• The number of staff employed by TFL per year between 2014 and 2018 - i.e in 2014, 450 staff were employed by TFL • How many instances of verbal or physical abuse perpetrated by members of the public towards TFL staff were recorded in recent years? May you please provide the figures per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e in 2014, there were 57 incidents where staff were verbally or physically attacked by members of the public • How many of these incidents were reported to the British Transport Police? May you please provide the figures per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e in 2014, there were 57 incidents where staff were verbally or physically attacked by members of the public and 40 incidents were reported to the police • Within the same five year period, may you please detail the number of incidents of abuse motivated by the victims…. • Race • Religion • Sexual orientation • Disability • Transgender status May you please break the figures down per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e in 2015, there were 54 incidents of racially motivated abuse towards TFL staff members. • May you please detail any support that TFL provides to staff members who become victims of abuse i.e counselling, therapy etc

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Our Ref:         FOI-0470-1920

Thank you for your request received on 14 May 2019 asking for information about attacks on TfL staff.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked for:

• The number of staff employed by TFL per year between 2014 and 2018 - i.e. in 2014, 450 staff were employed by TFL

This information is available in the Annual Reports published on our website:

https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/annual-report

In accordance with section 21 of the FOI Act, TfL is not obliged to supply you with a copy of the requested information as it is already accessible to you elsewhere.

• How many instances of verbal or physical abuse perpetrated by members of the public towards TFL staff were recorded in recent years? May you please provide the figures per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e in 2014, there were 57 incidents where staff were verbally or physically attacked by members of the public

• Within the same five year period, may you please detail the number of incidents of abuse motivated by the victims….
• Race
• Religion
• Sexual orientation
• Disability
• Transgender status

May you please break the figures down per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e. in 2015, there were 54 incidents of racially motivated abuse towards TFL staff members.

Our staff work hard to serve the millions of customers who use our network every day and have the right to go about their work without fear or intimidation. TfL takes workplace violence extremely seriously and we always encourage staff to report any instance of abuse whether physical or non physical so that preventative measures can be taken, and the strongest penalties brought against offenders.

TfL has staff dedicated to workplace violence reduction embedded or working alongside the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and British Transport Police (BTP). These special units were established to investigate physical assault and verbal aggression on staff, public order offences and hate crimes, among other offences. The units have significantly improved the quality of staff assault investigation and feedback, as well as victim care and support.

Please see the table below which gives the information we hold for London Underground staff:

 Physical Threat Verbal Aggression Total Racially Aggravated Indecency
2014/15 467 971 1376 2814 279 56
2015/16 438 617 1200 2255 230 29
2016/17 442 527 943 1912 216 30
2017/18 492 657 966 2115 359 47
2018/19 593 716 964 2273 357 55

Please note the following:

Verbal abuse
Verbal abuse and/or abusive gestures are defined as insulting and/or offensive comments and is included in the description of workplace aggression provided that the insulting and/or offensive comments are directed at an individual, personally, who perceives them as threatening to their safety, wellbeing or health.

Threat
A threat is a declaration of intention to harm or injure and is included in the definition of workplace violence provided that the threat is personal to the individual, is specific to the individual’s safety, wellbeing or health and that the person making the threat is perceived by the individual to be capable of carrying it out.

Assault (Physical)
An assault is an act of violence that results in physical contact.

Some of the incidents that have been recorded as racially aggravated will include incidents of abuse based on the staff member’s religion. Incidents recorded under ‘Indecency’ includes actual indecency towards staff plus abuse because of their sexual orientation.

We do not have any record of staff being attacked/abused because of their own disability or because they are transgender.

Please find the data below for staff in our Surface Directorate. Please note that bus, trams, DLR, and Overground drivers are not TfL employees, they are employed by the various operators. We do not hold a breakdown of assault based on hate crime categories for these incidents.

Job Role 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Total
TfL Revenue Protection Inspector 91 66 132 196 147 632
TfL Operational Staff 41 67 72 84 74 338
Other Contractor staff 24 41 28 45 49 187
TfL Non-Operational Staff 6 8 10 14 6 44
TfL Roads & Transport Enforcement Officer (RTEO)*     7 7
Total 162 182 242 339 283 1208

*TfL RTEO was a new category added to our reporting system in 2018. Prior to this they were being captured as TfL Operational Staff since this role was introduced in late 2016.

• How many of these incidents were reported to the British Transport Police? May you please provide the figures per year between 2014 and 2018. I.e in 2014, there were 57 incidents where staff were verbally or physically attacked by members of the public and 40 incidents were reported to the police

We do not hold this information as we are not able to say how many of the incidents reported to us were reported to the British Transport Police (BTP). Please contact the BTP directly if you require this information:

http://www.btp.police.uk/about_us/your_right_to_information/freedom_of_information.aspx

• May you please detail any support that TFL provides to staff members who become victims of abuse i.e counselling, therapy etc

There is a wide range of support services available at TfL for staff affected by workplace abuse and violence.

TfL has a dedicated and specialist trauma counselling service for staff that experience workplace trauma. They provide fast track assessment and evidence- based counselling as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance for the management of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (December 2018). This includes trauma-focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).

There is an Employee Assistance Programme available 24/7 to support staff and their immediate family. This is a free and confidential service that provides guidance, information, support and counselling on work and home issues. Staff can self- refer and speak to a qualified counsellor or information specialist.

The TfL counselling service provides regular formal training on mental health first aid for staff volunteers who provide peer support to colleagues. They provide support for colleagues that are impacted by stressful events or find themselves experiencing symptoms of common mental health issues. Their role is to signpost colleagues to professional help if needed.

There is a specialist trauma peer support group available to operational staff that experience workplace trauma and incidents of verbal and physical abuse by the public. The volunteers are trained and supported  by the counselling service. They offer informal emotional support to station staff involved in incidents of workplace violence. The counselling service works closely with operational management to ensure uptake of this short term immediate support and this is work in progress.

To keep staff healthy at work the counselling team provides a range of workshops and presentations on stress management, wellbeing ,mental health awareness and resilience. The training provides positive coping tools to enable staff to look after their own wellbeing.

TfL provides a range of information and guidance for managers on their duty of care including how to support a member of staff that has experienced trauma at work.

If this is not the information you are looking for please feel free to contact me.
 
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]

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