Central England Co-op shares details of attacks on staff

By Liz Wells in Industry News 24th July 2020

Central England Co-op has repeated its call that the government ‘urgently needs to do more’ to protect shopworkers after three recent incidents.

The retailer, which has more than 260 stores across 16 counties, released details of the three attacks on shopworkers – one which included a knife and another a wrench – in an effort to continue the conversation and to force change.

The first incident, in Markfield, Leicester, saw a colleague verbally abused, physically attacked and then robbed while he lay injured on the floor in an unprovoked attack.

The second, which happened this week in Barnsley, saw a criminal stab a colleague during a robbery at the store.

The third saw a colleague in Shepshed, Leicestershire, pushed, hit in the head and threatened with a wrench after asking a customer was asked for ID while trying to buy an energy drink and then attempting to leave the store with a drink without paying.

The shopworkers are recovering from their injuries and major investigations have been launched by local police forces.

Craig Goldie, loss prevention manager, said: “These three incidents are truly shocking and showcase why the government urgently needs to do more to better protect our frontline shop workers.

“Stronger laws and punishments are needed for criminals who feel that it is acceptable to target shop workers in these types of brutal and appalling ways.

“While we continue to campaign for more to be done, we also want to send a message to would-be criminals. We have a zero-tolerance approach to any kind of crime and, if you still want to commit a crime, we will work around the clock with local police forces to bring you to justice in an effort to keep our colleagues and customers safe.”

Figures from the retailer show assaults jumped by 100%, threats and intimidation by 25% and verbal abuse by 175% since the start of the year, and since the lockdown was introduced, there have been over 100 incidents related directly to people using Covid-19 as a threat.

The retailer 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.