Supermarket worker says customer behaviour ‘can be quite scary’
A new USDAW survey sees more shop worker abuse than pre-pandemic
Retail workers in Swindon are quitting their jobs because of customers’ abusive behaviours.
This is according to David Styles, member of USDAW and employee at a Swindon supermarket, who has said that he has seen several co-workers leave.
It comes around ten days after Swindon Borough Council passed a motion to call for better protection of retail staff among rising numbers of retail crime.
Mr. Styles said: “I have experienced quite abusive customers while doing my job, so if we don’t have a certain item that is on offer, they can get quite abusive and quite loud with myself and others – and that can be quite confrontational and quite scary to be honest”.
He further explained that he has been noticing increasingly abusive behaviour from customers for five years now.
“People are a lot more impatient, there is a lot more demand for things. You’re expected to do a hundred and one things rather than just the one thing that you’re able to do.
“My mum works in a different shop, so I’ve heard quite a few stories from her about similar things – customers getting abusive, getting loud, getting in her face”.
Even though his company does not tolerate any kind of abuse of staff and has been removing customers who have caused trouble from the store, Mr. Styles has seen several of his co-workers quit their jobs.
In his opinion, more needs to be done to protect shop workers, such as giving security more power or introducing a new law around abusive behaviour towards shop workers.
At a full council meeting earlier this month, councillors approved a motion to call for new legislation “to make assault of a retail worker a standalone offence in England as is the case in other parts of the UK”.
Council leader Jim Robbins has promised to write to the Home Secretary and Swindon MPs as well as the Police and Crime Commissioner for Wiltshire and Swindon.