Retail Employees Report Assaults and Spitting Incidents

Retail employees have reported being “assaulted, spat at and hospitalised” following confrontations with shoplifters. Personnel from distinct retail outlets within the Boulevard Shopping precinct in Longbenton, North Tyneside, indicated they often forgo reporting such occurrences to law enforcement, citing that “nothing gets done.” Usdaw, the union representing shop workers, has published statistics revealing that 45% of its members have experienced verbal abuse, and 17% have been subjected to physical assault. A representative for Northumbria Police stated: “To protect shop staff, we recently made some changes to strengthen our response to this type of offending.” Employees in Longbenton, whose identities the BBC has consented to withhold, have discussed the hazards associated with confronting individuals engaged in shoplifting. One worker commented: “We get someone shoplifting daily, we confront them, but in the back of your head you wonder if they have a weapon.” This individual also mentioned that police informed her they would not attend unless the value of the stolen merchandise exceeded £1,000. A different employee recounted a confrontation with a shoplifter several years prior. She stated: “I stopped someone stealing, but I didn’t realise they were in a group.” She added: “They kicked and punched me when I was on the ground, I spent three days in hospital.” A third retail employee reported being “assaulted and spat at” by customers. He further noted that a colleague sustained a bite injury while trying to escort a shoplifter out of the store. Northumbria Police encouraged retail staff to consistently report instances of shoplifting or assault, clarifying that its intervention is “determined by the threat, harm and risk posed by incidents and those with reasonable lines of inquiry.” The police force indicated it is actively pursuing frequent shoplifting perpetrators and collaborating with retailers to diminish the overall occurrence of such crimes. For updates, follow BBC North East on X and Facebook, and BBC Cumbria on X and Facebook, as well as both on Nextdoor and Instagram. Story suggestions can be sent to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.