Two ‘wellbeing support officers’ working at a London railway station have been sacked after they were filmed in a confrontation with a female commuter.
The video, which went viral online, shows a woman in a heated conversation with two men wearing high-visibility jackets bearing the name of their employers, Morson Group.
Standing on a platform at Homerton station in east London, they can be heard asking the woman to leave, to which she asks the pair for some form of identification.
The circumstances which led up to the exchange remain unclear, but the Morson Group has described the pair’s actions as “not acceptable”.
Now, it has been revealed the two men have been let go following an investigation into the incident, as they did not follow “strict behavioural standards”.
Footage shows the woman asking the pair: “Who are you? You’re not even wearing proper uniform. You’re telling me you’re not TfL, you think you’re a security guard.”
She accused the two men of calling her a “little tramp” and “a little Karen” after they challenged her for speaking loudly on the phone.
“You’re shouting, you’re raising your voice, there are little kids here,” one of the men can be heard saying.
The Morson Group, which delivers infrastructure, rail and construction projects, said the two men had been there to provide safeguarding and wellbeing support.
But the company told the Daily Mail that the two men did not adhere to their training and had since been let go.
In a statement they told the newspaper: “We can confirm that two operatives engaged by Morson Vital to provide visible safeguarding and wellbeing support at Homerton Station approached a female commuter who had become animated during a phone conversation on the platform.
“This was in line with the training we provide to operatives in this role, which involves identifying potentially hazardous behaviours and de-escalating risks to support passenger safety.
“Since this incident, we have carried out a thorough investigation. Our investigation concluded that the individuals involved did not adhere to their Morson Vital training.
“It also established that they did not follow strict behavioural standards, and failed to communicate the purpose of their intervention whilst wearing non-compliant uniform, which includes wearing visible ID.
“As a result, these operatives are no longer engaged by Morson Vital.”
