ACTING AGAINST ASSAULTS IN SCOTLAND

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: march/april 2026 :: RMTnews 10 RMT’s Action Against Assaults event at the Scottish Parliament demanded safe staffing and an end to lone working on the railways. The campaign has brought together MSPs, trade unions and campaigners to demand urgent action to tackle rising violence and abuse on public transport of both workers and passengers. The conference that followed included the Scottish TUC, Transport Focus, Disability Equality Scotland and the British Transport Police (BTP), there were also representatives from the rail and passenger ferry operators. It highlighted the growing risks faced by front-line transport workers, many of them women, who are subjected to threats, harassment and assault simply for doing their jobs. In the most recent RMT survey of women public transport workers in Scotland, 70 per cent said that they had experienced workplace violence in the past year, with more than 85 per cent saying it happened more than once. The most common abuse reported was verbal assault, followed by threats of physical violence, while over 20 per cent said they had been sexually harassed at work in a 12-month period. Lone working was identified as a major risk factor, with nearly 60 per cent of those who experienced violence saying they were working alone at the time. Three-quarters of respondents said that violence at work is getting worse. A BBC investigation last year also reported a 37 per cent rise in recorded sexual offences on the railway in England, Scotland and Wales since 2015. Scottish government research published in 2023 also found that women and girls feel significantly safer on public transport when staff are present at stations, in ticket offices and onboard trains, with increased staffing highlighted as a key recommendation. Despite this, staffing levels are inconsistent across the railway and the BTP has faced a major funding shortfall, leading to station closures and reduced officer presence, which has had a significant impact in Scotland. The union is calling on political parties to commit to concrete measures that take workplace violence on public transport seriously. RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey said that assaults on transport workers were rising, violence is becoming normalised and women workers are bearing the brunt of it. “Our members should not have to face threats, abuse or sexual harassment just to earn a living serving the public. “This is a workplace safety issue, and it demands urgent political action which we will campaign for tooth and nail until we achieve progress,” he said. RAIL VOICES A rail worker at the event backed the call for a new law recognising an attack on transport workers as a specific criminal offence. Guard Mary Jane Herbison detailed the daily trials of RMT members working on trains and the risks associated with anti-social behaviour. Speaking at a roundtable of politicians and campaigners chaired by Richard Leonard MSP, Ms Herbison, who has worked on the railway for nearly two decades, said that the railway environment is completely different today compared to when I started. “There was always abuse and there were always assaults, but in the last...I’d say five, six years, definitely since lockdown, there has been a big change in behaviour,” she said. Recalling the previous night when she was on shift, she had to deal with unruly passengers who were refusing to pay their fares and causing a nuisance for other passengers. She said she had no alternative but to contact BTP and ask for assistance. “I’ve got to the limit,” she confessed pointing out that the job was “stressful enough” without worrying that she might be assaulted or that there will not be BTP support available when required. She pointed out that when Scotland hosts major sporting and cultural events, there does ACTING AGAINST ASSAULTS IN SCOTLAND