Officials from Svensk Handel are determined to put up a strong front after witnessing, in their words, an escalation of organised crime and violent confrontations in trading places. As recently reported, a man in his 30s was recently shot inside a shopping centre in central Sollentuna, north of Stockholm. The news of this shooting came after another shooting incident which left a store employee injured at the Kungsmässan shopping centre in Kungsbacka.
Svensk Handel officials have called this development unacceptable, stating that action is needed to ensure a safe trading environment.
'Trade is a central meeting place in society. Our stores and trading locations are open and accessible. We exist where people move. Unfortunately, we are forced to deal with a reality where shootings and bombings are not only a potential risk - but have become increasingly common. It has disastrous consequences for companies, shop staff and people who move in public environments,' says the organisation.
'That organised crime and violent confrontations affect our trading places is a serious understatement for both the judiciary and politics.'
'Trade companies must of course be well-prepared if the worst happens, but to get to the root of the problem, the judiciary must take responsibility. The development we are forced to face is not a trade problem – it is a societal problem. Trade can never remove the problem,' says Sofia Larsen, CEO of Swedish Trade.
'We in the trade cannot and should not bear the responsibility for a development where organized crime is allowed to grow strong enough to take over public places. Rather, the development is a symptom of long-term deficiencies in preventive and repressive work, a lack of police resources and the lack of a clear, coordinated strategy from society's responsible actors.'
'Everyone must be safe at work. That members of Handel end up in the firing line in deals between criminals is unacceptable. It is a grim consequence of society's backsliding in its responsibility. Then crime thrives. It is a failure for the government, and it is the shop employees who have to pay the price,' says Linda Palmetzhofer, union president of the Trade Employees' Union.
'We in the trade work hard to take our responsibility in matters related to ongoing deadly violence. We partners provide checklists for routines should the worst happen, and we are also on hand to offer store employees the support required after highly traumatic events have taken place. The trade spends an enormous SEK 11 billion annually on safety prevention work. It is time to seriously tackle the root of the problem. We demand that force be taken to keep violence away from shops and malls.'
Svensk Handel demands action and want to see:
- More visible police on streets and squares
- Zero tolerance towards threats and violence against store employees
- Use curfews to remove criminal elements from places of commerce
'We, who represent the trading companies and their employees, are ready to be part of the solution, but it is high time that more people take their responsibility. A safer trade requires a safer society. It is something that we alone cannot accomplish, no matter how much we want to.'
More information:
Svensk Handel
www.svenskhandel.se