Physical and verbal attacks on supermarket employees are on the rise, according to a report.
The pandemic leads to an "increased potential for conflict".
Frankfurt am Main - The number of customer attacks has increased since Corona.
This is what an expert assumes in an interview with the
food
newspaper.
"It is not even possible to collect the figures precisely because most of these accidents are not reported to us in the first place," Martin Wuttke restricts.
But his trade association is feeling the trend.
As a supervisor for the trade association for trade and goods logistics (BGHW), Wuttke looks after numerous retail companies in Berlin.
Verbal attacks and physical attacks on employees increased according to the reports that reached him.
On the one hand, this could be due to a generally higher level of stress due to the corona pandemic.
On the other hand, because employees should pay attention to how customers comply with the AHA rules: "There is already an increased potential for conflict."
Although it only occurs occasionally, according to the report, it is therefore by no means the exception: Shops that employ security guards in front of their doors.
Corona aggressions at Aldi, Edeka & Co.?
Expert advises objectivity
The trade association wants to help dealers with a new seminar.
“We will practice dealing intensively with conflict-prone customers,” Wuttke announced to the
food
newspaper.
There is a need to catch up on the subject.
The Occupational Safety and Health Act obliges employers to take measures to ensure the safety of their employees and thus also to prevent violence, said Dr.
Holger Pressel of the specialist newspaper.
Hazard analyzes were part of this.
“For legal reasons, there must be clear guidelines for dealing with aggressive customers.” Pressel works for AOK Baden-Württemberg.
But not just for legal reasons.
Employees suffered after such incidents.
"This can lead to long downtimes due to psychological stress and even termination by the employees concerned," said Pressel.
It is important for them to remain objective when talking to conflict-prone customers.
"If you were to react just as loudly and aggressively as the customers concerned, it would trigger an escalation spiral," explained Pressel.
Customer violence: dealers in the "conflict between customer orientation and employee protection"
How do the dealers see it themselves?
The food newspaper asked.
Aldi Süd, Aldi Nord, Rossmann and Tegut did not confirm the trend.
But you have to see that in context:
The trade is stuck on the subject in a conflict of goals between customer orientation and employee protection, said Pressel of the
food newspaper
. “That is why it is so difficult to get numbers or any information at all on this subject. The companies are already dealing with it internally, but they don't want to communicate anything to the outside world so as not to snub their customers. "
(Frs)