Central England Co-op demands tougher action to protect staff

Central England Co-op is demanding tougher action from Government to protect its staff after receiving "multiple" reports of customers threatening to cough on shop workers to give them coronavirus.
Debbie RobinsonDebbie Robinson
Debbie Robinson

The Co-op has responded to Government plans to deal with threats and violence towards shop workers by claiming that more still needs to be done.

The retailer has reflected on the findings of a consultation entitled ‘Call for Evidence – Violence and Abuse Towards Shop Staff’ after last week launching a joint campaign with other retailers to lobby for Government action to protect those who ensure communities have access to food and essential supplies.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

New figures from the retailer, which has more than 260 stores across 16 counties, showed that reports of assault against its staff have jumped by 100 per cent and reports of threats and intimidation have risen by 25 per cent since the start of the year. Cases of verbal abuse have also risen by 175 per cent so far during 2020.

Since the lockdown was introduced, there have been more than 100 incidents related directly to people using COVID-19 as a threat.

The Co-op said: "Examples of incidents have included multiple threats by customers to cough on colleagues and ‘give them Coronavirus’ and further threats of assaults because people have had to queue to enter stores, social distance or simply because they do not have a specific product."

Some of the actions proposed in the Government report include the development of a best practice guide to help staff report crimes and ensure they have the correct support.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The report urges police forces and police and crime commissioners to "reach out" to retailers to understand the scale of the problem locally.

It also calls on police forces to ensure that the theft of goods up to £200 should be prosecuted as a criminal offence

Debbie Robinson, Central England Co-op chief executive, said: “While we welcome these positive steps by the Government, we still think more could and should be done to protect our store colleagues and all shop workers from threats and physical abuse.

“We continue to believe that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable, and we will not tolerate any kind of abuse to our colleagues and we again urge the Government to work harder to recognise the people it itself has recognised as being of vital importance to our daily lives.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Their amazing contribution now needs to be recognised by a change in the law so anyone who takes the decision to cross the line with our colleagues knows that retail crime is taken seriously.

“We are aware that this is not just a Central England Co-op problem, it is an industry-wide problem, and this is why we will continue to work closely with other co-operatives and retailers to campaign for change.”

Central England Co-op is also encouraging customers and members to pledge their support for more Government action by signing an online petition set up by the Co-operative Party.

People can sign it here: https://party.coop/retailviolencebill

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Association of Convenience Stores chief executive James Lowman, said: “Warm words and working groups are not enough; we need tougher penalties for attacks on shopworkers and more police resource to stamp out violence.

“We are committed to working through the National Retail Crime Steering Group to make sure retailers and shop workers are equipped to report every incident of crime to police and to send a clear message that violence and abuse is not part of the job.”

The publication of this report by the Government comes days after Central England Co-op revealed that hundreds of MPs from across the country had backed its campaign calling for better protection for colleagues.

More than 200 parliamentarians have pledged to support efforts to keep staff and customers safe.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Sincerely. Thank you.

James Mitchinson

Editor

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.