RMT demands standalone assault law to protect Scotland’s transport workers

The RMT union is pressing for new legislation in Scotland to better protect transport workers following what it describes as a surge in assaults across the sector.

Union representatives are set to bring their campaign to Holyrood on Wednesday 11 February at 1pm, staging an ‘Action Against Assaults’ event inside the Scottish Parliament. The gathering will include the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs, Angela Constance MSP, alongside MSPs from across the political spectrum, British Transport Police, rail and passenger ferry operators and passenger organisations.

At the centre of the union’s demands is the creation of a standalone criminal offence covering the assault or abuse of a public transport worker while on duty. The RMT argues that similar legal safeguards already exist for retail employees and emergency service personnel, and says transport staff should receive equivalent protection.

The union is also calling on all parties standing in the May 2026 Scottish Parliament elections to pledge in their manifestos that they would introduce such legislation if elected.

RMT General Secretary Eddie Dempsey said:

“No worker should go to their job fearing they will be assaulted, abused or threatened simply for doing their job. But that is the daily reality for far too many public transport workers. Seventy per cent of rail workers have faced violence in the past year and nearly half of our ferry members say the threat of violence is harming their mental health. That is a scandal which demands action. We welcome the engagement from the Scottish Government to date and the meeting with the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, but warm words must now become law. Retail and emergency service workers rightly have specific legal protection and we want the same for public transport workers too. As we approach the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections, every party must commit to creating a standalone offence of assaulting or abusing a public transport worker."

Image: ScotRail