21 September 2026
- Safety videos and a new wellbeing handbook form part of the help being provided to retailers and their staff this autumn.
- New videos created to advise ‘filmed’ and ‘followed’ staff alongside other learning content to help people deal with abuse from shoppers.
- Nearly one in five retail workers also struggling to make ends meet, and the Retail Trust has launched a wellbeing guide to help retailers and their staff manage abuse, stress, uncertainty and money worries.
Shop workers at risk of being filmed or followed home are getting more support as part of a range of new measures to protect staff against abuse and improve wellbeing in the run up to Christmas.
New safety videos that offer advice on how to deal with incidents like being filmed without consent or targeted outside stores have been shared by the charity Retail Trust to help staff and retailers prepare for the festive period and viewed by thousands of people already.
The videos and micro-learning content, which also show how retail workers can deal with antisocial behaviour in stores and recover following angry confrontations, form part of the Retail Trust’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign to tackle abuse and improve shopper behaviour.
A new handbook, living well in retail, has also been launched by the Retail Trust this week to help employers and staff manage abuse from customers, alongside other guidance to better protect workers against stress, uncertainty and money worries.
“I’m being filmed a lot more”
A retail security guard who spoke out on condition of anonymity told the Retail Trust: “We deal with a lot of antisocial behaviour and a couple of times a month, I’ll be catching the bus or train home and see people we’ve had to ask to leave that day. It does put a thought in your head that they might come over to you and become hostile, and that can feel worrying because you’re outside of your workplace, your CCTV cameras and your usual protections. I just try and stay calm and don’t create any animosities.”
30% of staff told the Retail Trust they or a colleague had been recorded without permission last year, and the security guard added: “There’s cameras on phones, in glasses and on watches now and they’re being used a lot more. If you’re dealing with a disruptive customer and ask them to leave, they can suddenly start filming you to try and catch you out.
“I’ll speak to my manager afterwards and explain that somebody filmed me but that I believed I dealt with the situation correctly, but it can still put doubts in your head, even if you’re fully aware you’ve done everything right. You can take that home and think ‘I didn’t do anything to deserve that.’”
More than 300 retail businesses backed the Retail Trust’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign last Christmas by displaying messages in stores and shop windows asking shoppers to treat their staff with kindness and putting in place more support for their employees.
Marks & Spencer announced its support for the campaign this summer and the Retail Trust will be once again calling on shoppers to act respectfully in the run up to this Christmas. Major digital screens including Piccadilly Lights, at Heathrow Airport and in shops and shopping centres displayed this message last year.
Nearly one in five retail workers struggling to make ends meet
Two thirds (65%) of managers surveyed for the Retail Trust’s living well in retail handbook told the Retail Trust customer abuse was impacting their teams’ wellbeing, while 71% of staff said their mental health had deteriorated this year.
The research also found the cost of living is having a big impact on workers’ wellbeing and 18% of staff told the Retail Trust they were struggling to meet their monthly outgoings. Another 31% of admitted their financial health was poor and nearly half (46%) of those experiencing deteriorating mental health said the rising cost-of-living was to blame.
The handbook contains examples from leaders at NEXT, Currys, Reiss and Bensons for Beds of how they are supporting staff with customer abuse, financial wellbeing and managing their mental health.
Chris Brook-Carter, chief executive of the Retail Trust, said: “People tell us that the pressures they deal with range from difficult situations on the shop floor and outside work to significant money worries.
“The stress and uncertainty retail worker face often worsen in the run up to Christmas when shops are busier and finances become even more stretched, and we’ve created new videos and a wellbeing handbook to help more people through challenges like these.
“Our charity’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign will be calling on all of us to play our part by reminding everyone that something as simple as saying hello or thank you can make a real difference to someone working during one of the busiest times of the year.”
The Retail Trust works with more than 200 retail employers to improve the mental health of their staff and has partnered with Zebra Technologies, Reveal Media and Foot Anstey to create its Living well in retail handbook. Over 1,000 retail workers were surveyed for the report.
James Cadman, UKI retail, hospitality, healthcare sales director at Zebra Technologies, said: “Stress, poor work-life balance, and the persistent, unacceptable issue of customer abuse are creating a perfect storm that impacts our workforce’s health and happiness. We have a shared responsibility to address these challenges head-on and build a better, more resilient retail sector for everyone.”
Alasdair Field, CEO of Reveal Media, said: “Cost of living, workload and customer abuse continue to take a serious toll, with frontline colleagues facing abusive behaviour at a scale that remains one of the sector’s most pressing challenges.
“What is changing is how retailers are responding. The most forward-thinking are moving towards building environments where colleagues feel genuinely protected and supported, and where they know that if something happens, it will be taken seriously and acted on.”
Nathan Peacey, partner at Foot Anstey, said: “At a time when customer abuse shows no sign of easing, protecting retail colleagues has never been more important. Encouragingly, retailers are responding and many are focused on creating safer, more respectful environments and embedding colleague wellbeing at the heart of their operations.
“Industry collaboration is also gathering momentum and the Retail Trust’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign is bringing together retailers, industry bodies, police and policymakers to drive meaningful change.”
The Retail Trust’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign has also been supported by Foot Anstey, Manhattan Associates, Maze, Reveal Media, Sensormatic, Usdaw, VoCoVo, Worldpay and Zebra Technologies.
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