At Great Places we’re committed to the principles of consideration, mutual trust and respect. For that reason, we’re proud to be supporting the Respect Campaign launched by the Institute of Costumer Service (ICS). The campaign aims to create a better and more respectful relationship between the front-line workers, who can sometimes be subjected to abuse whilst carrying out their jobs, with the costumers.
We’re one of over 200 other organisations that have signed up to this campaign and the reason is simple: In the UK, 80 per cent of the workforce is customer facing, and according to the ICS, half of this type of worker have experienced abuse, from shouting and abusive language to even physical assaults. Since the start of the pandemic this has increased, not only in face-to-face situations but over the phone or in written communications such as emails and social media.
Despite knowing this is a really small percent of our customers, this unfortunate trend has been seen and felt by Great Places colleagues too. We see the need to stand by our workers and help them create healthier and more constructive relationships with our customers.
Therefore, we’re currently reviewing our approach to how we tackle such incidents and the support we offer to our colleagues and customers. Part of this campaign is the reconsideration of recent changes in law, which give more protection to colleagues who have been subjected to abuse or assaults while doing their jobs.
“At Great Places we very much see our communications with customers as a two-way partnership and it’s important both parties know what is expected of them in this relationship” said Rachel Mills, Director of Customer Experience. “We hope that by supporting this campaign we can raise awareness of this issue and ensure that our colleagues are able to complete their jobs without the fear of being abused”, she explained.
It is crucial for us to be there for our customers, helping them in every way we can while building honest and respectful relationships with our communities. This campaign will help us to achieve both goals.
If you are aware or have witnessed disrespectful or aggressive behaviour towards our colleagues, please contact us and be part of creating better and more respectful exchanges. If you want more information on this campaign you can check the Institute of Customer service website here: https://www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/news/service-with-respect/ or consult with our Chatabot.
And coming soon…
Our focus on the importance of mutual respect between our colleagues and customers will continue with our own campaign launching shortly, to promote consideration, appreciation and condemn any type of violence within the workplace.
For Great Places’ colleagues, this means understanding how to maintain a respectful and supportive attitude with customers, remembering that words and actions can affect how other people respond while also knowing how and when to report any incidents.
For customers, Great Places wants to promote respect as one of our core values. “We expect to be treated with dignity and we are committed to delivering our best services with the same level of attention and respect” says Ateeka Atchia, Head of Health & Safety in Great Places.
As an organisation, we will be sharing more information on what customers can expect with our approach to mutual respect as well as our policies and procedures around aggressive behaviour. Stay tuned for more details coming soon.
