The body-worn cameras are being used at six shops in London. Credit: Yau Ming Low / Shutterstock.

British sandwich and coffee chain Pret A Manger (Pret) has initiated a trial involving body-worn cameras in six of its London stores as a new safety measure for employees.

The move comes amid growing concerns about the safety of frontline retail workers.

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The trial is currently underway at Victoria Street, Elephant and Castle, Tottenham Court Road, Russell Square, St Pancras and Islington High Street.

The cameras will be worn by team leaders or managers, and customers will be informed through signage in the stores.

The cameras will not record continuously but will be activated in certain situations at the discretion of the team leader or manager.

The decision to trial the cameras is a response to the alarming statistics revealed by a 2023 Retail Trust survey, which found that a staggering 90% of retail workers had experienced abuse on the job.

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Despite the high incidence of abuse, the survey highlighted that 24% of retail workers did not report such incidents, and 28% were unsure of how to respond to or report them.

A Pret spokesperson said: “We started trialling body-worn cameras in a small number of our shops as a new safety measure.

“These are only being worn by team leaders or managers and are only turned on in specific circumstances.”

In June 2024, Pret decided not to proceed with its plans to open locations in Israel.

The decision is due to travel restrictions on UK staff caused by the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

The brand had finalised an agreement in December 2022 with two Israeli companies, Fox Group and the Yarzin Sella Group, to introduce Pret to Israel .

The planned expansion was a key component of Pret A Manger’s 2021 strategy to double the size of its business over the next five years.