Waste collection workers in the South East are subjected to physical and verbal abuse, an investigation has found.
Following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request sent to local councils, the BBC found that over 250 counts of abuse have been reported by staff across Brighton and East Sussex since 2020.
Whilst West Sussex County Council disclosed that staff had encountered both verbal and physical assaults (27 and three incidents, respectively) in the last two years, Kent County Council confirmed that workers experienced six physical attacks and suffered verbal harassment daily over the last five years.
Simon Larbey, people development director at Veolia, told the BBC that two staff members at one of the company’s recycling centres were ‘run over by a member of the public’, but insufficient CCTV footage resulted in no conviction being made.
Following the incident, Veoila partnered with Sussex Police last year to introduce body-worn cameras and staff training to help them manage abuse.
However, Larbey confirmed that ‘incidents are still occurring’, albeit at a monthly rate rather than weekly.
Steven Rowe, Newhaven site manager, commented: ‘Ninety per cent of the public are great, it's only a small percentage who swear at you, you might get the odd one or two with racial slurs.
‘Just remember we're just normal people doing a job, it could be one of your family members, someone you care about and you should think about what you're doing.’
