Customers visiting their local Shoppers Drug Mart or Loblaws grocer may notice employees are now donning body cameras — a recently introduced measure aimed at combating violence in some Toronto stores.
Loblaw, the parent company that oversees the grocery and drugstore chains, rolled out the body-worn cameras nationwide earlier this year as part of a pilot to test their usage in de-escalation. Participation in the pilot project is voluntary, the company said.
The cameras, provided by the U.S. surveillance company Axon, are about the size of a cellphone and worn like a necklace at chest-level. Loblaw says they are only activated during an interaction where the cashier or employee feels their safety, or that of other customers, is at risk.
TorontoToday has confirmed the Shoppers Drug Mart in Parkdale and the Loblaws on Queen St. West are both participating.
“Early results from other markets suggest body-worn cameras can help reduce violent incidents, but we need a broader, longer-term evaluation across more stores to assess their full impact,” a Loblaw spokesperson wrote.
Though the goal of the program appears to be safety, the cameras leave a sour taste with James Turk — the director of Centre for Free Expression at Toronto Metropolitan University. He argued the program exposes an underlying issue where Loblaw no longer employs enough actual people to handle conflict efficiently by defending one another in numbers.
“They’re trying to do everything they can to eliminate the number of staff by having these automated checkouts and so forth,” he said. “In the days when there were more staff, if one member was having a problem and loud voices were raised, having other staff around was an important protection.”
Designed to de-escalate, could body cameras do the opposite?
Most people often associate body-worn cameras with police. The technology was designed to keep officers accountable while serving as an educational tool for the public, though some studies suggest they do the opposite.
While he recognizes the accountability role cameras can serve in policing, Turk doesn’t believe the practice is as effective of a measure in the case of a retail worker.
Because the employee doesn’t have the means to defend themselves like an officer, he’s worried the cameras could trigger further escalation from a disgruntled customer and put the clerk at additional risk.
“As an employee, I would certainly be concerned about wearing one,” he said.
According to Loblaw, the cameras are only worn by trained store teams, including asset protection representatives, security and management.
At the Parkdale Shoppers location, TorontoToday also witnessed cashiers wearing them.
Loblaw said if a camera is turned on, the employees are trained to verbally inform those around them and ensure everyone is aware.
But Turk doesn’t see that scenario always playing out favourably.
“It’s very unlikely a person would try to grab the body camera off a police officer, because the officer can use a variety of forces,” he argued. “But if there’s an agitated customer with a clerk at a Shoppers, and there aren’t many other people around, I can fully imagine the person could just rip it off the person and exacerbate the problem.”
Because Loblaw stores already operate security cameras throughout their retail spaces, Turk believes the body-worn variety isn’t a useful safety addition — and could in fact be counter-productive.
“It’s not as if the clerk needs the body camera to have the interaction recorded in most cases,” he alleged. “Most Shoppers stores have a fair number of cameras covering all the retail areas, so what actually happens in the relationship between the clerk and the customer will be captured by the camera — you don’t need the body cam to get that evidence.”
When asked about safety concerns, Loblaw said they believe the rollout is worth a shot.
“The safety of our customers, colleagues, and stores remains our priority,” Loblaw wrote. “Our expansion of this pilot highlights our ongoing commitment to creating a safer shopping environment for all.”
Privacy concerns raised
According to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, surveillance technologies like body-worn cameras pose risks to customers’ privacy because they may collect more information than necessary.
In an email to TorontoToday, the organization noted areas of concern would include whether the public is being given clear notice about the use of this technology when entering the store, or if the footage is being retained — and if so, for how long.
Loblaw said stores choosing to deploy the body cameras are supposed to have signage at their entrances to inform customers of their use. If any footage collected is not required for police investigation, it’s deleted within 72 hours, the company said.
“Privacy and transparency are important to us, and we’re committed to ensuring that every step of this process is handled with care and according to regulations,” a Loblaw spokesperson wrote.
However, at the Shoppers in Parkdale on Thursday, TorontoToday could not locate signage specifically pertaining to the body cameras, though there were signs indicating that security cameras are in operation.
According to camera manufacturer Axon, the cameras contain the same technology used by law enforcement — though in a lighter-weight device with customizable colour options.
The model’s specs include reduced motion blur and “high-quality video” as well as on-device encryption, security certifications and 12-hour battery life.
A spokesperson with Axon was not available for an interview in time for publication.
Some customers support body cameras
Geneviève Bellinger has been a regular at the Shoppers in Parkdale since she moved to the neighbourhood three years ago.
When she learned of the body camera pilot weeks later, she was fully on board. She recalled one afternoon at the store this past winter where she witnessed an incident that “easily could have escalated to physical violence” at the pharmacist’s counter.
“I absolutely support it,” she said. “Something has obviously prompted this to happen. We’re always on camera in this society, so it doesn’t make me uncomfortable that if I’m at the counter that I could be on camera.”
As someone who has dealt with assault in the past, Bellinger said she believes the employees at Shoppers have a right to feel safe. She argued just the presence of the technology alone could prevent the customer from escalating a negative interaction.
“It’s such an unpredictable world, and I’m coming from the point of view of a female who has been there,” she said. “If it provides a level of safety to the staff — then awesome. It’s a no-brainer.”