UK shop staff and delivery drivers are set to receive free training to help them handle abusive customers in the run up to Christmas.

The Retail Trust is running three online sessions to help more store workers deal with the rise in antisocial and threatening behaviour, with the first session scheduled for 21 October.

Staff will be shown how to adjust their body language, tone of voice and choice of words to manage challenging situations, and how to recover after an incident.

The charity’s training will run online on 21, 22 and 23 October, with each 15-minute session available to watch on demand until 31 October.

The move follows new research that showed British retailers faced a £7.8bn bill to replace workers most at risk of quitting their jobs.

Research for the Retail Trust’s health of retail report found that over 1.5m retail workers, comprising 41% of the workforce, were at risk of quitting last year, due to unhappiness around issues like abuse in shops. The average cost of replacing a retail worker is £5,195.

Two thirds (66%) of retail managers surveyed said that customer abuse had impacted their team’s wellbeing over the last year.

More than one in 10 (11%) felt powerless to support staff, but nearly half (43%) said that training, company policies and reporting systems were helping.

The Retail Trust’s CEO Chris Brook-Carter said: “Thoughtless, unkind and aggressive behaviour is having a significant impact on the wellbeing of British retail workers and could lead to many dropping out of the workforce, so it’s clear we need to take action now.

“Retail leaders we spoke to for the Retail Trust’s health of retail report told us their staff face a wide range of abuse, from disrespectful signs of impatience and rude comments to unacceptable outbursts, violent assaults and theft.”

He continued: “The new standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker should lead to much-needed shifts in how criminal behaviour is handled by the police but it will do little to lessen the impact of what I’ve heard described as ‘everyday abuse’, such as rudeness and hostility.

“We believe that shop workers and delivery drivers must be shown more respect and that training to help them deal with all forms of abuse should now be mandatory.”

The report also found that the cost of living was impacting staff wellbeing, with 39% blaming cost of living increases for a deterioration in their mental health and 17% struggling to meet monthly outgoings.

Additionally, 60% said they were experiencing anxiety, worry and fear due to the uncertainty facing the retail industry and their own jobs.

Earlier this month, the Retail Trust and global consulting firm AlixPartners found that more than half of retail workers were now a “flight risk”.

The organisations found that more retail staff were at risk of leaving their jobs at the start of this summer than at any other time in the last two years.

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