Stronger Penalties for Customer Abuse
Retailers welcome stronger penalties for customer abuse.
The National Retail Association has welcomed the introduction of the Assaults on Retail Workers Bill in the New South Wales Parliament, saying tougher penalties will better protect front line workers from customer abuse.
New South Wales is the second State to introduce regulations, after the South Australian Government introduced regulations to protect retail workers from abuse.
Chief Executive, Greg Griffith has welcomed the announcement. “We are working with landlords, Industry experts, retailers from a range of categories, Police and justice representatives, and unions, to support businesses and the excellent work of the Police across the country,”
“While we understand that the majority of customers are in stores to shop and are well behaved, we need to support our workforce. We need to address the behaviour of aggressive individuals and demonstrate there are consequences for their actions. We need to send a clear message that ‘they are not welcome here.’” said Mr Griffith.
.
“The first step in this process is to create a pathway for action and ensure the data and reporting mechanisms accurately reflect the heightened rates in customer aggression. We urge retailers to increase the reporting of these incidents to police across the country to better protect all our retail workers and their peers.” said Mr Griffith.
