The government is calling for evidence to help understand what more can be done to protect shop workers from violence and abuse.
News
Minister for crime pledges retail safety
By
on 01 April 2019
The National Retail Crime Steering Group met on 12 February to take plans forward after Home Office figures showed assaults to retail staff have more than doubled in a year.
Retail workers suffered around 510,000 assaults and threats in 2017, up from 203,000 incidents in 2016.
Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability, Victoria Atkins, said: “I have every sympathy for retail staff who have been the victims of these appalling acts just for doing their jobs.”
The call for evidence is intended to help strengthen the evidence base on how to protect retail workers from abuse, and to look at all options for addressing these crimes.
The Home Office has pledged £50,000 of funding for a sector-led communications campaign to raise awareness of violence in shops.
NEWS
Legal maximum working temperature: HSE to review workplace code of practice
By Belinda Liversedge on 09 July 2026
HSE is to review how extreme heat is managed under current workplace regulations, Parliament heard this week as the UK baked in its third heatwave of the year.
Silicosis flying under the radar thanks to misdiagnosis and poor health screening, doctor warns
By Belinda Liversedge on 06 July 2026
Waiting for workers to show symptoms of silicosis means acting too late, a leading clinician working at the frontline of the disease has warned.
"AI can’t take your job": why communication skills are safety profs' best tool at SHW Live
By Belinda Liversedge on 03 July 2026
Safety professionals can future proof their jobs by getting out more and talking to people on the shop floor – a skill that can’t be replaced by Artificial Intelligence (AI) – an audience at SHW Live heard yesterday.