Shop violence rising
Shop workers in the UK are working in an increasingly hostile and dangerous environment, according a survey by USDAW, the trade union for shop workers.
More than half of the respondents said they were concerned about abuse:
51 per cent about verbal abuse, 53 per cent about threats and 57 per
cent about violence. The British Retail Consortium has also released
the findings of its 11th annual Retail Crime Survey, covering the year
2003, showing an increase in abuse directed at shop workers. The survey
found that, from 2002 to 2003, verbal abuse rose from 70 to 159 incidents
per 100 retail outlets and threats of violence increased from 18 to 47
per 1,000 staff.
Pharmacy staff are at particularly high risk, due to the nature of their
work.
Last month, a Nottingham pharmacist was forced to the ground in his shop
by three robbers who threatened to shoot him.
Gerry Diamond, a Labour Party trade union liaison officer, believes that
many incidents in pharmacies go unreported and that pharmacy staff often
brush off incidents. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
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