Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Are retail workers experiencing more abuse in Australian supermarkets? A union survey of retail workers found widespread reports of verbal abuse and physical attacks, while Coles says threatening incidents involving staff in Victoria have risen significantly in recent years.
Exclusive CCTV footage obtained by 7.30 has captured shocking incidents of aggressive behaviour towards Coles staff in Victoria and, at times, other customers.
Coles's chief operations and supply chain officer Matt Swindells said there had been a dramatic increase in abuse towards staff in Victoria, with an 85 per cent rise in threatening situations over the past two years.
As reporter Alysia Thomas-Sam explains, stores across Victoria have more security measures than other states, like body-worn cameras on staff and motion detection cameras in aisles. There are also security guards who patrol the stores to keep the peace but only intervene in violent situations if it is safe to do so.
7.30 is the ABC's flagship current affairs program, delivering original journalism, exclusive investigations, in-depth analysis and interviews on the major issues affecting Australia and the world.
With on-the-ground reporting from ABC journalists across every state and territory and around the world, 7.30 has the latest on politics, policy, the economy, cost of living, housing, health, climate and energy, national security and global affairs.
Presented by Sarah Ferguson, 7.30 scrutinises the decisions and actions of politicians, business leaders and other powerful institutions through rigorous interviews and investigations.
Watch full episodes of 7.30 free and ad-free on ABC iview. Search "ABC iview" on your smart TV or streaming device, find the ABC iview app on your mobile, or click here: https://iview.abc.net.au/
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Are retail workers experiencing more abuse in Australian supermarkets? A union survey of retail workers found widespread reports of verbal abuse and physical attacks, while Coles says threatening incidents involving staff in Victoria have risen significantly in recent years.
Exclusive CCTV footage obtained by 7.30 has captured shocking incidents of aggressive behaviour towards Coles staff in Victoria and, at times, other customers.
Coles's chief operations and supply chain officer Matt Swindells said there had been a dramatic increase in abuse towards staff in Victoria, with an 85 per cent rise in threatening situations over the past two years.
As reporter Alysia Thomas-Sam explains, stores across Victoria have more security measures than other states, like body-worn cameras on staff and motion detection cameras in aisles. There are also security guards who patrol the stores to keep the peace but only intervene in violent situations if it is safe to do so.
7.30 is the ABC's flagship current affairs program, delivering original journalism, exclusive investigations, in-depth analysis and interviews on the major issues affecting Australia and the world.
With on-the-ground reporting from ABC journalists across every state and territory and around the world, 7.30 has the latest on politics, policy, the economy, cost of living, housing, health, climate and energy, national security and global affairs.
Presented by Sarah Ferguson, 7.30 scrutinises the decisions and actions of politicians, business leaders and other powerful institutions through rigorous interviews and investigations.
Watch full episodes of 7.30 free and ad-free on ABC iview. Search "ABC iview" on your smart TV or streaming device, find the ABC iview app on your mobile, or click here: https://iview.abc.net.au/
Subscribe: ab.co/3yqPOZ5
Note: In most cases, our captions are auto-generated.
#ABCNewsIndepth #ABCNewsAustralia
