New criminal offence needed to protect shop workers after ‘shocking increase’ in abuse, MPs say

Attacks on supermarket staff should be treated with ‘same seriousness’ as those on emergency workers, committee says

Supermarket workers have reported a rise in assaults during the pandemic (AP)

A new criminal offence is needed to protect retail workers after a “shocking rise in attacks”, MPs have found.

Parliament’s Home Affairs Committee said that crimes committed against sales assistants “must be treated with the same seriousness” as those on police and other emergency workers, which are punished under a dedicated law.

A report published on Tuesday said the current police response to violence and abuse inside shops was inadequate, weakening the deterrent for criminals and leaving workers vulnerable.

Yvette Cooper, chair of the Home Affairs Committee, said: “Other public workers have rightly been afforded extra protection by the law in recognition of the public service they provide and the increased risks they face, and a standalone offence for assault on emergency workers has produced promising early results in increasing prosecutions.

“Violence and abuse towards shop workers must be treated with the same seriousness and those workers must be afforded similar protection in law.”

The report said the government should “urgently” start a consultation on the scope of a new standalone offence for assaulting retail workers.

It found that the workers’ responsibilities for enforcing coronavirus laws, age limits and restricted goods acted as a “key trigger for violence and abuse”, and that had not been met with adequate protections.

Ms Cooper said “shameful” figures showed that abuse and assaults against retailers had increased during the pandemic, at a time when they were the “lifeblood of communities”.

“It is completely unacceptable that these attacks have become so commonplace in our society,” the Labour MP added.

“Yet too often the police have not taken these crimes seriously enough and workers have been left to deal with the traumatic consequences alone. Those who abuse and assault shop workers must not be allowed to reoffend with impunity.”

Research by the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) found that 89 per cent of individuals working in local shops had experienced some form of abuse, and the British Retail Consortium reported that the number of incidents recorded last year amounts to the equivalent of one a minute during a typical shopping day.

A survey by the Home Affairs Committee found that only one in five shop workers who reported incidents were satisfied with the police response, and many felt that officers were unlikely to attend in person, or came too slowly.

Witnesses told the committee there was a vicious cycle, where retailers did not report incidents to the police because they did not think they would respond, and that police forces would underestimate the problem as a result and deprioritise it.

The report called for a stronger policing response to tackle violence and abuse against shopworkers, as well as more support from employers and prevention work on local high streets.

MPs said the expansion of neighbourhood police teams could rebuild relationships, increase recording of incidents and improve intelligence on repeat offenders.

The report also called for action on the causes of retail crime, including theft linked to drug addiction. The committee said rehabilitation services should be sustainably funded to “help break the cycle of prolific offending”.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council said it worked with regional forces to help them engage with retailers, and would consider the Home Affairs Committee’s recommendations.

Assistant Commissioner Alistair Sutherland, the lead for business crime, said: “We take reports of all types of retail crime very seriously, particularly those involving violence, and will seek to prosecute anyone who breaks the law in this regard.

“We recognise however, that there is more that we must do to encourage reporting and provide a better service and assurance to victims.”

Kit Malthouse, the policing minister, did not commit to consulting on a new law but said new sentencing guidelines already mean courts should be giving harsher sentences to people who assault retail workers.

“It is completely unacceptable to threaten or assault retail staff, not least when they are working so hard to keep vital services running, and we absolutely condemn this behaviour,” he added.

“We are putting 20,000 extra police officers into our communities to cut crime – including retail crime – and we launched the #ShopKind campaign in April to provide better support to victims and encourage customers to treat shop workers with dignity and respect.”