VIOLENCE, abuse and threats against shopworkers in the North-East are on the increase, researchers have found.

A report has found a big rise in incidents in which staff suffered verbal abuse, physical attacks or threats of violence.

The report, from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), revealed workers are often hurt when they try to detain someone suspected of stealing.

Nationally, threats of violence soared from 86 per 100 outlets in 2002 to 318 last year, and incidents of verbal abuse rose 127 per cent in 12 months, from 70 per 100 outlets to 159.

Shopworkers union Usdaw said its members were working in an increasingly hostile and dangerous environment.

It also released figures from its study, which revealed that during seven days in June there were 93 incidents of verbal abuse in the North-East for every 100 shopworkers.

There were also 28 reports of threats, six of violence, two of sexual harassment and two of racial abuse.

It showed 55 per cent of employees in the North-East were concerned about verbal abuse, 61 per cent about threats and 60 per cent about violence.

General secretary John Hannett said: "The scale of the problem is astonishing and with over ten per cent of the UK's workforce being employed in retail, this issue affects a significant number of people.

"No one should go to work in fear of being a victim of abuse of violence."