Usdaw horrified at rise in violence against retail staff

Retail union Usdaw is horrified that the latest British Retail Consortium crime survey has revealed another steep rise in violence inflicted on shopworkers.

The Retail Crime Survey for 2004 revealed the worse figures for over a decade showing that physical violence against staff was up by an alarming 14% since 2003 and verbal abuse rose by a staggering 35%.

“These figures are very disturbing as it seems a small section of criminals and irresponsible consumers think shopworkers can be treated as physical and verbal punchbags,” says Usdaw General Secretary John Hannett. “We’ve been running a hugely successful Freedom From Fear campaign designed to combat these problems so it’s frightening to think that the problem could be even worse without our efforts.”

“Violent offenders have to get the message that shops have a zero tolerance policy for violence and we will continue to work with retailers, police, local authorities and consumer groups to make sure every store is as secure as possible. Our members can rest assured we will campaign for tougher measures, including the increased use of ASBOs and tougher sentencing, to protect them from thugs.”

“Our own research shows shoplifting and refusing to serve underage drinkers are flashpoints for violent incidents in stores and we will continue to work with all the major retailers to make sure visible security is on hand to deal with shoplifters who often suffer from drink and drug dependency issues.

“We are also enthusiastic supporters of the Prime Minister’s respect agenda, as the BRC are right to say our society has lost a sense of treating shopworkers decently and our members have a right to go to work without the daily terror of being attacked or verbally abused.”

"Our message to frustrated shoppers who think it’s ok to scream abuse at shop staff is quite simple. There is no circumstance in any store in the UK where a shopper has a right to verbally abuse a shopworker who is just doing their job."

“The figures for violence and verbal abuse may be the highest for a decade but there is a lot of good work being done to address this problem and we will not rest until we significantly reduce the levels of abuse our members have to endure on a daily basis. We will win this battle and make working with Freedom From Fear a reality rather than an aspiration.”

Notes to Editors:

• Contacts for newsdesks: Usdaw’s Media Officer, Paul Clarke, can be contacted on 0161 249 2469 or e-mail paul.clarke@usdaw.org.uk.

• Usdaw (the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK’s fifth biggest trade union, with over 341,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades.

• More information and news releases are available at our online Newsroom.

• Journalists can subscribe to receive Usdaw news releases via our online e-news service.

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© 2003 (USDAW) Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers
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