Retail Employees

The retail sector is one that is often not immediately associated with lone worker risks - however risks to retail staff are undoubtedly changing. The old perception of retail crime being ‘victimless' is constantly being challenged in-line with new risks to staff and liability to employers. The sector is the largest private sector employer in the UK with around three million people employed (Source: UK Retail Futures 2008).

Over fifty percent of all retail staff are employed across sales or customer service functions, making them potentially open to suffering incidents of verbal or physical abuse. Risk in retail however is also no longer exclusive to the point of sale - with a range of additional risks across the potential of staff tackling shoplifting and other anti-social behaviour, the opening and closing of premises, back of house operations (potentially at risk of man-down), and banking runs etc. This makes workers of this type a prime candidate for using a dedicated lone worker device such as Identicom.

Risk is not only exclusive within the workplace however. In a recent survey conducted by the Union of Shop, Distribution and Allied Workers (USDAW), over a third of members expressed concerns about their journeys to work, with women aged over 60 being twice as likely to feel unsafe whilst travelling, than women under the age of 24. The biggest concern identified by USDAW members was walking across dark car parks to get to work, with more than half of all women expressing concerns, closely followed by concern for their personal safety when walking in the dark. 

Around twenty percent of staff employed by retail organisations are at manager level or higher - this tier of workers will most likely be facing risk infrequently. Individuals in this type of job role may benefit from a non-dedicated device solution such as Identicom mobile due the frequency of risk combined with the likelihood they'll also carry a smart-phone.

In 2009 the British Retail Consortium's Retail Crime Survey outlined that violence continues to be an unacceptable threat to staff with a "doubling of violence on last year". The survey advised that at least 22,000 staff suffered physical or verbal attacks or threats and the level of recorded incidents is now running at 20 per 1000 staff employed. Over the same time-period reported incidents of customer theft were recorded at just short of half a million, which represents an increase of thirty four percent in only a single year.

Updated for 2011, the BRC's latest Retail Crime Survey highlights the following:

• An increase in verbal abuse and threats of violence against retail staff (verbal abuse increased by over 80%).
• The security measures taken by employers (CCTV, fixed panic alarms etc) are unable to capture or verify verbal abuse directed at staff.  
• Robberies have also increased by 20 per cent with retailers reporting an increase in the use of weapons and violence.

Click to download the 2011 Retail Crime Survey Source: British Retail Consortium
Click to download the USDAW Women's Journey Survey Results Source: Union of Shop, Distribution and Allied Workers

Are you a Retail Employer?

Cause for alarm? Lone Worker Alarms versus In-Store Panic Buttons:

We've recently issued a White Paper highlighting a recent comparison made between ACPO's false alarm statistics for fixed panic alarms and data surrounding Red Alerts on lone worker devices (shared between leading lone worker suppliers who make up the BSIA Lone Worker Steering Group). The topics covered include.

• Who are the main stakeholders and how are they affected by each system?

• Limitations of fixed alarms

• Making the case for lone worker

Case Studies

Hilti Targets The Changing Risk To Retail Staff With Connexion2's Identicom Lone Worker Device

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