Pret a Manger is testing out body-worn cameras on some of its staff at certain stores in London. It’s a new safety measure that protects workers and manages tough situations. These cameras will be turned on only in particular instances, and footage will only be accessible to Pret’s security team.

Popular chic coffee and bakery chain Pret a Manger is rolling out a new safety measure that seems to be straight out of a James Bond movie: it’s begun fitting some staff with body-worn cameras. The scoop? These cameras are on trial use in some London shops, but do not be alarmed—this all goes toward keeping the staff safe and things running smoothly.

How does this work? Only team leaders and managers will wear these cameras. They won’t be recording all the time. Cameras will only be turned on in certain situations, so if something unusual or possibly problematic happens, the camera might start recording. In that case, staff and customers will know there’s a way to review what happened if needed.

There will be some signage that you may see out and about in the shops that are part of this trial. The purpose of displaying this information is to make customers aware of the cameras and the fact that they are not always ‘on’. Any footage from the cameras will be accessed solely by Pret’s security team. The idea is that everyone in this environment feels secure.

It is not only Pret a Manger who have resorted to these measures; last year, Tesco brought in a similar kind of camera after it said physical assaults against its staff had risen markedly. It published the above statement after reporting a sharp 33% rise in attacks against its staff, thereby highlighting a rising concern for worker safety on the high street.

Another supermarket chain, the Co-op, also put in place measures to protect its staff. This includes installing over 200 safe till kiosks with locked cabinets designed to store alcohol, and they even deployed AI technology at around 250 self-service checkouts. They were prompted to do so after observing that retail crime increased by forty four percent last year. Instances of shoplifting and other crimes have compelled stores to amp up their in-store security in several hundred shops.

Why is this happening? Retail workers in the UK are increasingly getting abused and subjected to violence. According to a recently carried out survey by the British Retail Consortium, shop workers across the nation are faced with close to 1,300 incidences of violence and abuse each single day. These include racial abuse, sexual inappropriateness, physical threats, and weapon threats. Theft has more than doubled to over 16.7 million incidents reported last year.

These increasing numbers of retail crimes come at a time when the cost of everyday items is also going up. Prices for everything, from eggs to baby formula, have been accelerating at the fastest pace since the 1970s. The economic squeeze is making it hard enough to live for families, and it is probably also contributing to the elevated retail crime rate.

In a further move in October, nearly 90 leaders from companies with major retail operations, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Boots, and WH Smith, wrote to the government calling for more to be done about rising retail crime. They argued that a lack of data provided to police about such offences made it hard for the police to appreciate fully the magnitude of the problem. Right at the top of their wishlist was better information with which to tackle head-on the issue.

On the same note, Sharon White, who operates at the head of the John Lewis Partnership conglomerate with John Lewis and Waitrose under its ownership, indicated that shoplifting was an “epidemic” in the UK. Her words typify the severe nature of the problem and the necessity for putting at least some further measures in place to ensure retail worker safety.

The launch of body-worn cameras at Pret a Manger is part of the trend to make use of technology in an attempt to enhance safety in the retail environment. The cameras record some incidents with the objective to provide a clearer picture of what happens in a store so that issues are handled more effectively and, hopefully, the number of conflicts and crimes is reduced.

That said, the new cameras in Pret a Manger are only the latest measures in a long line to make retail environments safer for the public at large. As more stores take similar measures, it’s obvious that a firm push is being made to tackle the escalating safety concerns of retail workers across the UK.