A new law in New York state will require retailers with 500 or more employees nationwide to install panic buttons for dialing 911.
The move arose after concerns over high-profile shootings in the state and reports of a rise in retail crime.
Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the Retail Worker Safety Act into law Thursday and the provision regarding panic buttons is set to take effect Jan. 1, 2027. Other provisions of the measure, which take effect in 180 days, would force companies with 10 or more employees to "develop and implement programs to prevent workplace violence" and requires the state Department of Labor to "produce a model workplace violence prevention training program."
Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union President Stuart Applebaum said in a news release Friday that "the preventative measures this law provides will help stop violence and harassment before it starts, but even more importantly, will more safely assist workers in getting help quickly in the event of an emergency. From West Hempstead to Buffalo, union workers have suffered grave losses to senseless store shootings."
His comments referred to shootings at a West Hempstead, New York, Stop and Shop in 2021 and at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo in 2022. The news release said a survey of union members found that a majority regularly worried about the possibility of a mass shooting in their workplace.
On the other hand, some retail trade groups are against the law, especially the panic button provision, because of the potential for abuse and false alarms.
A Walmart official told Reuters in June, "Eight out of 10 times somebody thinks something's going on, there's actually not." Other industry groups said the new law won't help stop repeat shoplifters, writing in a May 28 letter, "The costly mandates proposed in the bill — including the installation of panic buttons — will do little, if anything, to address recidivists entering stores with the intent to engage in illegal activity such as shoplifting and assault."
Kate McManus ✉
Kate McManus is a New Jersey-based Newsmax writer who's spent more than two decades as a journalist.
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