How do London Underground staff deal with passengers in distress?

holborncentral · 4 Mar 2020

Question that came from a conversation I was having with a friend recently and it got me thinking... how do LU staff deal with distressed passengers? eg if someone came into a station crying, how would the staff member handle it? Are there certain policies and procedures in place for these sorts of situations or does it depend on the individual?

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bluegoblin7 · 4 Mar 2020

There's no cut and dry policy for distressed customers coming in off the street. Most staff will take an empathetic approach and do what they can to help, but the various staffing cuts may impact on the ability to do this. As blunt as it sounds, if it isn't a railway issue it's not really the railway's problem, and keeping a station properly staffed, for the avoidance of other incidents, will always be the priority.

That said, I've always gone out of my way where possible to assist - even taking them into the first aid room for a few minutes of quiet and a cup of water can have a huge, positive impact on whatever the reason is.

holborncentral · 4 Mar 2020

bluegoblin7 said:
There's no cut and dry policy for distressed customers coming in off the street. Most staff will take an empathetic approach and do what they can to help, but the various staffing cuts may impact on the ability to do this. As blunt as it sounds, if it isn't a railway issue it's not really the railway's problem, and keeping a station properly staffed, for the avoidance of other incidents, will always be the priority.

That said, I've always gone out of my way where possible to assist - even taking them into the first aid room for a few minutes of quiet and a cup of water can have a huge, positive impact on whatever the reason is.

Interesting. That does makes sense. So I'm guessing it depends on the individual situation and staff member? Like if someone was crying because they got bad news before entering the station or they had a lot going on, would they try to help?
I had a lecturer who assisted me when I cried in front of her over personal matters. She took me to her office and she let me talk to her and cry it out. It really helped. Do you encourage them to talk about whatever is upsetting them?

bluegoblin7 · 4 Mar 2020

We're not a counselling service, but staff do have a duty of care to all customers. If approached by a visibly distressed customer, most staff would look to try and help, notwithstanding what I've already said above.

But, at the end of the day, staff probably aren't going to go out of their way to talk to someone who is crying and isn't otherwise 'noticeable'. At the end of the day they're only human, and haven't the training to deal with things. It simply comes down to how comfortable (or otherwise) a member of staff is, and whether it does (or could) directly affect the running of the railway.

holborncentral · 4 Mar 2020

bluegoblin7 said:
We're not a counselling service, but staff do have a duty of care to all customers. If approached by a visibly distressed customer, most staff would look to try and help, notwithstanding what I've already said above.

But, at the end of the day, staff probably aren't going to go out of their way to talk to someone who is crying and isn't otherwise 'noticeable'. At the end of the day they're only human, and haven't the training to deal with things. It simply comes down to how comfortable (or otherwise) a member of staff is, and whether it does (or could) directly affect the running of the railway.

True. I understand that. I'd say they would help though, it's only natural. In some cases it might be advisable to talk to them in case it's something more serious. I guess though if there weren't many staff around and it would affect the running of the railway, it's probably not a good idea.
Strange story - I had a dream once where this exact thing happened. I walked into a tube station in an absolute mess and I was seen by a staff member. I fell into the staff member's arms crying my eyes out. I told my friend about it and I guess my curiosity came from there. Doubt that would happen in real life though

MetroCar4058 · 19 Mar 2020

I don't work for LUL but I know stories from my system ranging from staff showing no regard for human emotion to other staff members liaising with family and/or taking people back to their home station (especially if the person is 'vulnerable' or under <18). This depends on situation as well, I can talk to you more at 8pm on a station but unless its important between say 4-6pm you've got no chance, we are too busy maintaing safe operations.

We increasingly pick up the pieces that social services/emergency services should be dealing with.

How do London Underground staff deal with passengers in distress?

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