Staff Safety
Employers can be held liable for any breach of duty or responsibility relating to the health and safety of their staff, including the possibility of attacks by third parties (e.g customers or shoplifters) during the course of work. Compensation claims can be heavy and it is most important that employers acknowledge the risks and take preventative action.
Possible attacks
Verbal abuse (including those relating to race, age, disability or sex)
Physical abuse
Threats of violence
Actual violence
Note that sexual harassment would be included in the above and employers have a statutory duty to protect their staff from sexual harassment by customers, suppliers and other people they encounter in the course of their work (The Equality Act 2010 - Sex Discrimination) Sexual harassment could be said to be any “unwanted conduct related to their sex which violates their dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment”
Possible attackers
Irate customers
Drunks
Mentally ill
Suspected or apprehended shoplifters
Robbers
Terrorists (however unlikely)
N.B. Fellow employees are excluded from this list of possible attackers because the normal terms and conditions of employment would cover any such situation. Every employer has a duty to take reasonable steps to ensure that any new recruit is a “competent and safe” fellow employee.
Effects of attack
1 Physical injury
2 Mental injury (e.g. trauma or depression)
3 General distress and anxiety
Employer’s legal duties and responsibilities
Must do all that is reasonably practical to prevent any such attacks (Crime prevention)
Take all reasonable steps to protect staff who might face such attacks (Risk assessments & implementation)
Do all they reasonably can to support any member of staff who has been the victim of any such attack (counselling)
Crime Prevention – security
Crime Prevention is not only good business sense but helps the employer to comply with legal duties towards staff. For more information about crime prevention click on to Security.
The standard of care expected of employers in regard to “crime prevention” involves a number of factors but can be greatly influenced by “general and approved” practice in the particular industry. Thus, guidelines on best practice to come from A.C.S. Retail Crime Forum can be of immense benefit to all members of the Association.
Risk Assessment
In consultation with employees or their representatives deal with the following
identify hazards
identify vulnerable groups or individuals
evaluate risk
evaluate precautions
record findings
notify all staff
Where appropriate implement action and monitor.
Risk assessment must be considered in relation to each individual member of staff, i.e. all circumstances relevant to their particular susceptibilities, for example due to pregnancy, disability etc.).
The employer could be held liable if reasonable care is not taken to prevent reasonably foreseeable risks. Reasonable care includes an awareness of the regulatory and advisory material available from the Health and Safety Executive. (e.g. Preventing Violence to Retail Staff)
Although risk assessments must be taken in relation to each individual member of staff there are certain fundamental issues that should feature in the training of all staff.
For example only “authorised staff” should be permitted to restrain thieves and only then after they have assessed the risks to their own safety and that of fellow workers, customers or other innocent bystanders.
“Authorised staff” would be those who have received thorough training in security and safety issues and are judged competent by their employers to undertake citizen’s arrests.
If a member of staff witnesses someone shoplifting then he or she should immediately contact an “authorised staff” member rather than approach the thief personally. Only in circumstances where no “authorised staff” member is available and the witness considers there is no risk to his or her personal safety or that of others, should the shoplifter be approached. Even then it should only be for the purpose of trying to persuade the thief to give up any concealed goods and not for the purpose of arrest.
Section 76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 seeks to clarify the law on the use of force in acts of self defence or prevention of crime. Such force is to be considered in the light of the circumstances as they were genuinely believed to be at the time even if subsequently the belief was shown to have been mistaken. The degree of force used must not be disproportionate to the genuinely believed circumstances.
In any situation where a member of staff feels threatened by the actions of third parties, it should be normal practice to move from the area or seek protection behind a door or barrier before summoning help from an “authorised staff” member.
Protecting staff’s personal belongings should be the primary responsibility of the staff themselves, but the employer should have clear rules in this respect. Valuable items should not be brought to work and certainly not left overnight. If lockers are provided they should be kept locked during the day, and left open at night to indicate they hold nothing of value. The employer should introduce a rule disclaiming liability for employees’ personal property.
Supporting victims of crime
The Employer’s implied contractual duties will extend to taking reasonable steps to protect and support staff after they have suffered injury, trauma or distress from an attack at work. This might include counselling, consideration of medical reports and otherwise acting as a caring and responsible employer. Failure to do so might result in a claim for constructive dismissal.
Together with the industry charity Caravan, ACS has launched a Critical Response Helpline that will help retailers meet their implied duty to staff who have experienced incidents which are harmful, threatening or challenging. Callers will be asked to briefly recount, but not relive, the incident with trained counsellors who will be able to talk through ways of coping with the situation and help them to deal with any related emotional issues. The telephone number is 08088 021122.
All PBS Information Sheets are designed to provide the detail you need to implement best business and employment practices. They are not a detailed commentary on the current law and where advice is needed in a specific case you should contact PBS for expert consultation.
I S II A(4)