Melissa Haines: Bunnings NZ manager on the rollout of new facial recognition technology

Repeat offenders are the target of the recent Bunnings facial recognition technology rollout.

It's turning on scanners in Te Rapa and Hamilton South today, before later rolling them out countrywide.

Threats have more than doubled in the hardware retailer's stores in the past four years, 34 percent from repeat offenders.

Bunnings New Zealand general manager Melissa Haines says data on regular shoppers won't be kept.

"If someone comes into our stores, there's a very quick scan of the face - if there's any match to a person that's previously committed serious harm in our stores, then that's where we're using it."

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now, Bunnings has announced it has switched on the facial
recognition cameras in New Zealand, but only in two stores
in Hamilton. The retailer says threats against staff have more
than doubled in the last four years. Over a third
are linked to repeat offenders. Melissa Haynes as Bunnings as
New Zealand general manager Hoime, Melissa, Hello, why are you
only doing two stores in Hamilton?

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Look, we're taking a really considered approach with rolling out
facial recognition technology. So we're starting with the two stores,
make sure that we've got everything right from a training
and operational perspective, and then we'll continue with phase roll
out for the rest of the stores.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
So how long do you give it in Hamilton before
you decide? Yep, pullpin for everybody else.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
We don't have a fixed timeline. It's going to depend
on what we find over the next few weeks, but
we are keen to get it into as many stores
as possible if we're seeing that reduction and threatening behavior.

Speaker 1 (00:56):
How much opposition are you facing in New Zealand towards this?

Speaker 2 (01:02):
Actually, I've been really pleased with the positivity that we've
had from this I think there's a really good understanding
of what our real tailed team members are dealing with
across the country, which unfortunately has been a very scary
increase in violent and threatening behaviors in stores. And this
is just, you know, one of the tools that hopefully

(01:22):
is available which is kind of a difference to reduce
that kind of situation that our team and our customers
are facing every day.

Speaker 1 (01:30):
Do you can you assure because the texts that I've
had are along the lines of worried about you guys
losing people's faces the photographs on selling people's biometric data.
Are you going to do any of the selling?

Speaker 2 (01:42):
Absolutely not. This has been used solely as a tool
to reduce violent and threatening behavior in our stores. So
if you know, someone comes into our stores, there's a
very quick scan of the face. If there's any match
to a person that's previously committed serious harm in our store,
then that's where we're using it. Otherwise the images deleted

(02:04):
and less than a blink of an eye. Okay, So
for you know, most people coming into their stores, this
is you know, absolutely no harm whatsoever.

Speaker 1 (02:10):
Why do you engage a Maori digital sovereignty expert?

Speaker 2 (02:15):
All as I said, it's really important to us to
take careful and considered approach to this, including governance of
the whole program. So we worked with doctor Todu to
make sure that our approach in terms of taking into
accounts you know, cultural significance of biometric data, how our
training is put together, and how we do respond you know,

(02:36):
if any situation arose where there was a mistake made,
that we made sure that we really know exactly what
we're doing. So we wanted to make sure that it's
a really robust process and takes all those things into
account and engaged with our Maori community, both our team
members and across New Zealand to understand where their concerns
were and that we could make sure that our approach
addressed those.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
All right, Melissa, thank you very much for talking us through.
That's Melissa Haynes, general manager of Bunnings here in New Zealand.

Speaker 2 (03:02):
For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive, listen live to
news talks.

Speaker 1 (03:06):
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio.