A Walmart sign outside a store in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania.
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Walmart The company has begun providing wearable cameras to store-level employees as part of a pilot program, CNBC has learned.
It’s unclear how many Walmart stores are equipped with recording devices, but some locations now have signs at the entrance warning shoppers that “body-worn cameras are in use,” according to witnesses and photos posted online.
Earlier this month at at least one store in Denton, Texas, about 40 miles north of Dallas, an employee was seen wearing a yellow and black T-shirt, according to a shopper who shared the photo with CNBC. body camera to check receipts.
“While we don’t talk about specific details of safety measures, we are always looking at new and innovative technologies being used across the retail industry,” a Walmart spokesperson told CNBC. “This is a pilot we are testing in one market and we will Evaluate the results before making any long-term decisions.”
Walmart, the largest non-governmental employer in the United States, is testing the technology after smaller retailers began experimenting with body-worn cameras in their own stores as a way to Prevent theft. Body cameras and the video they collect are often promoted as a way to prevent shoplifting, but Walmart intends to use the technology for worker safety rather than as a loss prevention tool, according to a person familiar with the matter.
In a document titled “Delivering Great Customer Service While Creating a Safer Environment,” employees were instructed on how to use the devices, according to photos of the documents posted on online forums for Walmart employees and customers. It instructs employees to “log the incident if an interaction with a customer escalates” and not to wear the devices in employee break areas and bathrooms. After the incident, staff were told they would discuss it with another team member who could help them document the incident in an “ethics and compliance application,” the document said.
Walmart’s body cameras were installed during the holiday shopping season, when retail employees work long hours and face difficult interactions with customers that can be more tense and hostile than usual.
“There are so many incidents of harassment throughout the year, but especially during the holiday season…it’s even worse,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Alliance. “Everyone is stressed out. Big. If they get upset when they can’t find what they want, who do they blame?”
However, it’s unclear whether body cameras actually help de-escalate conflicts. Appelbaum’s union does not represent Walmart workers but includes workers from retailers such as macy’s department store and H&M said the RWDSU was concerned body cameras were used more to monitor and deter theft than to make employees safer.
“Employees need to be trained on de-escalation. Employees need to be trained on what to do if they encounter a hostile situation on the job. Body cameras don’t do that. Body cameras don’t intervene,” Appelbaum explain. “We need safe staffing, we need panic buttons.”
Bianca Agustin, co-executive director of United for Respect, a Walmart and Amazon employee group, said the group has asked Walmart to provide more training for its workers, but the company has not yet met those demands. She said body-worn cameras may be part of the solution, but the cameras themselves are “not a substitute” for proper training.
“There have been claims that body cameras organically facilitate de-escalation. We don’t believe that to be true,” Augustine said. “You see a lot of violence against workers at self-checkout kiosks, even when they’re trying to (stop theft) … it can hurt … it can also anger people.”
Plus, “there are already cameras in the store,” Augustine said.
The Motorola Solutions body camera is mounted on a docking station.
Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert | Photo Alliance | Getty Images
David Johnston, vice president of asset protection and retail operations at the National Retail Federation, the retail industry lobbying group, offered a different perspective. He said retailers he works with say body cameras help reduce conflicts because people behave differently when they know they are being videotaped, especially when the cameras are directly in front of the person.
“A lot of body-worn cameras have reverse view monitors, so … there’s a little video screen and you can actually see yourself on the camera. That in itself is a pretty big deterrent,” Johnston said. “The moment you see yourself, you might change your behavior, and that’s what I think you can do with body cameras.”
when customers complain Goods are locked in boxesJohnston said body cameras are another technology retailers are trying as they look to deter theft and make stores safer.
“Wal-Mart gets tremendous exposure,” said Mark Cohen, former CEO of Sears Canada and former director of retail research at Columbia Business School. “Walmart sales associates may be very dissatisfied with what they’re exposed to… (and) feel like the store isn’t doing enough to protect the store and themselves. This is a test to see if it has any Questions have the beneficial effect of deterring criminals and alleviating the anxiety and irritation of colleagues.”
Still, it’s unclear whether employees will feel better wearing body cameras. A long-time retail employee who has worked at Hot Topic for about 10 years told CNBC that threats of violence are a normal part of the job and they are not sure body cameras will prevent it.
“For these people, when they are in our presence, acting like they are going to hit us, or threatening to meet us in the parking lot, they are not thinking rationally,” the former said. said a mall employee who asked not to be named. “Even if the camera was on them, I don’t think they would care at the moment.”
The former employee said body cameras also don’t make them feel safer during these interactions, but having a police presence nearby helps.
Last year, NRF annual security survey The study found that 35% of retailers surveyed said they were looking into body-worn cameras for retail employees or loss prevention personnel. While no respondents said body cameras are fully operational, 11% said retailers are piloting or testing the solution.
TJX Corporation It’s one of them.
Earlier this year, the discount giant said it had begun using body cameras in its stores, including banners at TJ Maxx, Marshall’s and HomeGoods. The equipment effectively reduces inventory shrinkage, Finance Chief John Joseph Klinger said on a conference call with analysts after the company reported first-quarter earnings in May.
“One of the things we’ve added, which we started doing at the end of last year, is having our (loss prevention) employees wear body cameras,” Klinger said. “When someone comes in, it’s almost like a de-escalation, people are less likely to do something when they’re being videotaped. So we definitely think that plays a role as well.”
A TJX spokesperson said in a statement that loss prevention officers equipped with body cameras have received “comprehensive training on how to effectively use the cameras in their positions.”
“Video footage is only shared when requested by law enforcement or in response to a subpoena. Body cameras are just one of the many ways we support a safe store environment. This includes a variety of policies, training and procedures,” the spokesperson said. “We hope these body cameras will help us reduce escalations, deter crime and show our associates and customers that we take store security seriously.”
