UK retail bosses beg for increased staff protection as wave of violence sees criminals 'emptying stores’
1 October 2023, 18:57 | Updated: 1 October 2023, 20:42
UK retail bosses from across the UK have begged the government for greater legislation in a bid to protect their staff from violent thugs who are "emptying stores".
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The heads of close to 90 retail giants - which include high street mainstays Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Boots - have written to the government demanding action following soaring levels of retail crime.
They claim violent criminals are “emptying stores”, leaving shop staff in danger thanks to inadequate legal measures.
The group are pleading for the creation of a new UK-wide legislation which would make assaulting or abusing a retail worker an aggravated offence.
It comes as the head of the Co-op group claimed his business had lost £33 million to criminals in the first half of 2023.
A law that already exists in Scotland, the new laws would carry a far tougher sentence than current legislation.
The would also require police to record all incidents of shoplifting and retail crime, increasing the provision of police resources to retail sites.
“The police consistently tell us that a lack of data about these offences means they have no visibility about the nature or scale of the issue,” reads letter says.
The 88 retail bosses have now requested a meeting with the home secretary, Suella Braverman, to discuss the issue.
It followed a fruitful meeting with Chris Philp, the minister for crime, who promises to take action and develop a stratergy to tackle the crimewave, which is plaguing highstreets amid a cost of living crisis.
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“It is vital that action is taken before the scourge of retail crime gets any worse. We are seeing organised gangs threatening staff with weapons and emptying stores," said Helen Dickinson, the chief executive of the BRC, speaking with The Observer.
"We are seeing violence against colleagues who are doing their job and asking for age verification.
"We are seeing a torrent of abuse aimed at hardworking shop staff. It’s simply unacceptable – no one should have to go to work fearing for their safety.
She added: "We need government to stand with the millions of retail workers who kept us safe and fed during the pandemic – and support them, as those workers supported us.”
It follows police data which shows the extent to which major high street retailers are let down by the force.
According to the figures, forces failed to respond to 73% of serious retail crimes that were reported to police.
Meanwhile, 44% of retailers within the BRC who took part in the annual crime survey rated the police's own response to reports as “poor” or “very poor”.
