AS OTHER passengers stood around him, the train officer plonked himself on an empty priority seat on the North-East Line (NEL) train.

His action was caught on camera by a commuter who sent it to Stomp, The Straits Times' interactive website.

The commuter felt the officer, dressed in a lime-green uniform shirt, should have given up his seat to other standing passengers.

His employer thought so too. SBS Transit, which operates the NEL, said it has taken disciplinary action against the officer.

But it would not reveal the exact form of action it took.

The incident took place on 29 Mar at around 10.30pm. Ms Tammy Tan, SBS Transit's vice-president of corporate communications, said the man was a customer service officer. He works on board the trains to help passengers in need and to respond to technical difficulties.

Explaining the need to discipline him, Ms Tan added: 'As a company guideline, staff who are on duty are expected to give up their seats to passengers as part of our customer service standards.

'In situations where they fail to do so, disciplinary action will be taken.'

The officer was sitting on a priority seat, which is allocated for needy passengers such as the elderly, the disabled and pregnant women.

These seats are located next to train doors with signs above the seats to indicate that they are for needy passengers.

Ms Tan said if the train had been empty, it was okay for the officer to sit down as long as he performed his duty.

But most of the 18 people whom The New Paper spoke to felt the officer did not deserve to be punished.

When we showed them the picture, many pointed out that all the passengers standing nearby were able-bodied young adults.

Mr Lee Ting Wei, 19, a full-time NSman, said: 'Perhaps SBS Transit should have just told him off.

'Any punishment more than that would have been too harsh because there were no pregnant women, elderly or disabled passengers around at that time.'

Sympathetic

Madam Heng Sue San, 37, a housewife, agreed. 'If there is no one in need of the seat, I wouldn't make a fuss,' she said.

'But if the seat is intended for the elderly and there is someone like that around, I would expect him to give up the seat.'

Mr S W Hor, 55, a lecturer, was sympathetic towards the officer. 'It doesn't matter even if he is an (NEL) employee. He could have been tired and should be allowed to take a seat,' he said.

Mr Hor also wondered if the matter had been blown out of proportion because the picture was posted on the Internet.

But some people felt that the officer deserved to be disciplined.

Retiree A L Tan, 78, said: 'Since he works for the (train operator), he should have known better than to not let other passengers have the seat.'

Housewife Yeo Ah Sim, 67, felt the officer should have set a good example. She said that many young people don't give up their seats, but as a NEL employee, he should have shown more courtesy.

The other train operator, SMRT, has a similar code of conduct for its staff.

A spokesman said: 'We encourage staff to be friendly and helpful to passengers. This would include behaving in a courteous and gracious manner like giving way to alighting passengers and giving up their seats to needy passengers.

'Staff in uniform are also expected to maintain a good corporate image by dressing and behaving appropriately at all times.'

However, SMRT would not comment on the form of disciplinary action taken, saying that it would be on a case-by-case basis.

Geraldine Yeo, newsroom intern

This article was first published in The New Paper.