There are growing concerns about crime affecting the safety of employees, customers and commercial districts across British Columbia, according to a new survey from the Business Improvement Areas of B.C. (BIABC).

The BIABC represents most of the province’s 80 business improvement districts and more than 55,000 small businesses.

A recent survey of 100 businesses from communities across B.C. found concerns about public safety were widespread regardless of location. Respondents cited worsening street disorder, repeat offending and crime as significant challenges affecting daily operations.

The organization says it has been raising these concerns with the provincial government for years.

“Our survey may be modest in size, but the message is unmistakable,” said Jeremy Heighton, president of the BIABC.

“Business owners continue to tell us that crime, vandalism and street disorder are affecting not only their operations, but the well-being of the people they employ every day.”

According to the survey, 65 per cent of businesses said public safety and street disorder were significant concerns, while 63 per cent reported that operating conditions had worsened over the past year. Another 68 per cent said they were worried about the impact crime is having on employees.

Half of the respondents said safety concerns are making it more difficult to recruit and retain staff.

The survey also found that 89 per cent of respondents believe governments are not doing enough to address repeat offending, retail crime and public safety issues.

Among the concerns most frequently cited were open drug use, street disorder, aggressive behaviour, vandalism and shoplifting. Business owners said those issues were having the greatest impact on their operations.

According to respondents, employees regularly deal with harassment, break-ins, graffiti, discarded drug paraphernalia and difficult interactions with customers concerned about safety.

“Labour Day is about recognizing workers,” Heighton said.

“Too many employees are beginning or ending their shifts wondering whether they’ll encounter aggressive behaviour, open drug use, vandalism or another break-in. No one should have to accept that as part of coming to work.”

The survey also pointed to what respondents described as a disconnect between the measures businesses take to improve safety and government policies that increase those costs.

Beginning Oct. 1, B.C. will expand the Provincial Sales Tax to apply to private security services used by businesses throughout the province.

“Businesses have responded to rising crime by investing in security patrols, alarm monitoring, cameras and other measures to better protect their employees and customers,” said Heighton.

“Unfortunately, just weeks from now those same businesses will be required to pay PST on many of those services. At precisely the time businesses are being encouraged to invest more in safety, government is making those investments more expensive.”

Ninety per cent of surveyed businesses supported BIABC’s call for the province to pause the expansion of the PST to professional services such as private security.

“Businesses are resilient, but resilience has limits,” Heighton said.

“This survey should serve as another reminder that public safety is no longer simply a policing issue. It’s an economic, workforce and community issue. Before asking businesses to pay more to protect themselves, governments should be asking businesses why they have had to shoulder so much of that responsibility in the first place.”