Keeping Your Staff Protected in the Face of Rising Commercial Crime Rates

Commercial crime has ripple effects. It sets businesses back financially, but also makes employees feel less safe coming to work. That added stress can have an impact on the wellbeing and productivity of your staff members.

Employers and safety professionals can get ahead of the rising crime rates by taking steps to protect everyone on the worksite. In this post, we’ll go over some of the current crime-related challenges facing businesses, along with strategies you can take to keep your team safe – on and off the clock.

Commercial Crime Rates Are Rising

Commercial crime is becoming a more pressing concern, and no industry is safe from it. Research shows that 80% of commercial establishments have violent incident rates 10 times higher than the mean number of violent crimes in their local areas.

Although it might seem like criminals would target large businesses for their expansive product inventory, small businesses have also suffered from rising crime rates. Experts found that 56% of small retail businesses experienced theft in 2021. Nearly half of those small business owners reported that crime had grown worse since 2020.

Given that retail crime alone cost businesses nearly $100 billion in 2022, professional teams in every industry should be taking it seriously. Efforts to secure the workplace and educate employees will ensure that everyone stays safe on the job, even as commercial crime continues to pose a challenge.

Tips for Keeping Your Staff Protected

Maintaining a safe workplace requires protecting your staff at all times. Here are eight strategies that will help you achieve that.

1. Invest in Parking Lot Safety Measures

The parking lot is an equally important place for commercial teams to secure. Although the people who work at your company may not spend much time in the parking lot, it’s an area where criminal activity often takes place. Experts have found that over 1 million vehicles were stolen in 2023, which doesn’t include property theft from break-ins or parking lot damage. Employees, clients, and customers can also be vulnerable when they’re in the parking area.

There are a number of measures you can implement to make the parking lot safer. A security gate, extra security cameras, or additional lighting can go a long way to protecting everyone and their vehicles.

2. Implement Face-to-Face Protection Features

Some health protection measures double as safety solutions. Installing a plexiglass barrier around a reception desk or a checkout counter to reduce the spread of illness can also shield employees from people who might try to grab at the open cash register, attack an employee with pepper spray, or jump the counter.

Of course, this depends on the plexiglass’s durability and how much area it covers. But if you’re installing a barrier, it’s worth considering one that deters bad actors, not just germs.

3. Rekey the Locks After Staff Turnover

Disgruntled former staff members could return tot he premises to commit vandalism, theft, harassment, or violence. Rekeying external door locks after someone gets fired or let go can prevent them from causing damage or harm out of revenge.

Changing the locks also fortifies the workplace against other forms of violence, like domestic violence that affects professional spaces. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) estimates that 27% of violent incidents in the workplace happen due to intensifying domestic abuse in an employee’s home. Rekeying locks or replacing them with upgraded deadbolts or door handles protects team members by ensuring that the building’s access points can withstand someone using physical force in an attempt to break in.

Your workplace can also be made safer by giving employees training on how to respond to interpersonal violence. If anyone enters the building and becomes a threat, everyone should know who to call for help and where to hide.

4. Assign Limited Wi-Fi Access to Guests

Workplace violence affects over 20,000 people annually, but physical harm isn’t the only risk where commercial crime rates are high. Digital crimes also hurt workplaces and employees. While firewalls and encryption methods may shield sensitive data from cybercriminals, people can commit digital crimes after just visiting a commercial business.

Anytime someone gets your workplace Wi-Fi password while visiting for a meeting, they have permanent access long after they leave. If they’re hanging around outside the building, they could use their access to piggyback log-ins. This puts your data at risk, including sensitive information about your staff members.

Your network can be made more secure by giving guests a Wi-Fi password that is only viable for a limited time. Your IT team and employees who work in reception could also be trained on safeguarding access to the company’s systems, such as providing temporary passwords to guests or limiting their access time.

5. Update Your Approach to Waste Management

Partnering with a trash pickup company might not seem like a significant safety measure, but it protects every individual working for your company.

With another team handling trash collection, your employees won’t have to walk trash bags to cans or dumpsters outside at the back of the building. Like parking lots, these waste disposal areas are often poorly lit and minimally supervised. Eliminating the need for team members to walk through them alone makes them reduces their risk of being assaulted, mugged, or harassed.

This security opportunity also doubles as a way to make your workplace for sustainable. You can select a waste management company that also provides recycling or composting services, rather than sending every discarded item to the landfill.

6. Activate an Emergency Alert System

You might already have a lock system that activates overnight while your business is closed. But adding an emergency system helps employees during the day by allowing them to call for the police or lock the front door with the press of a button.

Security cameras functioning around the clock can also be a significant deterrent. People with bad intentions might think twice before stealing, vandalizing property, or behaving aggressively if they know they’re being caught on video.

7. Avoid Publicizing Any Workplace Safety Improvements

It’s tempting to show off security improvements and upgrades on your brand’s social media account. While the post might show customers and staff that they’re safer on the property, it also shows criminals what they’re up against. They could then plan around your security measures to commit the same crimes you’re trying to prevent.

Team members should also learn not to spread the news about things like your specific emergency alert system or where new cameras are installed. Criminal acts will be more difficult to pull off if the perpetrators don’t know what to expect when entering the property.

8. Train Team Members to Respond Appropriately

Employees might not know what they’re supposed to do if a crime takes place in the workplace. Many people think they have to fight back if someone breaks in, but that’s simply not the case.

While they can use tools they’ve been provided, like an emergency alert button, team members should always put their safety above whatever the criminal might steal or damage. Objects are replaceable – people aren’t.

Make the Workplace Safer Every Day

Keeping your staff protected in the face of rising crime rates is challenging, but not impossible. Training everyone to protect themselves and upgrading security systems are just a few steps you can take to make your workplace safer every day.

Ready to learn more? Check out our free on demand webinar on Building Credibility and Buy-In Within Your Organization!