The Athens Metro Station Managers’ Union has raised serious concerns about the safety of workers and passengers, filing a new complaint after a station manager was violently beaten at the “Korydallos” station on August 21.

According to the union, the incident is one more in a string of violent episodes and assaults on the network, which it says point to a “massive security gap” that has repeatedly been flagged to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Citizen Protection.

From a Harassment Complaint to a Beating

According to the union’s statement, the incident at Korydallos began when a female passenger reported to the station manager that she had been sexually harassed by a man, whom the union describes as a substance user.

The station manager reportedly notified the Security Center right away, passing along the complaint and a description of the man. However, according to the workers, the man boarded a train and continued moving freely through the network.

Hours later, he returned to the Korydallos station. There, as the station manager tried to handle the situation, the man allegedly attacked and beat him in front of passengers. According to the complaint, police arrived several minutes later, since there is no permanent police presence at the station.

“The Ariadne Plan Is Inadequate”

The union argues the incident exposes real weaknesses in the existing “Ariadne Plan” for public transit security, and points to repeated failures in how seriously complaints from station managers are taken.

Workers are calling for a permanent, meaningful police presence at all stations, a review of security protocols, and faster response times from the relevant authorities when serious incidents occur.

At the same time, the union sent a clear message to station managers themselves: not to take on a role that belongs to the police.

“Our job is strictly railway operations, not law enforcement,” the union stressed, urging workers to put their own physical safety first. It closed with a pointed statement: “As long as the state cannot guarantee a safe network, we will not put ourselves at risk by playing the hero.”