The Co-op has no plans to change its one-on-one shifts policy in stores, despite a petition from employees calling them “unsafe”.
The petition, which has been signed by 5,915 people, said the shifts could leave a single employee on the shop floor with another in the stockroom or warehouse at any given time. It therefore called for the society to increase compulsory employee numbers on the shop floor to three to improve staff safety and to meet customers’ service expectations.
As part of the petition, employees also shared their experiences during one-on-one shifts that the Co-op occasionally uses. One said they had experienced altercations with shoplifters and intoxicated customers while alone on the shop floor. Another, who has type 1 diabetes, had a hypo attack while on shift due to not being able to have a break.
Another employee stated the shifts meant staff were working longer than they were contracted to, due to demands on their time when just two employees were present. ‘Having just two staff is not enough to do all the work required whilst keeping customers happy and stock on the shelves, and it’s unsafe to have just one staff on the shop floor and one in the back in case of an accident,’ the petition read. ‘We frequently have customers complaining about having to queue, about the lack of stock, and that there are never staff members on the shop floor to help customers.’
It also claimed the one-on-one shifts were leading to stress and decreasing morale levels from staff, and ‘good staff’ leaving the Co-op altogether.
The petition, addressed to chief executive Steve Murrells, was handed into its head office last week. Employees who presented it then discussed their concerns with the retailer, with the assistance of workplace campaign group Organise.
Other staff handed out booklets containing accounts of incidents in stores during one-on-one shifts to their colleagues in the HQ lobby.
“The safety of colleagues is our number one priority and our policy is not to have lone workers in any store,” said a Co-op spokesman. “Their welfare and customer service are at the heart of any decisions we make about staffing levels in our stores.”
He added it worked closely with police and other crime prevention bodies to implement measures designed to deter and disrupt criminal activity, while increasing the likelihood of convictions. Its safety and security measures, such as CCTV and panic alarms, were also “constantly under review”, he said.
Other convenience store operators also have one-on-one staffing levels on at times.
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