Harassing staff will not be tolerated as shops reopen

SHOPPERS have been urged to be considerate to retail staff as shops reopen, amid warnings that harassment of workers has become “normalised” during lockdown.

Non-essential shops selling goods such as clothes and furniture are reopening today across England and Scotland, after being closed for months, making retailers nervous about customer behaviour in stores.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said the public had “a key part to play in creating a safe and enjoyable retail environment”.

Its chief executive, Helen Dickinson, said: “Many of us will be looking forward to returning to our favourite shop in the coming weeks, and we all have a

‘Everyone should be considerate and respectful to their fellow shoppers and hard-working shop staff’

duty to keep each other safe.

“Everyone should be considerate and respectful to their fellow shoppers and hard-working shop staff. This way we can all enjoy shopping and support our local communities.”

She urged the public to “shop alone where possible”, “follow instructions”, and observe hygiene measures, before adding that the reopenings were vital for the recovery of the UK economy.

The BRC estimates that the retail industry has lost an estimated £30billion in sales throughout the course of three separate bouts of lockdown restrictions during the past 13 months.

The chief executive of Co-op food, Jo Whitfield, said that face-covering requirements and social-distancing rules had led to shop workers being “spat at and threatened”.

The comments prompted the Home Secretary Priti Patel to call for tougher measures against those who abused shop workers.