New York enacts panic-button law to counter crime in stores

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sept. 5 signed a retail worker safety act into law requiring retailers to take certain actions to promote safety at stores, including precautionary measures like better lighting, adequate staffing, employee training and more.

Under the new law, companies with 50 or more retail employees must install panic buttons, which the legislation defines as “a physical button that when pressed immediately dispatches local law enforcement to the workplace.”

Panic buttons installed less than two weeks ago were instrumental in limiting the number of casualties during a school shooting in Georgia last week where four people, including two high schoolers, died, law enforcement told reporters on Sept. 4.

Retailers have made violent crime at stores a centerpiece of their lobbying efforts at the state and federal levels. Last year, David Johnston, vice president of asset protection and retail operations at the National Retail Federation, told members of a U.S. House Homeland Security Committee panel that retail “employees are fearful” about what he said was a rising problem of often violent crime at stores.

That’s backed up by other research. The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union found that over 80% of respondents to a survey of its members said they’re worried about an active shooter coming into their workplace and that nearly two-thirds were harassed or felt intimidated by a customer, co-worker or manager in the last year. Similarly, a survey by Theatro, a mobile communication platform for frontline workers, found that 80% of store workers don’t feel protected by their employers, and that 72% were ill-equipped to respond to threats because their store was understaffed.

However, several retail organizations, including the National Retail Federation, the Retail Industry Leaders Association and the Retail Council of New York State, opposed New York’s legislation, according to an August letter from the groups to the governor. In that letter, they called for a “genuine, holistic approach to store and community safety,” but said they urged a veto on the bill due to its “specific provisions,” including panic buttons.

To read the complete article, visit Smart Cities Dive.