Shopworkers have been issued with advice on how to stay safe at work during the Christmas shopping spree by retail union Usdaw.
Information packs have been sent to representatives in the region as part of the union's Freedom from Fear campaign, which aims to cut incidents of violence and abuse against shopworkers.
Deputy general secretary John Hannett said: "Incidents of violence and abuse went up last year to 20,000 and 28,000 incidents respectively."
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