STIB launched a new campaign to demand respect for its staff on Tuesday with posters on the STIB network and a YouTube music clip by Brussels rapper Youssef Swatt. In the last year, two staff members a day were victims of verbal aggression.
"Hurtful attacks are becoming more frequent and leave no one unscathed," the Brussels public transport company stated. Abusive remarks directed at STIB staff have been included on posters across the transport network since Tuesday.
"Our staff are committed to passengers every day and they deserve respect like everyone else. Aggression is increasing in our city, all sectors are affected. We urgently need to come to our senses," said CEO Brieuc de Meeûs.
The campaign reads: "The staff of the STIB hear these kinds of insults every day and ask for a little more respect."
In addition to posters on the STIB network, the respect campaign includes a song by Brussels rapper Youssef Swatt's, which includes real insults hurled at STIB staff. The full, uncensored video clip of the song can only be seen on YouTube.
Last year, STIB counted 657 verbal aggressions by travellers against staff and 113 physical aggressions. According to STIB, the actual figures may be even higher, "because staff do not report all the aggressions they are victims of, especially the verbal ones".
On the images of the campaign on the STIB network and in the fragments of the song on social media, the insults were censored because they were too coarse to be displayed, STIB said still.
