‘I was spat at by a shopper’ – security man reveals level of pandemic abuse

HE WAS called a “jobsworth in a hi-vis jacket” and spat at by a drunken shopper, but one security man’s greatest concern wasn’t himself.

The man, who did not want to be named, said he has never been threatened as much in over 30 years in the security business as he has in the past few months.

He has worked as a doorman in London and Wembley Stadium before his current job at a supermarket chain in the west.

One day as he tried to manage crowds, he told a shopper who was getting too close to stand back. He was threatened. The man told him he could call all the guards if he wanted, and then decided to spit.

“I look after my dad who suffers from Parkinson’s and was concerned about him getting Covid-19 and maybe passing away,” he said.

“It does take a toll on you. It affected me mentally. I had to take two weeks out.”

The man decided to speak out as retailers have been urged to remove abusive Christmas shoppers from stores as they get ready for the potential throngs that may accompany eased lockdown restrictions on Tuesday.

Mandate officials representing over 30,000 retail staff want employers to adopt a zero tolerance approach.

Other demands are that employers ensure shops are not allowed to overfill, and longer opening hours.

“We have received numerous complaints from retail workers who have been verbally abused or threatened by customers after they were requested to wear masks or to socially distance,” said general secretary Gerry Light.

“Abuse is never part of the job, and in these difficult times, it’s essential that we recognise the efforts of our frontline workers and we all protect them from abusive behaviour.”

The supermarket security man has dealt with drunk people every night of the week, but the pandemic has been a different ballgame.

“It’s been very, very, hard on anyone who does this kind of work,” he said.

“You actually see people’s true colours. You’d just be saying there’s only one trolley per household or asking people to make purchases as quickly as possible, and the abuse for that alone.

“People would say, ‘we’re together, who the f**k are you to tell us what to do?’

“When I asked them to put a mask on they’d ask: ‘Why should I wear a mask for you?’”

Another worker blamed her employer for putting workers in the firing line. This included general sales assistants working at doors managing crowds with no training.

“Some didn’t mind, but some didn’t like it and were unsure they were insured,” she said. “Some were told they would be disciplined if they didn’t do it.”

She said a traffic-light system to manage the numbers going in is often unmanned. A colleague asked a young man for ID in the shop’s off-licence. He spat in her face.

“One young lad with underlying health conditions who couldn’t wear a mask was abused for that,” she said.

“He is autistic and took a lot to heart.”