Active Shooter Training At Retailers Is Hindered By Worker Turnover

by MR Magazine Staff

Most retailers have plans in place to deal with an active shooter, like the one that terrorized a Walmart Inc. store this past weekend in El Paso, Texas. But a hot job market has hit worker retention rates, making it harder to ensure that every employee has had the proper training. “The majority have a plan, but the turnover in a store with any retailer is high,” said Pat Murphy, president of LPT Security Consulting in Houston. “The employee gets bombarded on their first day with a bunch of training material and how often that’s revisited, who knows?” While most Americans grow up learning how to react to a fire — stop, drop and roll — active shooter response isn’t as instinctual, said Greg Shaffer, founder of Shaffer Security Group and a former member of the FBI. Today, active shooters present a greater threat to retail establishments than fires, and repetitive trainings need to be put in practice to encourage preparedness, he said. Read more at Bloomberg.