After nine days of bargaining, nearly 10,000 First Union members at Countdown and Woolworths stores across New Zealand voted to take three initial strike actions against the supermarket giant, calling for a living wage, safe staffing minimum standards and fair compensation for giving up time to work understaffed night and weekend shifts.
About 300 union members across the Woolworths Dunedin Central, South Dunedin, Mailer St, Andersons Bay and Mosgiel stores are taking part in the strike until tomorrow.
First Union Dunedin strike organiser Angus Wilson said he believed a lack of staff and service had led customers to be a bit more demanding and impatient, particularly towards workers on the checkouts.
"They’ve been saying this for years now that the staffing levels aren’t enough, that customers are going to get upset and that accidents are going to happen and people are going to get hurt."
He believed a lack of staff on the store floor could lead to a similar situation as May 10, 2021 when four people were stabbed at the supermarket.
"That does play on our members’ minds a lot as well.
"They are very concerned with their safety because they know that it happened before and they are worried that it will happen again."
Mr Wilson said supermarket workers had "held the country together" during the Covid pandemic, risking "a hell of a lot for not much more than minimum wage".
Post-pandemic, they had experienced violence towards them, aggressive customers, extra stress and work, a dwindling workforce and wages that could not keep up with the workload.
Woolworths New Zealand introduced body cameras at all of its stores earlier this year, as part of a three-year $45 million security investment programme, but Mr Wilson said cameras only recorded crime and did not stop it.
The level of staffing had not improved to the point at which the union and its members felt confident further violence would not happen again, he said.
Mr Wilson said staff at Woolworths Dunedin Central copped abuse on average once or twice a day.
"There is going to be someone — perhaps they are quite a bit taller than you, physically stronger than you — and they’re in front of you screaming in your face, and there’s not a lot you can do except try to walk away.
"If you’re a female who’s a lot smaller, or even just a small person, that’s a very scary situation to be in.
Woolworths head of safety, health and wellbeing Denva Wren said the stabbing at Woolworths Dunedin Central was "a tragic and terrible event".
"Since then, we have completed several investigations and implemented a number of controls to make our stores safer.
"This includes removing knives from shelves and installing knife cabinets in departments to reduce their visibility and accessibility to potential offenders."
The supermarket was listening to feedback from its teams and working with government agencies, police and other retailers to address acts of violence and aggression, Ms Wren said.
Team safety cameras served as a deterrent to crime, and had been used during incidents in which customers threatened verbal or physical abuse, or produced a weapon.
Verbal abuse was unfortunately "a daily occurrence in our stores", she said.
Woolworths encouraged their team to use reporting tools, which they planned to make accessible at checkouts for instant reporting.
Serious verbal abuse was immediately reported to the police and customers were asked to leave, Ms Wren said.
Luke Lambert was jailed for 13 years in 2022 for his frenzied knife attack at Woolworths Dunedin Central. One of his victims was a staff member.
