Aggression and Violence on public transport
Helen Burrows
Raising Awareness of Violence, Aggression and Harassment in and out of the Workplace | Traveller | Baker
Over the bank holiday weekend, I was at a train station, when a customer began arguing with a staff member, which escalated quickly. Thankfully, the customer left without it becoming a more threatening situation, but it made me think about how these types of experiences are so frequent nowadays.
There are regular mentions on the news about threatening behaviour towards staff (and in some cases, other passengers), and it appears to be on the increase. Police investigate violent threats made on bus in Worlingham - BBC News It is so disappointing that things aren’t improving and people still feel like it’s ok to scream and shout to get their own way, or if something has occurred that they take it out on that person in front of them at that time.
For National Personal Safety Day 2021, the Suzy Lamplugh Trust published a report around violence and aggression within the public transport network. Driving Out Violence and Aggression on Public Transport | Suzy Lamplugh Trust, with 95% of respondents stating that they had experienced some form of unwanted behaviour on public transport in their lifetime, and for 14%, they said that they had experienced harassment, abuse, or violence more than 10 times (in the years 2017-2021).
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It is so important for staff to know what to do when things begin to escalate – how to defuse the behaviours and potentially remove themselves from the situation. It is hard when someone is shouting and swearing at you. No one should have to suffer from this, but arguing back is not going to resolve the problem and could potentially increase the risk to their safety. That doesn’t mean that you need to accept their behaviour and give them whatever they want, but it’s learning how to say no without saying ‘no’ and have tools in how to resolve the issue diplomatically.
If your team is experiencing these kinds of aggressive situations at any time during their working day, it needs to be recognised, and not accepted as part of the job. Talk to our team at the Suzy Lamplugh Trust about how we can work with you to support your colleagues with advice and training on staying safe during work by emailing us at [email protected]