Sandwell MP joins fight to stamp out violence against shop workers
Sandwell MP Nicola Richards is on a mission to help stamp out violence and abuse made against retail workers in the Black Country.
The MP for West Bromwich East visited JD Sports in the town on Friday to meet shop workers and discuss the "horrific" experiences they had faced.
She is now supporting the British Retail Consortium in the Shopworkers’ Protection Pledge in a bid to stamp out violence to retail workers.
Ms Richards said: "Too many retail staff face violence, abuse and threats in shops and stores across the country on a daily basis and it is truly chilling to hear about some of the horrific experiences many retail workers have been through.
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"Especially at the present difficult time, when there are extra pressures on retail staff to ensure customers are abiding by social distancing guidelines to keep everyone safe, it’s more important than ever that we stand behind our retail staff and make clear that any abuse or violence towards them is completely unacceptable.
"I’d like to pay a special thanks to JD Sports for taking a lead on this, and to the British Retail Consortium for inviting me here to learn more about what retail workers are experiencing in West Bromwich and across the wider West Midlands region.
"I stand with all members of staff across the retail industry and will do all I can to help stamp out violence and abuse made against you."
Peter Cowgill, executive chairman at JD Sports said: "The safety and security of our staff is our highest priority as a business. 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."
