Horrific attack leads change
Premier Jacinta Allan, a former supermarket worker and SDA member, announced these new laws alongside SDA State Secretary, Michael Donovan, and SDA Delegate Shefali, a supermarket worker who was physically attacked with a knife at work by a shoplifter that has left her scarred.
Shefali, like every worker in retail and fast food, deserves to feel safe. Shefali’s bravery and the strength of her union membership are the reason these legislative changes are possible.
It’s great to see Premier Allan deliver on a platform commitment and address the concerns of thousands of Victorian retail and fast food workers.
What happens next?
The Victorian Government will convene a Worker Protection Consultation Group to develop these new laws.
They will consult with interested parties including the SDA, employers and the public in the development process.
This process will also consider new penalties for offences, and whether existing offences can be strengthened to protect customer-facing workers. In addition, consideration will be given to protections against stalking, harassment and intimidation of retail and fast-food workers.
These laws will also cover transport and hospitality workers.
The Labor Government intends to introduce a Bill into Parliament by the end of 2025.
Premier Jacinta Allan says, “These workers deserve nothing but our respect, and we’re going to help make sure they get it. These new laws will send a powerful message: if you think you can get away with assaulting or abusing these workers — you’re wrong, and you will face the consequences.”
Our campaign continues to get results
The SDA’s long running No One Deserves A Serve campaign and the support of our members has helped put the spotlight on abusive and violent customers.
We have seen a range of measures implemented in stores to better protect workers from customer abuse and violence.
These include training, incident reporting, customer signage, banning notices and increased security.
This latest announcement will hopefully provide a strong deterrent to customers from abusing workers and ensure they will be penalised for their actions.
