NRF's Fight Retail Crime Day Coming Oct. 24
Urgent action is needed as the fight against ORC intensifies

Join NRF at Fight Retail Crime Day on Oct. 24 to advocate for the passage of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act

The implications of organized retail crime are far-reaching, and the urgency of addressing ORC has never been greater. In recent years, retailers across the United States have reported a sharp increase in the frequency and scale of retail crimes involving or associated with ORC groups.

What’s even more concerning is the increase in violence tied to these crimes. More than two-thirds of respondents to NRF’s 2023 National Retail Security Survey said they had seen even more violence and aggression from ORC perpetrators compared with a year ago.

“The ORC problem we have in the U.S. has certainly grown,” says Scott McBride, chief global asset protection officer with American Eagle Outfitters, “and it’s affecting every single community that we operate in as a collective group of retailers.”

A unified approach

Addressing this issue requires a multifaceted approach that includes enhanced security measures, legislative action and collaborative efforts between retailers, law enforcement and policymakers — a need lawmakers answered by introducing the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act (H.R. 895/ S. 140).

Facilitating information exchange

One of CORCA’s central provisions is the establishment of a new Organized Retail Crime Coordination Center within the Department of Homeland Security. This center would serve as a hub for information sharing and coordination between local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, retail businesses and other stakeholders.

Retailers’ need for the advancement of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act is urgent, and the continued denial of ORC’s existence has done nothing to make the problem disappear. Retailers, states and localities have invested billions into curbing these crimes, but stalled federal solutions have allowed this stubborn challenge to metastasize.

NRF’s Fight Retail Crime Day returns on Oct. 24 to mobilize the retail community to advocate for effective solutions in combating this problem. Get a head start by telling Congress to pass the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act today.  nrf.com


Shoplifting Up 15%, Despite Violent Crime & Property Crime Decrease
Murder and other violent crime dropped across the U.S. last year, FBI data shows

Murder dropped 11.6% from 2022 to 2023, the largest single-year decline in the last 20 years. Property crime was also down overall, while shoplifting rose.

Crime, including serious violent incidents like murder and rape, dropped nationally from 2022 to 2023, according to new data released by the FBI on Monday.

Violent crime was down about 3% from 2022 to 2023, and property crime took a similar drop of 2.4%, the FBI reported in its annual "Summary of Crime in the Nation." The most serious crimes went down significantly: murder and non-negligent manslaughter were down an estimated 11.6% — the largest single year decline in two decades — while rape decreased by an estimated 9.4%.

Preliminary numbers showed that 2024 crime numbers were also dropping for the early part of this year, continuing a trend of easing crime as the U.S. has come out of the pandemic.

Among property crimes, burglary decreased by an estimated 7.6%. Motor vehicle theft, however, was up by an estimated 12.6% between 2022 and 2023. Recorded incidents of shoplifting were also up: from 999,394 in 2022 to 1,149,336 in 2023 (a 15% increase), which is roughly the same level of incidents reported in 2019, before the pandemic. (Store closures and COVID-19 security measures likely decreased shoplifting in 2020 and 2021, and may have affected 2022 incidents as well.)

Monday’s data collection pulls from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) and covers more than 315 million people – or 94.3% of the US. nbcnews.com  theguardian.com


Restoring Felonies for Some Thefts Has Widespread Support in CA
71 percent of CA voters support anti-crime Proposition 36

Poll: Most Californians favor Proposition 36, theft and drug crimes measure

Proposition 36, which restores felonies for some thefts under $950, has won support from 71% of Californians in a new poll.

The Californians and Their Governments survey was conducted Aug. 29 to Sept. 4 by the Public Policy Institute of California. According to the nonpartisan think tank, 26% of respondents said they would vote against Proposition 36, which increases prison and jail sentences for certain drug and theft crimes.

What would Proposition 36 do?

Proposition 36 would undo some of the punishment reductions from Proposition 47, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office.

Passed in 2014, Proposition 47 turned thefts worth $950 or less and some drug-related charges into misdemeanors. Proposition 36 allows felony charges for thefts under $950 and the possession of certain drugs if the defendant has had two prior theft or drug convictions, according to the Secretary of State Office’s voter guide.

If passed, Proposition 36 would mean longer sentences for people convicted of certain drug or theft crimes. “In certain cases, people who possess illegal drugs would be required to complete treatment or serve up to three years,” the Secretary of State Office said.

Supporters at voteyesprop36.com say the measure will toughen penalties for fentanyl and drug traffickers and thieves who repeatedly steal.  usatoday.com


Shrink Mentions Dropping on Earnings Calls
Is the shoplifting “crisis” over?
Is the shoplifting “crisis” over? Last year, retail executives were sounding the alarm about shoplifting cutting into profits. This year, there’s been less hullabaloo. CNN reported that mentions of “shrink” on companies’ earnings calls dropped 20% in the first half of 2024.

Shoplifting is shrink, but not all shrink is shoplifting. Shrink refers to all inventory losses, including theft by customers and employees, but also damage, errors, returns and vendor fraud. Experts told Marketplace about 40% of store losses are due to customers liberating products from shelves.

Foiling thieves may cost stores loyal customers. Plexiglass barriers reduce shoplifting but increase friction for paying customers. For instance, shoppers are less likely to make impulse purchases when they have to wait for an employee to unlock a cabinet. It appears that brick-and-mortar stores could win a short-term battle against shoplifting, but at the expense of hard-earned foot traffic. Making the shopping experience inconvenient and hostile has already prompted some customers to buy online instead of in person.

Retail theft panic during the pandemic was based on sloppy number crunching. The National Retail Federation claimed in 2021 that theft by organized crime rings had skyrocketed and used inaccurate data to lobby lawmakers to crack down on theft. The NRF retracted those claims last year and acknowledged that “quantifying the scope of organized retail crime is challenging.” Experts told Retail Dive that some companies may have inflated their theft problem to justify store closures and staff reductions. marketplace.org

 
Notorious Venezuelan Gang Fueling Retail Theft & Other Crime
Venezuelan Gang’s Path to U.S. Stokes Fear, Crime and Border Politics

Tren de Aragua’s emergence in New York City and elsewhere has led law enforcement officials to strategize how to stem the gang’s growth.

At the country’s southern border, U.S. Border Patrol agents have been on the lookout for members of a notorious Venezuelan gang. In the nation’s heartland, police officers from Denver to Chicago have made dozens of arrests for alleged crimes linked to the group, from retail theft to murder and prostitution.

And in New York City, police detectives have spent months interviewing informants — including confessed gang members — to identify gang leaders and gather information on robbery patterns and recruitment efforts.

The gang in question is Tren de Aragua, which sprang from a Venezuelan prison and developed into a feared criminal organization focused on sex trafficking, human smuggling and the drug trade.

Its widening presence in the United States has become a political lightning rod for Republicans, especially former President Donald J. Trump, as they seek to blame the Biden administration’s border policy for allowing criminals into the country. nytimes.com

 
Rite Aid’s answer to retail theft at California store: Lock up all its products
For years, stores across Southern California have been putting high-priced items behind lock and key to deter thieves.

The Rite Aid on the corner of Long Beach and Compton boulevards, though, takes this approach to security to a new extreme. Customers there are greeted by rows and rows of shelved items — makeup, chips, baby formula, paper towels, lotion and juice — that are locked behind plexiglass.

Most of the items in the store are accessible only after clicking a button that will summon an employee to come over, open the case and retrieve what the customer is interested in (and put it back if the interest fades).

The community is split on the store’s move, and employees are speaking out about how disruptive the change has been to their workday.  reviewjournal.com


Missouri & Illinois Target Stores Claim to Have Stomped Out Theft

How states are fighting retail theft, smash-and-grabs
 

Return to Work is Fueling Decline in Workplace Well-Being
Retail and hospitality sectors reported the lowest levels in workplace well-being.

Workplace Well-Being is Worsening

All is not well at work, according to recent findings.

The workplace has undergone significant changes in the past five years. So, too, has worker well-being.

An annual survey of more than 1.5 million workers has found that between 2019 and 2023, workplace well-being has declined. There was a noticeable improvement in 2020, but that has since eroded as workers have returned to the office and lost the flexibility that improved work-life balance.

All surveyed industries saw the same decline, but health care, retail and hospitality sectors reported the lowest levels in workplace well-being.

The survey is part of the "Well-Being at Work: Fostering a Healthy Climate for All" report from the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School and Great Place to Work.

Companies with high levels of well-being show the substantial businesses cost of not providing psychological safety at the workplace in the form of lower profits, decreased engagment, higher turnover, poorer customer service and increased health care costs. ehstoday.com


DEI Isn't Going Anywhere
No, not all companies are abandoning diversity, equity and inclusion. Here’s why.

Amid a high-profile backlash, many businesses are scrutinizing their policies. But the vast majority end up sticking with DEI, in part because it’s key to growth.

A December 2023 survey by the Conference Board of nearly 200 chief human resources officers found “unanimous support for maintaining, if not intensifying, DEI efforts into 2024, with 63% actively seeking to further diversify their workforce.” Some companies are ducking the current spotlight on DEI by renaming their initiatives while keeping their substance intact, several experts said. Those that take this route should evaluate changes to be sure they align with business strategies and the interests of stakeholders, according to a recent report from the think tank on “repositioning DEI.”

Because companies have diverse stakeholders, including employees, customers and shareholders, and because it’s their business to be profitable, it’s not just acceptable but necessary for them to question their DEI programs’ effectiveness and evolve them as necessary, according to Diana Scott, who leads the nonprofit’s U.S. Human Capital Center.

In all, though, some 90% of those working with the Conference Board remain committed to DEI after doing so, Scott said by video call. retaildive.com


Workplace Tensions Rise as Election Nears
Election Anxiety, Women at Work and Quitting Workaholism: What I’m Reading
A majority of Americans (73%) reported feeling anxious about the election, according to a survey from the American Psychological Association back in May. No matter who you’re planning on voting for, I think we can all agree that tensions will likely rise as November 5 draws nearer.

We know that when you clock in to work, you don’t leave your problems behind. The same is true for politics. Even if you don’t explicitly discuss policies, platforms or candidates, it’s difficult not to bring those thoughts, fears and anxieties into the workplace. It’s not unreasonable to expect that colleagues might have less patience or tempers may flare because of the election.  ehstoday.com


Walmart plots October sales event to compete with Target, Amazon
The retailer is giving its Walmart+ members a 12-hour headstart on shopping deals that will open to everyone Oct. 8.

Tempur Sealy agrees to divest 175 stores as FTC case looms

Fed cuts main rate by half point, voices confidence that inflation is falling