Protecting Retail Staff

Retail staff often find themselves working alone in a store, or working shifts when the threat of crime is at its highest. Retail managers are especially at higher risk of being in vulnerable working environments due to being the first on call for store alarms being set off, or even just opening and closing the premises with nobody else around.

HOW CAN GUARDIAN MPS HELP?

Retail store alarms more often than not are set off in the middle of the night. How often does the owner/manager (key holder) arrive at the shop before the police? Too often!Ensuring the protection of retail staff should be a primary concern for store owners.

GuardianMPS is a mobile security service that acts like your personal bodyguard by using the one device most often in your hand – a smartphone.

When walking to your car alone at night, locking up on your own or intuitively recognizing that a threatening person has just entered your store, you can discreetly activate GuardianMPS on your smartphone and a ‘listen live’ feature will automatically monitor your situation. No matter what incident arises you will have the peace of mind and confidence that you are safe with GuardianMPS. A 24/7 team is always on hand to ensure your personal safety.

In the case of responding to a burglar alarm?

GuardianMPS provides an additional layer of security for these retail managers when responding to alarms, particularly in the middle of the night.  The GuardianMPS platform turns their mobile phones into panic alarms that bring additional security personnel into the loop during these instances. The key holder can launch an event before they leave their home that sets a passive alarm:

  • GuardianMPS pings them at an interval (i.e. in 20 minutes).
  • If they don’t enter the correct PIN number, an alarm status is raised and the Emergency Response Center is immediately contacted.
  • GuardianMPS can be used in check-in mode to make regular safety calls to lone staff member. Whether via mobile or fixed line talk to us to discuss your regular safety call requirements.

If the key holder arrives at the store before the police, they can override the passive alarm with a panic activation, immediately linking with an Emergency Response Center.

Retail store managers can respond to store alarms with the added security of GuardianMPS on their mobile phone, with direct connection to trained professionals at an Emergency Response Center.

10 Tips on securing the safety of your retail staff

A mobile working security service like GuardianMPS is a secure way of ensuring you are safe if a situation arises, but safe guarding against high risk situations is also very important. Below are some suggested actions to safeguard your working environment for the protection of retail staff.

  • Keep all employees’ valuables out of sight in a secure location
  • Deposit money regularly making sure that cash does not mount up
  • Having a security guard at the door provides assurance to staff and deters robbers
  • Signs that there are security cameras in operation, that cash is not kept on hand etc, can deter robbers
  • Training sessions and written policies should be easily accessible to all employees
  • Don’t walk to your car alone at night – make sure somebody is with you
  • Don’t give out your personal information or that of other employees
  • Stay alert to who is in the store
  • Co-operate with criminals trying to rob the store, stay calm and do what they ask
  • Get to know local law enforcement with friendly store offers and ask them to pop in regularly to check on the business