Would You Feel Less Safe Working In This Scenario?

COLORADO SPRINGS -Would you feel safe working the night shift at a convenience store? What if the protective glass barrier at the clerk’s counter were taken down? That’s what some Circle K employees are facing.

CircleK employees tellNEWSCHANNEL 13that store managers read to them a company-wide email on Tuesday.The email said that in an effort to become more customer friendly, the stores would be removing the glass barrier that protects clerks from would-be robbers. “It’s just not a comfortable feeling knowing there’s nothing up there to protect her now,”saysananonymousspouse of a CircleK employee. Hedoesn’t want his identity revealed at the risk of his wife losing her job.

“If the jobs weren’t so bad, she would be looking for another job right now,” he says.

NEWSCHANNEL 13visited several CircleK stores in Colorado Springs. No employees wanted to talk on camera but they did express concerns about their safety. One cited recent robberies at area 7-11 stores as reason to keep the protective barriers in place.

NEWSCHANNEL 13put in a call to Pacific Convenience and Fuels. PC & F owns a dozen CircleK locations in the Colorado Springs metro area. It wasPC & F’s decision to remove the glass barriers. The company, however, declined to comment on the move.

Now, employees and their families are left to wonderif it is really necessary to say goodbye to the added protection.”This is absolutely crazy,” says the anonymous spouse.”You’re not saving any money by not letting them use the shields so it’s not a cost issue. Keep your employees safe.” Employees tellNEWSCHANNEL 13that the only store keeping the protective barrier in place will be the CircleK near Airport and Academy.The employees say the email cited safety reasons behind that move.