Stephen Morgan MP has today joined the retail union USDAW in their call for action to protect shopworkers, after research finds that supermarkets suffered the highest proportion of retail crime at 54.42%.
The latest police recorded crime statistics for England and Wales showed that in the 12 months to March there was a 24% increase in shoplifting.
Recently, Co-op revealed they have seen crime, shoplifting and anti-social behaviour jump 35% year-on-year, with more than 175,000 incidents recorded in the first six months of this year, almost 1,000 incidents every day.
Usdaw’s own annual survey of over 7,500 shopworkers found that 31% of incidents of violence, threats and abuse against shopworkers related to shoplifting, which is not only higher than in 2019 but also more than double the 2016 level.
Commenting MP Stephen Morgan said:
“I know from my recent visits to retailers in our community the impact of rising shoplifting on workers, who are now having to serve our city’s residents with fear and concern for their own safety.
“It cannot be right that many of these cases go unreported as shopworkers do not believe anything will be done.
“The Government’s continued inaction is putting shopworkers at risk. That’s why I’m joining USDAW in their calls for much more to be done to tackle the rise in shoplifting and protect workers on the frontline of retail”.
Paddy Lillis, General Secretary of USDAW said:
“Shoplifting is not a victimless crime. Theft from shops has long been a major flashpoint for violence and abuse against shopworkers.
Having to deal with repeated and persistent shoplifters can cause issues beyond the theft itself like anxiety, fear and in some cases physical harm to retail workers.
Faced with such appallingly high levels of violence and abuse, along with a growing epidemic of retail crime, much more needs to be done”.
Mr Morgan will continue standing up for shopworkers in Portsmouth, listening to community concerns, working closely with Portsmouth traders and local police, and raising issues in Parliament with Ministers.
He recently met with local traders to hear their concerns and has raised concerns with the police. A number of actions have been taken to tackle the issues faced in our city, including a number of prosecutions.
