2 people fired after apparent confrontation with visually impaired MBTA passenger

BOSTON — Two workers at the Chinatown MBTA station have been fired after they video of them allegedly blocking a the T says is visually impaired man from entering the platform throwing his walking stick away from him.

The victim, a homeless man named Jerry, tried to follow another rider through the Chinatown Station gates without paying, but was physically stopped.

During the scuffle, he lost his walking stick. One of the workers appears to toss it away from him, leaving him lost, wandering and searching for nearly two minutes until finally a transit police officer arrives and hands him the stick before letting him through the gate to wait for his train.

Boston 25 News has learned the two employees were hired by the company Block by Block and contracted as part of the T's new customer service program and have been since been fired.

"The MBTA is deeply saddened by the contractors' completely unacceptable behavior and the T moved immediately to ensure these individuals were terminated. Additionally, the MBTA has ordered mandatory re-training for all of the company's personnel who interact with MBTA customers and will closely monitor the process as it moves forward,” a statement from the MBTA said.

That new customer service program started this month and will spread to other stations with as many as 70 employees, but those two employees will not be returning.

Cox Media Group