuse, threats andviolence will make a difference.
Paddy Lillis, Usdaw General Secretary, said: “It is shocking that nine in 10 of our members working in retail are suffering abuse from customers, with far too many experiencing threats and violence.
Particularly concerning is the onethird increase in assaults, up from 9% in 2020 to 12% in 2021. So it is extremely worrying that nearly two-thirds are not confident that reporting these issues will make any difference.
“Violence and abuse is not an acceptable part of the job and it is truly horrific that shopworkers are having to face it on a daily basis. Although the situation is bleak, there are some early signs that our work with retail employers may be starting to make a difference.”
He added: “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 co-ordination 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.”
However, the UK’s local shops are fighting back against the torrent of crimes committed against them, according to research by the Association of Convenience Stores.
The trade association’s 2022 Crime Report reveals that stores have invested a record £246m in crime prevention measures over the past year. On average, each store in the convenience sector spent over £5,000 on crime prevention measures, including security staff, CCTV and intruder alarms. This investment is targeted at tackling the 970,000 incidents of theft, 800,000 incidents of verbal abuse and over 9,000 robberies that occurred over the last year, as well as other threats like fraud and cybercrime.
PADDY LILLIS I USDAW
ACS Chief Executive, James Lowman, said: “During the pandemic, convenience stores were repeatedly targeted by criminals as they were often some of the only businesses trading, but now retailers have sent a clear message that they will not sit back and take this, investing a record amount to keep their businesses, colleagues, and themselves safer whilst ensuring that they have usable evidence to provide to the police in the event of an incident taking place.
“The cost of this investment, almost a quarter of a billion pounds, primarily comes from retailers’ own reserves. At a time when all costs are rising in the business, these figures demonstrate just how much of a priority tackling crime is for every local shop trading across the UK.”
Lowman continued: “Retailers voices are being heard when it comes to taking crimes against their business seriously. Twice as many Police and Crime Commissioners make explicit reference to business crime in their plans this year compared to 2020, new legislation is on the way to make attacking a shopworker a more serious offence, the new drugs strategy offers new approaches to tackle repeat offenders, and there has been UK-wide support for the Home Office backed ShopKind campaign.
“But we still have a long way to go; too many crimes are still not being reported because many retailers have poor experiences of the response from the police and courts. We urge retailers to ensure that all crimes are reported to the police to demonstrate the true scale of the problem, and for the actions of the police and justice system to be targeted to stop reoffending.”
