Luton Airport workers back union campaign against abusive passengers

The Unite campaign is backed by check-in staff employed by DHL, GH Luton and Swissport, which provide ground handling services for airlines including easyJet, Wizz Air and Ryanair.

The union says workers have faced racist abuse, aggression, being filmed without consent, spitting and physical assaults.

It says the incidents can have a lasting impact, contributing to anxiety, depression and, in some cases, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The petition has been presented to London Luton Airport management, with Unite due to meet representatives on August 19.

Aidan Harper, a Unite organiser, said: "Virtually every member working at the front-of-house desks can recount incidents of abuse from passengers.

"No worker should attend work expecting to be subjected to this type of treatment."

A Swissport employee, who asked not to be named, said passenger abuse was common and often racially motivated.

They said they had heard of both emotional and physical abuse, including racist slurs directed at staff.

"You get called... hijab wearing... stuff like that or a P--i. Black people have been called slurs before, quite blatantly," they said.

"You definitely can report it, but I haven't seen much action taken. We are not allowed any physical intervention at all. That's the first thing.

"It happens more often than you think it does, and it's quite sad, really."

A former DHL ramp agent, who worked at Luton Airport, also said check-in staff faced more abuse than other airport workers.

They recalled an incident involving a passenger who was vaping and subsequently used racial slurs towards staff.

"He started hurling a couple of racial slurs, but then they eventually calmed down after we had to tell them multiple times," they said.

"My team leader also had to come in and basically tell him off, and so did the captain one time."

Unite is calling for measures to prevent and respond to passenger abuse and says airports in the country are already working with the union on similar protections.

Rachel Hopkins, MP for Luton South, said the reports were "deeply concerning and completely unacceptable".

She said: "Every person deserves to be adequately protected in the workplace, and no person should face abuse simply for doing their job.

"I have been in touch with local Unite representatives directly regarding this campaign and will be following up with London Luton Airport to ensure the concerns of workers are heard and appropriate measures implemented to keep them safe."

Unite has also urged MPs to support an Early Day Motion tabled by Peter Lamb MP as part of his Abuse Doesn't Fly campaign.

The campaign is calling for a national register of abusive passengers, with those who assault, or abuse aviation staff potentially banned from future flights.

Mr Lamb said: "It's not acceptable in any form of employment, it disrupts the work of airlines and airports, and impacts upon other passengers."

He added: "A register of abusive passengers, banning them from future flights across the country, would benefit the entire sector, including everyone just trying to enjoy their holiday."

A Swissport spokesperson said: "The safety and wellbeing of our colleagues is always our priority. We operate a zero-tolerance approach to abuse of any kind.

"We continuously review our processes and work with all airport and union partners to strengthen protections for our frontline teams."

They added that the company wanted employees to feel "safe, supported and confident in reporting any incidents of abuse".

Neil Thompson, chief operations officer at London Luton Airport said: “We are committed to maintaining a safe, secure, and welcoming environment for everyone who works at or travels through London Luton Airport.

"We will never tolerate abusive, discriminatory, or disruptive behaviour and continue to work closely with Bedfordshire Police and the wider airport community to help ensure a safe and respectful environment for all.”

"We will always fully support the police in taking any action they consider necessary to address such incidents and protect the safety and wellbeing of everyone at the airport.”

The Luton News has reached out to DHL and GH Luton but has not yet received a response.