On paper, it would appear that Scotland’s retail workers are safer now than they were this time five years ago. In reality though, that’s not quite the case.

In 2021, it became a statutory offence to assault, threaten or abuse a retail worker as they’re going about their job, thanks to the Protection of Workers Act coming into force. And if a worker is carrying out mandatory duties such as age verification or refusal of sale at the time of the attack, tougher penalties for aggravated assault can be imposed. Since then, there have been almost 12,000 assaults on shopworkers – and those are just the ones we know about.

The data, obtained via a freedom of information request by The Grocer’s sister title Forecourt Trader, revealed there had been 11,794 attacks, to be exact. And worryingly, those reported incidents have been increasing year on year since the legislation kicked in.

The numbers climbed from 1,562 reported in 2022 to 2,461 in 2023 (up 58%), then to 2,840 in 2024 (up a further 15%). Reported incidents hit 3,165 in 2025, rising a further 11%. 

Advocates will argue that legislation can take time to bed in. And we can’t ignore the fact that retailers and shopworkers have become more proactive in reporting attacks following implementation of the law – but that can still only partly explain the spike. Whether the rise in numbers is due to an increase in attacks, an increase in willingness to report the attacks, or a little of each, it’s clear offenders have not been deterred.

Five years in, the law should have taken hold, and the frequency of crimes should not be increasing at this rate. The legislation is clearly falling short in its core duty.

A law with no bite

That is not to say the police are failing. In fact, detection rates suggest Police Scotland is actively identifying offenders and pursuing offenders. The FOI data revealed the force detected 61.5% of assaults on retail workers from August 2021 to June 2026, meaning a suspect had been identified as responsible for the attack in almost two-thirds of cases. The most successful year was 2022, when the detection rate reached 64%.

Unfortunately, identifying perpetrators does not mean they will face any consequences. In 2024, the Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF) warned that convictions made under the Protection of Workers Act were “not high enough”. At that point, just 11.6% of reported cases had resulted in a conviction – with progress hampered by a backlog in the courts.

That backlog continues to exacerbate the problem and undermine the law. The SGF has repeatedly said there must be “swift justice” for offenders, warning that many believe there will be no consequences for their crimes.

As CEO Pete Cheema puts it: “That is why we also need to see meaningful changes through the whole Scottish justice system, clearing the backlog in the courts and ensuring repeat offenders and organised gangs are sufficiently punished.”

It is reassuring that Police Scotland is identifying offenders. But if their crimes continue to go unpunished, the law will continue to have little bite.

Uncomfortable questions

It was only in April that shopworkers in England and Wales celebrated the Crime and Policing Bill receiving royal assent. The legislation had been years in the making, introducing long-awaited measures designed to reset the narrative on retail crime, and was a landmark victory for campaigners.

A key focus is shop theft, which has blighted communities across the UK and, in many respects, become effectively decriminalised. The act scraps the so-called £200 “licence to steal” threshold, sending a clear signal that theft will be taken seriously regardless of value.

It also creates a standalone offence for assaulting a retail worker – a measure that sadly speaks volumes about the reality facing shop staff. Like Scotland’s Protection of Workers Act, the law carries tougher sentencing, improves visibility of violence against retail workers and helps police allocate resource. Cruicially, it also sends a clear message that shopworkers will be protected and should report every incident.

Retail-specific assaults, however, will not be enforced until the Home Secretary introduces regulation, and provides guidance and classification codes to police. According to Forecourt Trader, the Home Office was unable to provide a date from when enforcement will begin. While one police insider told Forecourt Trader its force would be logging the crime from 29 June, the government could not confirm or deny this date.

Nevertheless, Scotland’s experience raises an uncomfortable question. If tougher laws alone are enough, why have assaults continued to rise?

There is no doubt that police forces and the government have ramped up their efforts to tackle violence and abuse, from introducing targeted hotspot patrols to deploying facial recognition technology to help identify and prosecute offenders. But the ultimate test of this type of protective legislation is whether it can reduce – or at the very least, stabilise – abuse and violence. Shopworkers deserve the right to go to work free from fear. 

The intentions behind the Crime and Policing Act are irrefutable. The challenge for Westminster now is ensuring the law is backed by swift and effective action – otherwise what will stop Scotland’s trend from repeating itself here?

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