Rail conductors spat at and threatened - Northern

Conductors working for Northern say anyone doing the job needs a "thick skin"

Death threats, homophobic comments and being spat at are examples of abuse faced by rail conductors, a train operator has said.

Northern is urging customers to treat workers with respect as conductors recall verbal and physical abuse.

Liverpool-based conductor, Anthony Mooney, 36, said a man threatened to kill him and gave him a "tirade of homophobic abuse" and "all because I asked him for a ticket."

He said it was "very difficult not to take it home" as it played on his mind.

Mr Mooney said anyone doing the job needed to have "a thick skin" as "you can get called every name under the sun".

He said it could escalate from nothing when conductors least expected it.

“It’s hard to continue with your day," he added.

'Unacceptable'

Northern said most people who travelled with rail company were polite and respectful, but a "very small minority" had resorted to shouting, spitting and attacking members of staff in recent years which was "unacceptable" .

“I had a lad spit in my face and try to punch me a few years ago," said Wigan-based conductor, Lewis Tracey, 28.

"It was completely out of the blue, but that’s the sort of thing you have to put up with."

He said that some people see the uniform and "want someone to vent at".

Jackie Ross, 53, a conductor in Liverpool, said she worked early shifts and was used to getting abuse from people who had been out the night before.

“There was one occasion when I asked a fare evader to leave the train and he started kicking the door and then spat in my face," she added.

Northern has installed a further 600 CCTV cameras to try and combat the issue, bringing the total to about 1,600 across its network, on trains and body-worn cameras.

In December, Northern revealed the number of dangerous attacks on its trains had fallen by almost 90% over the previous 12 months, with the number of recorded incidents dropping from 69 to just eight.

Anyone who witnesses physical or verbal attacks is asked to report them to British Transport Police by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40.