Arriva workers are coming together to stand up for what’s right: a march against sexual harassment and assault on public transport.
If you live in London, you may have noticed that a range of transport strikes are taking place all over the city. Typically, strikes happen due to workers fighting for better pay, better sick leave and in some circumstances, all-around treatment on the job.
And between Tuesday, 21st April and Friday, 24th April, there will be very limited tube and train availability for the above reasons. You can find out more in our previous article on the London tube strikes and how they will affect your journeys.
What’s going on with the Luton bus strikes?
In Luton, however, there is a far worse situation coming to play. Workers are actively going on strike in a bid to fight back against a series of sexual assault cases. Staff and members of the public are being routinely harassed and, in worst cases, assaulted while trying to take public transport.
This issue began in March, when Arriva bus drivers reported several complaints of sexual harassment comments being masked as “banter.” Since then, a bus driver has reportedly been fired for reasons yet to be confirmed. However, it’s reported that he had also made several complaints about the harassment issue.
What has the response been so far?
A member of the Bedfordshire police confirmed that, “A man in his 30s from Stevenage has been arrested and released on bail whilst enquiries continue.”
Sharon Graham, the General Secretary of Unite the Union, commented on the event:
“Arriva’s handling of this dreadful situation is despicable – it brings shame on the entire company. The concerns of these workers need to be addressed, and our shop steward – fired for speaking out – must be reinstated. These workers have Unite’s complete backing in taking strike action until that happens.”
