Airport workers spat at and racially abused - union

Workers at London Stansted Airport have reported being spat at, assaulted and racially abused, according to a trade union.

The scale of harm was uncovered in a survey by Unite, which found 82% of workers at the Essex terminal were abused at least once a month.

Alcohol was the biggest trigger for abuse, followed by flight delays and baggage issues.

A Stansted spokesman said threatening or abusive behaviour was "completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated".

The figures obtained by Unite also found 27% of workers had been physically assaulted and 94% had witnessed a colleague being abused.

Unite extracted the data from a wider survey of 1,800 air transport staff across the UK.

Some of the respondents were not employed by Stansted but instead worked for airlines based there, including cabin crew and check-in staff.

"I have witnessed a colleague being spat at and a colleague being told, 'I hope you die on your way home in a car crash' and racially abused," said a Stansted security worker, speaking anonymously.

"On all occasions, the passengers have still been allowed to carry on with their journey."

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said abuse was not part of the job and urged airports and airlines to clamp down on the behaviour.

"All too often, these workers are being left in harmful positions while doing very difficult jobs," she added.

More than 29 million people fly from Stansted each year, making it the UK's fourth busiest airport.

Plans to increase its annual passenger numbers to 51 million by 2040 were approved in December.

The airport's spokesman said it worked closely with airlines, ground handlers, retailers, unions and the police to prevent and tackle inappropriate behaviour.

"We will continue to work hand-in-hand with all our partners, including our recognised trade unions, to ensure London Stansted Airport is a welcoming and safe place to work," he added.

In October, the government said it was working with airlines and trade unions to create a new system for sharing information on persistently disruptive passengers.

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