Action needed to stamp out assaults on retail staff

When people think of dangerous jobs, they often think of emergency services, construction workers and mining technicians.

Yet only months ago, Australia was left aghast by CCTV footage of a supermarket self-serve attendant – a 19-year-old girl – being repeatedly punched in the head by a violent customer.

And this shocking video tells the tale of an insidious trend occurring across the country.

Imagine being a 19-year-old woman, fresh out of high school – likely working one of your first jobs – and being subjected to such a heinous, unprovoked attack. While the bruises heal, the emotional and mental scars remain.

Her family, friends and work colleagues would share in the trauma – dumbfounded by how such a vicious assault could take place in what many would consider to be a benign workplace.

With retail workers now part of the “dangerous workers” conversation, something has gone awry in society.

A survey by the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association (SDA) generated the shameful statistic that 80 per cent of retail and hospitality employees had experienced customer abuse.

Peeling back the onion a little further, the SDA revealed some anecdotal stories from retail workers.

“A customer threatened to kill my family and myself if I didn’t remake his cheeseburger because the first one was apparently too cold,” one worker recalls.

Another says: “I have been threatened to be raped. I have had customers physically throw items at me, including hot coffee.”

Retail staff have been extremely patient and far more forgiving than anybody would expect of them.

They gave customers the benefit of the doubt during the pandemic, when frustrations were at fever pitch.

They gave customers the benefit of the doubt when restrictions were introduced.

We saw a big rise in the number of customers who chose to unleash their grievances on retail staff during the pandemic. We expected this to subside when restrictions lifted – but sadly this is not the case.

Enough is enough. We need to change the dynamic.

Last year, the South Australian government introduced a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment for people convicted of basic assault against a retail worker on the job and seven years when the assault causes harm.

Prior to its election, the NSW Labor Party also committed to implementing harsher penalties.

The existing framework of aggravated assault applies to emergency services workers in several state jurisdictions across the country.

The purpose is to deter violence against these vital frontline teams, their members all too often subjected to abuse and assault.

The same rings true for retail staff. They are also frontline workers, and as a result they’re exposed to the good, bad and ugly.

We must condemn this behaviour in the most emphatic way possible. Retail staff are not emotional or physical punching bags. They are vulnerable human beings with a vital role and who deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.

When we allow this behaviour to go unchecked, what message does this send across our communities?

It creates an environment where violence and abuse are normalised. We must not let this become the new normal. And we need the appropriate legislative instruments in place to push back against this behaviour.

The issue of shoplifting unfortunately is part of the problem here.

In NSW, it was revealed that retail theft had risen 23.7 per cent in the 12 months to December last year.

Sceptics often say that shoplifting is a victimless crime, but the reality is that one in four cases of retail theft also involves abusive or threatening behaviour towards frontline workers.

We’re also seeing a spike in organised crime in retail stores.

Organised crime is professional shoplifting, involving two or more people who conspire to steal retail merchandise with the intention of reselling the items at a profit.  

It’s a scary proposition for the 1.3 million Australians who work in the retail industry, and an even scarier proposition for the tens of thousands of young Australians working their first ever jobs in a retail store.

Stamping out aggression in retail stores requires a crackdown on retail crime across the board. And that needs a co-ordinated effort from governments and authorities.

Your local supermarket shouldn’t be a flashpoint of criminal activity. Retail staff shouldn’t have to fear for their safety at work.

We must work to create a culture where this type of behaviour simply isn’t tolerated. In these sad circumstances, the customer isn’t always right.

Paul Zahra is chief executive of the Australian Retailers Association.