Supporters of National Pubwatch (NPW) will know that in 2009 we ran a very high profile campaign about the issue of workers in the pub and hospitality trade being assaulted whilst carrying out their duties; particularly when maintaining order in their premises or preventing sales to drunken persons or under-age customers. We have a very high regard for the work of the Police and their support of local Pubwatch partnerships but we felt then and still maintain the view that there is inconsistency in how offences are investigated and an overuse of out of court disposals (police caution), particularly in relation to Common Assault.
We understand the need to give people a second chance and the need to reduce cost and bureaucracy in the criminal justice system. But the system seems too often weighted in favour of the criminal rather than the victim and a reluctance to re-visit a criminal investigation once the offender has been cautioned, even when the injury is found to be worse than first thought. Unfortunately Common Assault can cover quite a wide range of injury from a mere reddening of the skin to severe bruising and trauma and even with an aggravating factor the maximum penalty is only 6 months imprisonment and/or a fine. Unfortunately courts rarely impose the maximum penalty and therefore it is perhaps not surprising that the Police and CPS often favour the less costly alternative of an out of court disposal because it is in the public interest.
So it with great interest to NPW that Lord Foulkes has suggested an amendment to the new Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill when it was recently debated in the Committee Stage in the House of Lords on 5/12/13. The proposed amendment would if enacted create a separate offence for assault of a public facing worker. As such it would apply to a wide range of workers who provide a service to the public, including shop workers and bar staff. Importantly we feel that the sentencing guidelines would reflect the fact that this would be seen as a more serious offence than Common Assault.
During the debate on 5/12/13 supporters of the amendment claimed that a precedent had been set because there were already separate offences for assaulting a Police Officer and Emergency Service Workers (in Scotland). Opponents stated that these offences had been enacted because society expected emergency service workers to step forward to deal with extraordinary incidents and put their safety on the line. It would be counterproductive to argue that shop or bar staff should necessarily be protected in the same way as emergency services personnel and we would not wish to draw a parallel with the type of work they undertake. However it would also be naive to suggest that someone working in a bar does not need such protection because they could run away. We faced the same type of criticism during the Court Not Caution campaign when some senior officials stated firstly that licensees were not enforcing the law and secondly that they were free to leave the pub trade if they were worried about their safety.
We believe that workers in the pub and hospitality sector do provide a form of enforcement because the law requires that they act as gatekeepers to prevent access to alcohol and other age related products. If they do not act in a responsible way they can themselves be prosecuted and even lose their livelihoods. So what does society expect these workers to do when they are faced with threats or actual violence? Do we expect them to show steadfastness in the face of hostility and continue to provide a welcoming and safe venue for the vast majority of law abiding customers or do we think that they should just walk away from their job?
We believe that our legislators should act in the best interests of the public. They have before them a unique opportunity to show that public facing workers are valued and need to be protected by the law. We hope that the amendment to introduce a separate offence of assaulting a public facing worker will be supported by MPs and Peers as the legislation passes through both chambers. The Act is due to be debated in House of Lords in the Report Stage on 14/1/14.
The original NPW Court Not Caution DVD which contains powerful testimony from licensees who have been subject to violence in the course of their work can be seen at LINK
