A career as a signaller

[P200E]

Nope. Clipstone? Can't imagine there is much to do there? That line gets one train a week.

I thought that, I’m not sure what it’s used for if the pots aren’t operational nowadays?

 

[Rockhopper]

The track outside the box has been lifted but it does control a section of the ollerton line which runs behind the box. Apparently its manned 18 hours a day! The Ollerton line goes from Shirebrook to the High Marham test track but it really is used very infrequently. I don't think anything has been down there so far this week for example. There have been stories of reopening the line to passenger traffic as an extension of the Robin Hood Line but thats been going on for a few years now. Lack of demand really plus the line doesn't really run that close to the villages they were planing to serve.

 

[Wireless]

Hi guys anyone heard anything on the Clipstone, Ranskill or Edale jobs?

Cheers

My application for Ranskill has been stuck at 'under consideration for assessment 2' for a week or so now.

 

[Danc87]

hi just seen a few jobs pop up reasonably local to me but they are all saying fixed term until 2020 which is a bit concerning! its the norwich based jobs why would they all be fixed term for a year?

 

[Tom Quinne]

Resignalling is running behind on the local lines towards the coast I believe.

 

[Seejwalker]

hi just seen a few jobs pop up reasonably local to me but they are all saying fixed term until 2020 which is a bit concerning! its the norwich based jobs why would they all be fixed term for a year?

Apply anyway mate, when you're in you're in and you will be in a better position than if you're not.

 

[nr_signaller]

Just enquiring for my father-in-law...but has anyone heard about the Cambridge position?
He attended an assessment day and had an interview straight after and they said they would let him no in a week but it's been coming up 3 weeks now . Thanks

 

[Tom Quinne]

Regards the pay deal, it appears a review of flexibility and Christmas period payments will be untaken, I assume this will include the rumours of a minimum 10% flexi up from 4%?

 

[Highlandspring]

Regards the pay deal, it appears a review of flexibility and Christmas period payments will be untaken, I assume this will include the rumours of a minimum 10% flexi up from 4%?

Reading closely the Christmas working arrangements review seems to apply to former Thales employees only (i.e. telecoms maintenance staff).

 

[Tom Quinne]

Yes, Xmas agreements for Telecoms employees - but there was a bit about flexi as well..

 

[Highlandspring]

Yep that's right.

 

[Tom Quinne]

I’ll be watching with great vested interest...
Also good to see an agreement to at least talk about leisure travel, only taken 20 odd years.

 

[XingClaggers]

Just enquiring for my father-in-law...but has anyone heard about the Cambridge position?
He attended an assessment day and had an interview straight after and they said they would let him no in a week but it's been coming up 3 weeks now . Thanks

Probably the same one i attended.
I have sent an email to the lady who organised it but have got no reply yet

 

[BlockBackBobby]

I'd like to assume it will go into June's pay. If not, then surely July's.

Back pay is paid July 26th Guys.

 

[SiggerSigAh]

Back pay is paid July 26th Guys.

Are you certain? Obviously I hope you're right but the way I read the email was that the new rates of pay would be paid from July onwards, but that the back pay wouldn't be dished out until two months later, specifically payday on Sept 20th.

 

[SiggerSigAh]

Hi,

Question with regards going for internal vacancies: Obviously I assume that the interview, providing you got that far, would differ from the one you have as an external candidate, but could anyone give me an idea the kind of format it takes please?
For example, would they ask you about rules etc, route/area specific stuff, any exceptional circumstances you've dealt with....?
Also, would the NTS questions crop up again, only this time you'd be expected to answer them with signalling related examples?

Any information at all would be interesting/helpful. Thanks!

 

[Sugarpuff]

Probably the same one i attended.
I have sent an email to the lady who organised it but have got no reply yet

Same here , haven’t heard a thing either

 

[BlockBackBobby]

Are you certain? Obviously I hope you're right but the way I read the email was that the new rates of pay would be paid from July onwards, but that the back pay wouldn't be dished out until two months later, specifically payday on Sept 20th.

I hope I’m right lol.
The way I read it was 26th July, apologies if I’m wrong, not a good first post if I am.

 

[SiggerSigAh]

I hope I’m right lol.
The way I read it was 26th July, apologies if I’m wrong, not a good first post if I am.

No need to apologise . I too found the wording a tad ambiguous at first glance, however I'm afraid it looks like I speaketh facts:

26 July 2019: employees on the HRMS (Oracle) payroll will receive pay reflecting this award.

20 September 2019: employees on the HRMS (Oracle) payroll will receive back pay for the period from 1 January 2019. The Oracle payment system requires manual calculation of back pay, a process which will take two months to complete.

 

[LAX54]

Back pay is paid July 26th Guys.

No, that is the date you will get your first 'new' rate in the pay packet, and then on September 20th the back pay from Jan to July will be paid (HR will be 'on hold' for a month, when the new Regions/Areas kick in)

As for Leisure Travel, I am not getting too excited !

 

[nr_signaller]

Probably the same one i attended.
I have sent an email to the lady who organised it but have got no reply yet

After posting my message he finally heard yesterday and has been offered a position at a smaller box grade 2 I believe.
Fingers crossed you will hear soon

 

[BlockBackBobby]

Hi,

Question with regards going for internal vacancies: Obviously I assume that the interview, providing you got that far, would differ from the one you have as an external candidate, but could anyone give me an idea the kind of format it takes please?
For example, would they ask you about rules etc, route/area specific stuff, any exceptional circumstances you've dealt with....?
Also, would the NTS questions crop up again, only this time you'd be expected to answer them with signalling related examples?

Any information at all would be interesting/helpful. Thanks!

I had an interview a couple of years ago for a job advertised internally.
I believe that it was ran in a very similar way to the way they’d interview people off the street.
It was in front of two LOMs, one would ask NTS questions and yes it’s helpful if you can relate them into signalling relevant answers. And they asked about NWRs purpose and who owned what and what companies ran what stock in the area, life saving rules etc.
The other LOM asked rule book questions.
Whilst one asked a question the other made notes, your answers are awarded a score and the candidate with the highest score is the preferred candidate.
I think they run the interviews in a standardised way to level the playing field as it were.

 

[galaxynew]

I had an interview a couple of years ago for a job advertised internally.
I believe that it was ran in a very similar way to the way they’d interview people off the street.
It was in front of two LOMs, one would ask NTS questions and yes it’s helpful if you can relate them into signalling relevant answers. And they asked about NWRs purpose and who owned what and what companies ran what stock in the area, life saving rules etc.
The other LOM asked rule book questions.
Whilst one asked a question the other made notes, your answers are awarded a score and the candidate with the highest score is the preferred candidate.
I think they run the interviews in a standardised way to level the playing field as it were.

If any rules questions were/are asked at an internal interview then that is the key difference to an external interview, an external applicant would have no knowledge of rules & regs so pointless asking them questions about them. They would of course be expected to have the NTS and have knowledge of the company in general and the safety vision, as would be the case with any company really not just NR.

 

[Soupstone]

Hi,

Question with regards going for internal vacancies: Obviously I assume that the interview, providing you got that far, would differ from the one you have as an external candidate, but could anyone give me an idea the kind of format it takes please?
For example, would they ask you about rules etc, route/area specific stuff, any exceptional circumstances you've dealt with....?
Also, would the NTS questions crop up again, only this time you'd be expected to answer them with signalling related examples?

Any information at all would be interesting/helpful. Thanks!

Questions that I was asked were signaller orientated and as I'm not a signaller, I struggled. Scenarios as well, what would you do if certain things happened.
Also asked a bit about the area covered by the box. Types of level crossings on a certain panel, what other panels bordered one of the panels.
Asked how I would feel/deal with certain situations, things you could do to assist yourself when there's a lot going on.

 

[Highlandspring]

As an internal candidate you’ll get two rules questions which are made up by the recruiting LOM and all internal candidates will be asked the same two questions. You might be asked something like “explain the difference between a simple and complex points failure” or “here’s a pen and there’s a whiteboard, draw out a diagram showing temporary block working and talk me through it while you draw it” - I’ve had both of these in the past. What they’re not supposed to do is ask you anthing specific about your new location; you can be asked general information but they’re not supposed to interrogate you about the Signalbox Special Instructions in the way they used to be allowed to.

The rules questions are in addition to the scenario based questions which are asked for each of the Non Technical Skill areas which come in two varieties, one for people with a signalling background and one for signalling virgins.

 

[Tom Quinne]

When I had my internal interview all my questions where scenario based, such as:

* You two single lines approaching a Junction with a train on each line, the overlap of the “branch” shows occupied..
What has/might of happened, and what are your actions.

I found it much better than the straight NTS “tell me about a time” ones I had as an external.

 

[CharliePots]

Hi, anyone apply for the grade 2 at Bedlington in February? My application has been sat at under consideration for assessment 2 since early March so guessing it’s unlikely I’ll be asked to interview now.

 

[nom de guerre]

As an internal candidate you’ll get two rules questions which are made up by the recruiting LOM and all internal candidates will be asked the same two questions. You might be asked something like “explain the difference between a simple and complex points failure” or “here’s a pen and there’s a whiteboard, draw out a diagram showing temporary block working and talk me through it while you draw it” - I’ve had both of these in the past. What they’re not supposed to do is ask you anthing specific about your new location; you can be asked general information but they’re not supposed to interrogate you about the Signalbox Special Instructions in the way they used to be allowed to.

The rules questions are in addition to the scenario based questions which are asked for each of the Non Technical Skill areas which come in two varieties, one for people with a signalling background and one for signalling virgins.

Clearly some variations, then...

I've had two internal (signaller) interviews during the past year; both followed exactly the same format:

- 2 overview questions, eg 'How do you think this role will differ form your current job?'
- At least 8 NTS-linked scenario questions, eg 'You're dealing with problem X in one place and issue Y at another location when you notice urgent incident Z occurring. What order do you deal with the problems, and why?'
- At least one 'technical' question: 'Can you talk me through how freight train 6Z-bungle is shunted at X?'
- A question on NR's safety culture

In both cases, the interviewers clearly stated which NTS each scenario was related to.

I wasn't asked any 'straight' rules questions at either.

 

[Highlandspring]

I think we’re basically agreeing with each other in that what you’re calling a ‘technical’ question I’m calling a ‘rules’ question. My own experience has always been that they focus on a particular rule and I’ve never had any more or any less than two but I think LOMs are given a fair bit of latitude in how they conduct interviews and there must be quite a lot of variation in different areas. I had an internal signaller interview* in the last 6 weeks which took the following format:

- 2x overview questions (“Why do you want this role?” and “Tell us a little about the location you’ve applied for”)
- 8x NTS scenarios (all based on signalling examples as per your post, none of which were particularly challenging and each was obvious what they were looking for)
- 2x safety questions (“Explain the NR safety vision” and “Tell us about a time when you’ve made a safety intervention”)
- 2x rules/technical (“Explain the procedure for signalling a train over a failed AHB crossing under local control with an attendant” and another I can’t remember)

Interviews I’ve had for other roles in NR have been broadly similar but also completely different, if that makes any sense.

*left the grade a few years ago and found the grass isn’t actually greener elsewhere. But hey ho...

 

[SiggerSigAh]

Great, all very helpful stuff to know. Thanks for your detailed answers.