Riza Bunourah, who has worked for Great Northern at Finsbury Park station for five years

RAILWAY workers and station staff in Islington have called for more protection and support due to “daily” incidents of abuse, assault and racism.

Riza Bunourah, who has worked for Great Northern rail at Finsbury Park station for around five years, told the Tribune that customer violence and aggression against staff was a frequent occurrence at work.

He said: “I’ve been physically assaulted a couple of times whilst working here. Most recently, somebody pushed through the barrier and I asked them where they were going. He said it wasn’t my problem and then hit me in the face. It’s very frustrating.”

He added that at Finsbury Park station he was on the receiving end of racist abuse “probably every day”.

Mr Bunourah said: “There are probably over 100 people pushing through the barriers and fare-dodging daily. We are told not to challenge them or stop them, but sometimes we ask them why they are doing it or remind them they need a ticket. Often, if you say something to them, they will shout at you, be racist or swear at you and say abusive things.

“We have to try and stay calm, but unfortunately, by now we are used to it.

“Finsbury Park is the worst station for it, there are so many problems here every day.

“We are instructed by our employers on how to deal with abusive incidents, we report them on an app. Sometimes, when there are multiple in a short space of time, we get extra police presence here to help.

“But most of the time, we don’t challenge them. We just keep quiet.”

Mr Bunourah added that he would like to see added protection measures like more staff, higher police presence, and the introduction of enclosed boxes for staff like those used in underground stations.

An “Action Against Assaults” campaign was launched last week by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport workers (RMT), spotlighting the experiences of staff who have experienced violence and abuse while at work.

Two-thirds of RMT members surveyed said they had experienced a violent incident at work in the past year.

Dilani Douglas said that for many of his colleagues it had become commonplace to experience abuse

The union is campaigning for the government to introduce a specific criminal offence for assaulting railway staff, as well as increased funding and resources for the British Transport Police (BTP).

RMT’s research pointed out that funding for the BTP had been slashed in 2025, which will lead to an even further reduction of police across the rail network.

Dilani Douglas, a Transport for London (TfL) worker at Caledonian Road station, said that for many of his colleagues, it had become commonplace to experience abuse and disorder at work.

Mr Douglas has worked for TfL for seven years and said he also experienced a racist incident a few years ago.

Mr Douglas said: “It’s been an up and down experience working for TfL over the years. It depends on the station, and the shift.

“I do night tube mostly now and I always have to deal with drunk people and those jumping the barriers.

“I think having more BTP presence would definitely help these issues. If people come and they can see someone with actual authority, they might think twice about their behaviour.

“It would make more people just go about their business peacefully: don’t stop, don’t assault staff.”

Eddie Dempsey, the RMT general secretary, said: “Transport workers keep London moving and they deserve to be able to do their jobs without fear of abuse or assault.

“TfL must work with RMT to review staffing levels across the network and put in place the measures needed to protect both staff and passengers.

“These protections must apply to every worker across the TfL network, including outsourced staff who face the same risks but often lack the same protections.

“The British Transport Police themselves have warned that the current approach is not sufficient, and they need both the legal powers and the resources to properly protect staff and passengers.

“The government must act now by introducing a standalone offence covering assaults on public transport workers and all public-facing workers alongside ensuring BTP is properly funded to tackle the growing problem of violence on our transport network.”

Last week, TfL and the Mayor of London held an “urgent” summit to address work-related violence and aggression across the rail network.

Andy Lord, London’s transport commissioner, said: “Every member of our workforce deserves to feel safe, respected and supported as they carry out the essential job of keeping London moving.

“While we’ve made real progress in reducing the most harmful forms of violence and aggression, the rising levels of hostility and hate across society make clear that we cannot be complacent.”