“Customer aggression has become normalised for far too many people,” she said.
“If your job involves serving customers, it is now almost certain you will face abuse.”
One in seven respondents faced customer aggression at least weekly. Based on the survey’s estimates, respondents experienced an average of 69 incidents a year.
The abuse was not confined to face-to-face encounters, with 46% experiencing abuse by phone.
The survey also showed the toll customer aggression was taking on workers, with 67% reporting stress and 59% anxiety. Three per cent identified suicidal thoughts among the effects they had experienced.
Almost one-third (27%) of respondents who experienced customer aggression did not report an incident to their employer, with many saying they did not believe reporting was worthwhile.
When asked what employers could do, 64% ranked customer aggression and de-escalation training as the most effective action.
Armstrong said the findings were particularly concerning for young people, with customer-facing jobs often providing their first experience of the workforce.
“Often the abuse is coming from everyday Kiwis. Parents, professionals and regular customers who should know better,” she said.
“We cannot afford to treat this as an individual workplace issue. This is a national tragedy … We can, and we must, do better.”
Denva Wren, Woolworths New Zealand head of safety, health and wellbeing, said the findings reinforce what many frontline teams across the country face every day.
“Everyone has the right to feel safe at work and go home safely.
“Acts of violence and aggression are having a real, heavy impact on our people’s mental and physical health, confidence, and safety.”
Wren said no single organisation can solve the problem alone.
“By working together on a joint response, we can strengthen prevention, improve support for frontline workers, and ensure respectful behaviour is the expectation.”