As the person privileged to lead almost 55,000 Bunnings team members across Australia and New Zealand, my top priority is to ensure all of them arrive home from work each day safe and well. It’s the same for our customers. We work hard to earn their trust and loyalty, especially by creating a safe and welcoming environment in our stores.

So when I keep hearing and seeing footage of my teammates being shouted at, spat on, punched, kicked, and threatened with hammers, knives and even shotguns, I take that to heart. Every team member has a life outside Bunnings, and we want them to be happy and healthy.

Whether it’s a 15-year-old girl starting her first job, or our most experienced team members in their 80s or even 90s, no one deserves to face abuse or violence in the workplace – or anywhere else for that matter. It’s not just the abuse itself but the deep and lasting emotional and physical impacts that violent and aggressive behaviour has on frontline workers which must be considered.

That is why Bunnings introduced facial-recognition technology: to identify known repeat offenders and people previously banned from our stores. As has been reported this week, we are now seeking a review of the privacy commissioner’s........

© WA Today