Shortage of train crews on Great Western Railway - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[a-driver]

Another Sunday for crew shortages today.
Several shortforms as well.

Pity Rishi didn't suffer as many will today.
No good blaming GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) , as they're not allowed to recruit.
Neither are they allowed to bring in stock stored across the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

A sad state of affairs.

I believe I've heard/read no additional staff can be recruited with DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) approval.
Don't know where or when.
So no evidence to quote.

For how long have GWR not been allowed to recruit?

The ability to recruit/address the "BBQ Sunday" issue (the root cause) was within the gift of GWR for many years previously

It’s never really been within the gift of GWR to solve the Sunday issue. It’s always needed DfT approval, same as pay rises and staffing levels. Altering contracts, pay, requiring substantially more staff etc obviously affects the future of the franchise and the ability to re-let the franchise when it’s up for renewal.

[TaplowGreen]

Another Sunday for crew shortages today.
Several shortforms as well.

Pity Rishi didn't suffer as many will today.
No good blaming GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) , as they're not allowed to recruit.
Neither are they allowed to bring in stock stored across the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

A sad state of affairs.

I believe I've heard/read no additional staff can be recruited with DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) approval.
Don't know where or when.
So no evidence to quote.

For how long have GWR not been allowed to recruit?

The ability to recruit/address the "BBQ Sunday" issue (the root cause) was within the gift of GWR for many years previously

It’s never really been within the gift of GWR to solve the Sunday issue. It’s always needed DfT approval, same as pay rises and staffing levels. Altering contracts, pay, requiring substantially more staff etc obviously affects the future of the franchise and the ability to re-let the franchise when it’s up for renewal.

OK maybe whatever solution would have ultimately needed DfT signoff, but it would be interesting to understand what (if any) proposals were put to them by GWR in order to resolve the issue, and what efforts are ongoing now.

A question for the invisible man (aka M Hopwood) at the next "Meet the Manager" perhaps..............exactly the sort of issue that goes with his pay grade........actually that's not fair, he was very visible last week when the PM boarded the sleeper 

[a-driver]

OK maybe whatever solution would have ultimately needed DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) signoff, but it would be interesting to understand what (if any) proposals were put to them by GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) in order to resolve the issue, and what efforts are ongoing now.

A question for the invisible man (aka M Hopwood) at the next "Meet the Manager" perhaps..............exactly the sort of issue that goes with his pay grade........actually that's not fair, he was very visible last week when the PM boarded the sleeper 

Considering the DfT’s current position is to make overtime on Sunday mandatory rather than make it part of the working week I can’t see it being fully resolved other than through natural wastage. (GWR drivers have a commitment to work Sundays, HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) drivers don’t).

[Surrey 455]

Another Sunday for crew shortages today.
Several shortforms as well.

Pity Rishi didn't suffer as many will today.
No good blaming GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) , as they're not allowed to recruit.
Neither are they allowed to bring in stock stored across the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

A sad state of affairs.

They are advertising train driver vacancies, but does "Qualified Train Driver" mean you must already be qualified before you apply?

https://careers.firstgroup.co.uk/jobs/search?page=1&dropdown_field_3_uids%5B%5D=381d1a98ebc174ac70cc58f2516db33f&query=

[grahame]

They are advertising train driver vacancies, but does "Qualified Train Driver" mean you must already be qualified before you apply?

I understand that quite a few drivers move from one train operator to another during their careers, and that it can be very attractive for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) to take on already qualified drivers - less training needed and the recruits will be out driving trains sooner.

[a-driver]

I understand that quite a few drivers move from one train operator to another during their careers, and that it can be very attractive for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) to take on already qualified drivers - less training needed and the recruits will be out driving trains sooner.

The problem GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) will soon be (or are) facing in Wales comes from TfW who, having settled their pay claim, are now earning significantly more than GWR drivers. TfW can simply poach GWR staff.

[GBM]

Looe branch suffering two round trip cancellations this morning.
Several cancellations, including Plymouth and Paignton.
A few short runs on Penzance and Plymouth.

Was tempted to post in the 'A new low for GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)' http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=28781.new#new

All down to crew shortage.
Saps staff and travelling public morale.

That, plus increasing shortforms.

[TaplowGreen]

The message to potential customers here, if you're thinking of going to the coast for the weekend, you can't rely on the train to get you home on Sunday afterwards, so probably best to drive.


16:52 Paignton to London Paddington due 20:05 will be started from Exeter St Davids.
It will no longer call at Paignton, Torquay, Torre, Newton Abbot, Teignmouth and Dawlish.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.


17:22 Newquay to London Paddington due 22:29 will be started from Plymouth.
It will no longer call at Newquay, Par, Lostwithiel, Bodmin Parkway and Liskeard.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.

[IndustryInsider]

The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) have authorised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to pay an additional enhanced rate of x1.5 per Rest Day Worked.  This is up from x1.25.

Good news for weekdays as it means more drivers will be likely to apply in the week.  Bad news for Sundays as they remain at x1.25 so will pay less per additional shift.

[grahame]

The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) have authorised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to pay an additional enhanced rate of x1.5 per Rest Day Worked.  This is up from x1.25.

Good news for weekdays as it means more drivers will be likely to apply in the week.  Bad news for Sundays as they remain at x1.25 so will pay less per additional shift.

Thank you for that news ... is that in effect sacrificing Sundays to get the rest of the week reliable, and also to buy some goodwill (?) from drivers by giving them a way of earning more?

Looking locally, last Sunday of the seven Sunday trains in the timetable from 2nd June to December, just four ran.  One was replaced by a bus due to engineering works and two more were cancelled on the day because of a lack of train crew.  So that left southbound trains at about 12, 4, 8 and 10 O'Clock, northbound services an hour earlier

[TaplowGreen]

The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) have authorised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to pay an additional enhanced rate of x1.5 per Rest Day Worked.  This is up from x1.25.

Good news for weekdays as it means more drivers will be likely to apply in the week.  Bad news for Sundays as they remain at x1.25 so will pay less per additional shift.

Thank you for that news ... is that in effect sacrificing Sundays to get the rest of the week reliable, and also to buy some goodwill (?) from drivers by giving them a way of earning more?

If it is, it seems a pretty desperate move as we head into the summer/BBQ season,  to potentially make what is already an extremely flaky Sunday service even less reliable at a time when securing leisure traffic is critical to the railways future viability.

It's hard to believe that this issue still remains unresolved after so many years. Feeble management & intransigent Trade Unions combining to perpetuate a truly ridiculous state of affairs.

[GBM]

Our local radio pushing that the consultation for lowering the age of driver entrants to 18 is about to close.
Even if that opened up immediate opportunities and recruits, it would be 9 to 10 months before they were let loose solo anyway?

[Wizard]

England are playing this Sunday. I think there will be a couple of cancellations.

[Wizard]

The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) have authorised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to pay an additional enhanced rate of x1.5 per Rest Day Worked.  This is up from x1.25.

Good news for weekdays as it means more drivers will be likely to apply in the week.  Bad news for Sundays as they remain at x1.25 so will pay less per additional shift.

Thank you for that news ... is that in effect sacrificing Sundays to get the rest of the week reliable, and also to buy some goodwill (?) from drivers by giving them a way of earning more?

If it is, it seems a pretty desperate move as we head into the summer/BBQ season,  to potentially make what is already an extremely flaky Sunday service even less reliable at a time when securing leisure traffic is critical to the railways future viability.

It's hard to believe that this issue still remains unresolved after so many years. Feeble management & intransigent Trade Unions combining to perpetuate a truly ridiculous state of affairs.

I know it’s been said before, but the Sunday issue really isn’t down to the intransigence of the trade unions. Drivers sign contracts that say they don’t have to work Sundays, so they don’t. Even if it is ‘committed overtime’ as per the GWR driver contract, nothing happens if drivers don’t come in. It can’t, because it’s overtime, and therefore can’t be enforced.

Aslef have been banging the ‘Sundays inside the working week’ drum for years, and it’s largely fallen on deaf ears, because it costs more. It requires a 14% increase in drivers altogether. But that’s not the fault of the drivers who don’t want to work when their contracts say they don’t have to. It needed sorting in 1997, and it needs sorting now. But nobody will pay for it, so we continue with this charade every year.

[ChrisB]

Not just a 14% increase in driver numbers, but presumably a salary uplift too? THe unions rarely accept any change to contracts without one. Even when its a different ticket clipper....