Tube station closures sparking abuse in opposition to workers, says RMT
W
orkers on London Underground are dealing with growing ranges of verbal abuse and threats of violence from passengers after telling them that Tube stations are closed, a union is warning.
The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) stated passengers are taking out their frustration on workers, leaving some having to take stress-related sick go away.
The union claimed that Tube stations usually have to shut due to workers shortages attributable to spending cuts.
Frustration among the many travelling public has boiled over in some circumstances to nasty threats of violence and verbal abuse of our members
There have been round 130 Tube station closures because the begin of April, stated the RMT.
One Tube employee stated: “Staff are vulnerable when they have to inform the public a station is closed. I have been threatened with violence and verbally abused.
“There are colleagues who are suffering from poor mental health as a result of their treatment.
“And some of them are having to take long periods of sick leave which only adds to the already dire staffing situation.”
RMT basic secretary Mick Lynch stated: “The cuts to Tube staff are creating chronic shortages across the network leading to unprecedented station closures.
“Frustration among the travelling public has boiled over in some cases to nasty threats of violence and verbal abuse of our members, something RMT will not tolerate.
There is never an excuse for threats or violence towards our staff, who have the right to do their job without fear or intimidation
“If things do not improve, our members run the real risk of being seriously physically assaulted at work.
“The responsibility for the staff shortages lies with government budget cuts to Transport for London and the London Mayor who is refusing to stand up to ministers suffocating the capital’s transport finances.”
Glynn Barton, TfL’s chief working officer, stated: “There is never an excuse for threats or violence towards our staff, who have the right to do their job without fear or intimidation.
“The safety of our staff, and of our customers, will always be our top priority and we take this behaviour extremely seriously.
“We are aware of the disruption that station closures can cause and only close them as a last resort, after exhausting all other possible options.
“However, on some occasions it is unavoidable as certain stations cannot safely remain open in the rare instances when we have temporary staff shortages.
“We try to minimise disruption caused by station closures, many of which are only closed for a very short time, by prioritising stations with greater connectivity when these shortages occur.
“Under the current proposals the Underground will remain well staffed with 4,500 staff available across the network, to assist customers.
“These proposals have been carefully considered to reduce the risk of Underground stations closing, while ensuring that TfL will be able to meet customer needs, protect jobs and continue to run a safe and reliable service.”