Barely a year after RMT told the company it had to make a bigger effort to combat violence against staff, the union has demanded that Northern Rail abandon a unilateral change in policy that has resulted in victims losing money if they need time off.

The problem came to light after a conductor who had been physically assaulted and threatened with a bottle was told that he would receive only his basic pay rather than average wages, because the latest in a string of attacks on him had not been serious enough.

Until last October the company’s policy had been to pay average wages to all staff who needed time off after suffering violence or abuse from passengers, but the company now says it will only give full pay to victims who receive “severe physical injury”.

“This is shocking and completely unacceptable, and the union will do whatever is necessary to get this shameful policy change reversed,” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

“It is nothing short of despicable when a loyal worker who has suffered a string of assaults is told that the latest attack wasn’t serious enough to warrant paying his full wages while he recovered and is then told that he may lose his job if he is assaulted again.

“Only last April the company reassured our reps that staff who needed time off after serious verbal abuse would receive average pay. but they are now saying that staff will receive only their basic pay if an assault does not result in severe physical injury.

“Northern say they have merely clarified the rules, but the reality is that they are clamping down on the victims of abuse rather than those who dish it out, and I have had calls from members who are absolutely furious about the company’s hypocrisy.

“We thought we had finally got the company to take seriously our members’ concerns about the growing level of violence they face every day, but it seems once more that they are more worried about their profits than the welfare of their staff,” Bob Crow said.

See also:

Train company in pay docking row

BBC News: 10 January 2008

Northern Rail operates services throughout the north of England

Rail union officials have accused a train company of docking the pay of staff who have been attacked at work.

The RMT union said industrial action was an option in the row with Northern Rail, which operates in the North East, Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire.

The union claims the company only gives staff time off with full pay if they suffer "severe physical injury".

The firm said its policy was in line with industry standards and had been agreed with trade unions.

The union's regional organiser Allen Heath said: "A few years ago we might have seen five or six staff who were the victim of attacks or abuse on trains. Now we have pages and pages of incidents.

"It is not acceptable for staff to be victims of abuse who are doing their normal duties.

"Nor is it acceptable for Northern Rail to penalise the people who have been injured, verbally or physically, while in effect policing their trains.

"This is not something we will walk away from and if it means taking action, then we will do so."

Mr Heath said the issue came to light after a conductor, who had been physically assaulted and threatened with a bottle, was told he would receive only basic pay, because the latest in a string of attacks on him had not been serious enough.

A spokeswoman for York-based Northern Rail said: "We take assaults against our employees extremely seriously.

"Our pay levels and care policy for employees who have been assaulted have been agreed in full consultation with the trade unions.

"We believe that they are in line with industry standards and in some areas they represent best practice in the industry."