Victoria’s workplace protection order (WPO) laws will “fall short” of their objective after passing Parliament without urgent interim orders, according to the Australian Retail Council (ARC).
ARC CEO Chris Rodwell says in its current form, Victoria’s framework is the weakest WPO model in the country, despite the state experiencing the worst retail crime in the country.
“Retailers have fought for these protections for several years in Victoria because frontline workers face crisis levels of violence, threats and intimidation – the worst in the country,” he says. “So, it’s deeply disappointing that, after all this time, the legislation doesn’t fully deliver on its promise.
“Victoria didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. South Australia and the ACT have effective working models that allow courts to act quickly when workers face an immediate risk. That’s what makes this so disheartening.”
In the year to March 2026, Crime Statistics Agency data shows Victoria recorded 4823 assault and related offences at retail locations, while stalking, harassment and threatening behaviour increased by 10.1%. Recent Auror data shows that, on average, there are around 100 violent retail crime events in Victoria every day, more than a third of the national daily total.
The government’s argument ‘misses the point’
The ARC says the government argues interim orders are unnecessary because it has made it easier for a court to grant a final order by lowering the threshold of a barring order.
“That misses the point. The real risk is the time it can take for a final court order to be made, during which the offender can return to the workplace and workers remain exposed,” says Mr Rodwell.
“A retailer lost his life in an alleged attack in Melbourne just weeks ago. There are far too many retail workers and customers being violently attacked and abused. It’s critical the government puts the right protections in place to ensure people can come home safe after a shift.
“Retailers only seek workplace protection orders in the most serious cases involving violent and abusive repeat offenders.
“We urge Premier Ben Carroll and the government to reconsider this critical gap and ensure the scheme delivers on the objective of its own legislation – protecting workers before another staff member on the shop floor or an innocent customer gets hurt or killed.”
The ARC, however, acknowledges that the government has brought forward the commencement of WPOs from July to March 2027.
“While we welcome the government bringing forward the commencement date, retail workers are still being asked to wait months for these protections,” says Mr Rodwell.
“We had strongly hoped WPOs would be operational before the end of this year. Given the scale of violence and abuse retail workers are facing in Victoria, every day counts.”
