Latest news with #RetailWorkerSafetyAct
Fashion United
2 days ago
- Business
- Fashion United
What to know about New York's Retail Worker Safety Act
New York's Retail Worker Safety Act (RWSA) has officially been mandated after experiencing slight delays in its enactment. The act (S. 8358B/A. 8947C) was signed into law by local governor Kathy Hochul last year, to address increased levels of violence seen among retail stores. From June 2, any store with 10 or more employees that 'sells consumer commodities at retail and which is not primarily engaged in the sale of food for consumption on the premises' will be required to adopt and implement a violence prevention policy, train employees on de-escalation tactics and inform employees of emergency procedures for situations like active shooters. The New York State Department of Labor has been tasked with developing a model risk assessment and training programme focused on de-escalation tactics and active shooter training. This is to be issued in English, as well as 12 commonly spoken languages. Employers to provide standardised de-escalation and violence prevention training This reflects an amendment made to the bill, which was initially slated to be mandated in March, however, was pushed back to reconsider the adoption of a violence prevention policy that was to be distributed to staff. Employers with less than 50 employees will now need to provide training on such matters at the time of hire and every two years following, instead of annually, as previously stated in the law. Requirements will then expand by January 1, 2027, to require New York retailers with more than 500 employees to implement silent panic buttons that alert on-site management or security officers in place of law enforcement. Employers can only install the buttons on employer-provided equipment, and must not use the technology to track employee whereabouts unless in an emergency. The RWSA was spearheaded by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSO), the president of which, Stuart Appelbaum, said retail workers across New York 'will be safer because of this law'. His statement to FashionUnited continued: 'Retail workers should not have to go to work every day in fear; and this law goes a long way towards ending that. The Retail Worker Safety Act provides for preventative measures that will help deter violence and harassment before it starts; and most importantly, will assist workers in getting help quickly in the event of an emergency.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas AG Says Police Arrested 16 Retail Theft Suspects in Crime Blitz
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said Monday that police in Jonesboro, Ark., arrested 16 people for alleged retail theft last week. According to the announcement, police said they pinpointed five additional retail crime suspects, who they did not arrest during this blitz. Among those arrested, the state brought 'more than 60 charges…about half of which were felony charges.' In Arkansas, suspects become eligible for a felony if they steal more than $1,000 worth of merchandise. The class of the felony is determined by how much the stolen merchandise is worth. More from Sourcing Journal New York's Retail Worker Safety Act Is Live California Law Enforcement and DAs Take On Retail, Cargo Thieves Nearly $4 Million in Stolen Cargo Recovered in LAPD Theft Bust According to the attorney general, other charges included drug possession, evidence tampering and forgery. The attorney general said impacted stores included two Walmart locations, two Walgreens stores, a Target, a Dollar Tree, a TJ Maxx, a HomeGoods, a Lowe's, a Home Depot, an Academy Sports, a Kohl's and a Burlington Coat Factory. Griffin said the operation is the latest example of the state's interest in combating retail crime, an issue that retailers consistently cite when discussing shrink. 'This operation shows our continued commitment to eradicating this type of crime in Arkansas. We are working with law enforcement agencies and private sector partners across the state to gather intelligence, arrest perpetrators, and ultimately hold bad actors accountable,' Griffin said in a statement. Arkansas, like other states, has recently worked to tighten its theft laws, even extending to cargo theft. Earlier this year, the state legislature passed a bill that would see cargo theftsters serving enhanced sentences if convicted. Another bill in the same retail crime package also created a framework to more robustly charge those involved in organized retail crime. Shannon Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association, said at the time that the package would help disincentivize retail crime throughout the state. 'By recognizing that organized crime operates throughout the supply chain, from retail stores to transportation networks, this collaboration has produced meaningful legislation that will better protect Arkansas businesses and consumers. We remain committed to working with our partners to develop practical solutions to the challenges facing our industry,' Newton said in a statement in March. Griffin said in his Monday statement that the state has made organized retail crime a priority since 2023; since then, officers have recovered more than $600,000 in stolen merchandise and arrested 44 suspects. Late last month, his office announced that a retail crime suspect the state had been pursuing for several months would be charged with Class D felonies.'Sasha Rena Ziegler, 32, of Little Rock, surrendered Wednesday to the Little Rock Criminal Court after being at large on a warrant issued for her arrest. The warrant was the result of an investigation by my office into multiple incidents of organized retail crime at a Marshalls store in Little Rock. Ziegler has been charged with two counts of theft of property, Class D felonies,' Griffin said in a statement. The Jonesboro Police Department did not return Sourcing Journal's request for further information on the arrests and charges.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New York's Retail Worker Safety Act Is Live
New York's retail crime compliance countdown has closed as the Retail Worker Safety Act (NYRWSA) has been implemented, and Governor Kathy Hochul's 'landmark legislation' has commenced. The Retail, Wholesale, Department Store Union (RWDSU), for one, is grateful. More from Sourcing Journal Activists Know How to Stop Sexual Violence in the Garment Supply Chain. Will Brands Buy In? Are Amazon's Warehouses Facing an 'Injury Crisis'? SHIPS for America Act Reintroduced to Reinvigorate US Shipbuilding Effective June 4, the NYRWSA (S. 8358B/A. 8947C) will 'introduce critical safety measures to protect retail workers across the state,' according to the semi-autonomous division of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW). 'Retail workers—and shoppers—across New York will be safer because of this law,' Stuart Appelbaum, president of the RWDSU, said. 'Retail workers should not have to go to work every day in fear; this law goes a long way towards ending that.' New York State Senator Jessica Ramos introduced the NYRWSA last January to compel employers to evaluate their workplaces for risks, develop a violence prevention plan, provide ongoing safety training for workers—and revisit these efforts annually. The Harris-endorsing union has worked with Ramos and New York State Assemblymember Karines Reyes, who chairs its subcommittee on workplace safety, throughout the bill's ascension and amendments. While the New York State Senate passed S8358B last summer, Governor Kathy Hochul signed an amendment to the act in February, extending the effective date of some of its provisions to June 2. 'The Retail Worker Safety Act provides for preventative measures that will help deter violence and harassment before it starts,' Appelbaum said. 'And, most importantly, will assist workers in getting help quickly in the event of an emergency.' Retailers with 10 or more employees must develop 'comprehensive violence prevention plans, conduct regular risk assessments and provide biennial training on de-escalation techniques and active shooter scenarios,' the NYRWSA mandates. Retailers with 500 or more employees, meanwhile, must install silent response buttons—allowing 'workers to discreetly alert security personnel during emergencies,' the RWDSU said—before January 1, 2027. 'As a produce manager, I've witnessed firsthand the escalating tensions in retail environments,' said Edwin Quezada, a manager at a stop-and-shop in Long Island and Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW member. 'This Act ensures we have the training and tools to handle volatile situations, making our workplaces safer for both employees and customers. We worked hard to see it brought into law and I'm proud to see it starting to take effect.' The issue has become a source of anxiety for retail employees as retail crime ratchets up, a survey conducted by the RWDSU last spring found. Fifty-seven percent of those surveyed said they've personally experienced verbal harassment or intimidating behavior at work. Eighty percent reported concerns about an active shooter entering their place of business. Seven percent reported that their employers 'made safety improvements following violent incidents,' per the survey. 'Every day I came to work with a pit in my stomach, not knowing if today would be the day someone got aggressive or violent,' said Nancy Almodovar, a salesperson at a major department store in Manhattan, per the RSDSU. 'We've been ignored for too long by our employers, but this law finally says: our safety matters. It gives us real tools and real protection—and for the first time in a long time, I feel like someone's looking out for us.' There's precedent for such programs, the labor union said. The NYRWSA builds on the public sector's workplace violence protection law from 2006 and uses the statutory framework of New York's 2018 workplace sexual harassment protection law, per the RWDSU. 'We are grateful that Governor Hochul has focused on preventing retail violence and theft and for bill sponsors Senator Jessica Ramos and Assemblywoman Karines Reyes,' said Appelbaum.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
New York's Retail Worker Safety Act takes effect
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — New York's Retail Worker Safety Act, a law aimed at preventing workplace violence, is now in effect. The law requires retail employers in New York to provide workplace violence prevention training, provide employees with silent alarm buttons to contact security, and establish a written workplace violence prevention policy. Originally, the law would have given retail workers panic buttons that would call 911. Governor Hochul then signed an amendment to the law, saying the buttons now request immediate assistance from security or management. Other changes to the law include templates of the policy to be provided in twelve of the most common non-English languages spoken in New York instead of how many of people in the state's population who speak each language. Employers with fewer than 50 employees must provide training upon hire and once every two years. The full amendment and law can be read by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NYC workers ratify the first Barnes & Noble union contracts in the United States
March 6 (UPI) -- Workers at three New York Barnes & Noble bookstores have ratified their first union contracts. The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union said Thursday these are the first Barnes & Noble stores union contracts in the United States. "Workers at Barnes & Noble should be incredibly proud of what they've accomplished together in these historic first union contracts. United in their fight for increased safety in their stores, it was their voices among others across our union that won increased protections for everyone in the industry through the Retail Worker Safety Act," RWDSU President Stuart Applebaum said. According to the RWDSU the union contracts "raised the standard for safety, wages, and healthcare for their newest union members." Workers at Barnes & Noble's Union Square Flagship, West 82nd Street, and Park Slope New York stores voted to approve the union contracts. "I'm really excited to have a contract in place and to have a say in the conditions in which I work. To be a part of the first-ever union contract with Barnes & Noble feels like I'm a part of history!" Eve Greenlow, a bookseller at the West 82nd Street store, said in a statement, The RWDSU said through workers' organizing and solidarity, starting wages increased $4an hour even before the contract goes into effect. Workers are getting an additional pay raise of $1an hour for each year of the three-year contracts. The workers won union healthcare coverage, seniority and layoff protections, job security provisions in case stores close, a new break room and additional annual anti-discrimination training. "When we started organizing, we were making minimum wage in unacceptable work conditions," Senior bookseller at the Union Square store Aaron Lascano said in a statement. "The contract we voted on today was fought for and won by the workers of this store. Now, we're looking forward to finally having guaranteed raises, excellent union health care coverage, protections from layoffs and store closure, and so much more." The RWDSU said while these three New York stores are the first ratified union contracts in the nation, there are a total of seven Barnes & Noble stores that are unionized across the United States.
