November 14, 2024 | Mark Hudson

A new report from Traliant uncovers generational differences in workplace violence prevention training and reporting 

NEW YORK, November 14, 2024 — Traliant, a leader in online compliance training, today announced its new study, “The Retail Report: Traliant’s 2024 Workplace Violence Prevention Pulse Survey.” Based on a survey of over 500 full-time U.S. retail employees, the report looks at how retail workers feel about their safety at work and how their employers are approaching workplace violence prevention. Most notably, the survey revealed some alarming variances in how different generations feel towards reporting unsafe situations – almost half (49%) of Gen Z retail workers said they would only report a scenario where they feared for their own or a coworker’s safety if they could do so anonymously, compared to only 19% of Baby Boomers. 

Workplace violence continues to pose a major threat to employees across industries. Federal and state governments are starting to take action, most recently with New York signing the Retail Worker Safety Act, requiring employers with more than ten retail employees in the state to implement a workplace violence prevention policy and conduct the initial round of annual workplace violence prevention training by March 2025.  

The report uncovered several other alarming realities of workplace violence training and reporting among retail workers including: 

  • More than a third (38%) of Gen Z retail workers have witnessed workplace violence happening to another employee in the last five years compared to 13% of Baby Boomers, 20% of Gen X, and 22% of Millennials. 
  • 78% of Baby Boomers said they would report a scenario where they feared for their own or a coworker’s safety without being anonymous, while Gen Z was less willing, with only 42% saying they would attach their name to a report. 
  • Only 38% of retail workers feel their employers are extremely supportive in promoting a speak-up culture, where employees can report misconduct without fear of retaliation. 
  • Almost all retail workers (94%) agree that other states should adopt policies similar to New York’s Retail Worker Safety Act. 

Read the full press release