Alberta small business owners spending more on security amid rise in crime: CFIB

In a time when many Alberta small business owners continue to deal with the after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, some say crime is just another thing that’s putting their future at risk.

A new report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) shows that not only are workers and customers feeling unsafe, but it’s costing a lot of money.

According to that report, 43 per cent of Alberta small business owners surveyed by the CFIB say they’ve been directly or indirectly impacted by crime.

Specifically, instances of shoplifting, loitering, vandalism, littering, and breaking and entering are the most prevalent issues.

And, as a result, the director of interprovincial affairs at CFIB says businesses are paying in many ways — with some even saying they’re losing customers who just don’t feel safe being there.

“Not only the cost of repairing any damage that was done to business, but they’re spending more money on security, they have to change the way they operate in terms of locking their door during business hours and having a doorbell system in order to keep employees safe,” Keyli Loepkky explained.

A staggering 62 per cent of small business owners report spending more of their hard-earned cash on security, while 42 per cent say they’ve made operational changes, and 25 per cent say they have amped up employee safety training.

Loepkky noted that this problem couldn’t come at a worse time, adding the last thing small business owners need to deal with as they recover from the pandemic is a broken window or loss of inventory.

Nearly one-quarter of Alberta small businesses are at risk of closure, and half report to be making less than they were before the pandemic, according to the CFIB.

Loepkky says not only are small business owners paying more, but they’re working harder too.

“Small business owners, when they dreamed their dream of opening their business, they didn’t also think they’d have to be a first responder, a social worker, a security officer, but that’s really what they’ve had to be,” she said.

She adds that compared to businesses in urban centres, businesses in rural Alberta tend to struggle more with crime due to limited supports and resources.

“Small towns are definitely feeling it, but what the challenge is in the smaller municipalities is that there’s really a lack of services and infrastructure, relative to the urban areas,” Loepkky explained. “So things like limited police service, less infrastructure spending on things like lighting, less supports for affordable housing or mental health and addictions support.”