The Freedom From Fear campaign is one of Usdaw’s main campaigns and is incredibly important to the lives of our members. Our members, and all workers, should be free from the fear of violence, threats and abuse while going about their working lives.
Our annual Freedom From Fear survey has shown that the level of abuse our members and their colleagues is still worryingly high with more than one in five respondents who had been assaulted not reporting the incident to their employer. Abuse of any kind is never acceptable and no one should feel like they have to suffer in silence.
As part of the campaign, Usdaw:
- Works with politicians to make shops and shopping areas safer for customers and staff;
- Negotiates with employers for better health and safety measures in stores;
- Supports members who are victims of violence, threats and abuse;
- Raises awareness with the public, promoting a culture of respect.
Each year we organise Respect for Shopworkers Week.
During Respect for Shopworkers Week, Usdaw reps across the country organise activities in their workplaces to promote the work of Usdaw and the Freedom From Fear campaign. These activities range from street stalls to campaign stalls in the foyers of shops to lunchtime events in store canteens.
As we have done over the past few years, we are asking shoppers to ‘Keep Your Cool at Christmas’. With tension levels rising in stores during the busy Christmas shopping period, especially during the increasingly busy Black Friday sales, it is more important than ever that people take step back and remember that abuse is not part of the job.
This message is more important than ever. We all saw the chaos of last year’s Black Friday sales. This was not a simple squabble over a few bargains – there were shopworkers and customers assaulted and people arrested during horrendous scenes we should be ashamed of. Usdaw will be working hard to ensure that employers put in place measures to protect staff and customers so that there is no repeat of last year’s events.
A key goal of the Freedom From Fear campaign remains delivering proper legal protection for shopworkers who are assaulted while simply doing their jobs. Putting aside the fact that it is outrageous that anyone would be assaulted while going about their work, most of the flashpoints that lead to violence against shopworkers are because of legal duties put on them by government such as preventing underage sales of alcohol and other goods. It is only right that government gives workers enforcing these rules and putting themselves at risk whilst doing so, the strong protection they deserve.
Each of you can back our members by supporting this campaign.
You can help spread the message about Usdaw’s Freedom From Fear Campaign by visiting our Facebook page.
You can raise the issue of proper protection for shopworkers with your local politicians here.
Finally, you can remember next time you are in a shop, and the queue is snaking out the door, that the shopworker in front of you deserves your respect.
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John Hannett is general secretary of Usdaw. He tweets at @JohnHannett