Leigh MP quizzes shop staff about violent customers
Leigh MP James Grundy paid a fact-finding visit to his local JD Sports store to talk to staff about their experiences of abuse from customers.
He was responding to a parliamentary call for evidence regarding violence against shopworkers.
Mr Grundy quizzed employees about any issues of this kind they have encountered and why staff safety is key.
He said: “Sadly, too many retail workers and people in other public facing roles face violence or the threat of violence every day for simply doing their job.
"Last Friday, I met with staff at JD Sports on Parsonage Retail Park, where I was pleased to lend my support to the campaign to reduce these risks within retail workplaces, to work closely with the police to deter such action from being taken, and to provide high quality training to staff to deal with difficult situations safely.
"This multi-organisation campaign also has cross party support, and I look forward to seeing this campaign progress.”
Speaking about the British Retail Consortium’s Shopworkers’ Protection Pledge, JD Sports’ executive chairman Peter Cowgill said: “The safety and security of our staff is our highest priority. We want to ensure that people don’t have to face threatening or violent behaviours in order to do their jobs.
"We fully support the BRC in the Shopworkers’ Protection Pledge and will do everything we can to bring awareness to this issue.”
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