The amount of abuse and violence Countdown shoppers inflict on the staff has increased a whopping 600 percent during the lockdown period. From when the Level 4 lockdown began until it ended on Monday night, supermarkets were one of the few essential businesses that remained open. Despite the move to Alert Level 3 this week, Countdown stores remained busier than normal, general manager of health and safety Kiri Hannifin said. "Unfortunately, we're still seeing a concerning level of abuse against our team and this hasn't eased off even as we transition to Alert Level 3," she said. The abuse and violence were "incredibly disheartening" for the Countdown team who had worked hard to look after Kiwis during the lockdown.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 29, 2020 04:07 UTC