Prominent MP backs more legal protection against assault of shopworkers

Cooper visited the group’s Castleford, West Yorkshire, store as part of Respect for Shopworkers week.

She said: “No one should feel unsafe at work. It’s appalling that violence and abuse against shopworkers has been rising for five years – and we’ve seen it too often here in the Five Towns, even though shopworkers have been on the frontline in the pandemic.

“Too often it is just dismissed as retail crime, but it can be devastating for shopworkers.

“That’s why I’ve been calling in parliament the government to strengthen the law and why I’m backing this important campaign by Usdaw and the Co-op.”

Usdaw statistics indicate that 89% of shopworkers have suffered verbal abuse from customers and 64% have been threatened.

Whitfield said: “It is not just the physical impact on colleagues, but the mental wellbeing of frontline shopworkers who face into this behaviour on a daily basis – they should be able to carry out their valued role in local community life free from fear.

“A workers’ law would send out a clear message and start to bring about a change in the perception that it is OK to attack and abuse shopworkers.”

The Co-op says it has invested more than £140m in the latest technology to keep colleagues safe over the past five years and continues to do all it can to protect colleagues, including introducing the latest in remote-monitored CCTV and body-worn cameras that can send real-time audio and visual footage to its security operations centre at the touch of a button.