Christmas is a time of joy, but many working over the festive season say it is far from that when it comes to serving customers. Australia's fast-food and retail union has launched a national campaign calling for respect and an end to customer abuse.
A national survey has found more than 85 per cent of retail and fast-food workers have experienced abuse from customers.
Almost a quarter of workers say they have been subjected to verbal abuse every week, and more than a third have felt threatened by a customer once or twice in the last year.
Workers say they have had enough.
The fast-food, retail and warehousing union has launched a national campaign aimed at stopping customer abuse and violence towards workers this Christmas.
Bernie Smith is the New South Wales secretary for the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association. He says the impact of abuse on workers can be detrimental.
While retail and fast-food workers are trained to provide good customer service, they say there is no excuse when it comes to physical or verbal abuse.
