First Great Western - Trainee Drivers

[SkinnyDave]

I am a driver who was at the training school the other day..

Guards at the depot were also due to start in January and have been told!

It may change but I doubt it.. They do need a lot of drivers but dont have enough DIs at the

 

[skjonesfamily]

I am a driver who was at the training school the other day..

Guards at the depot were also due to start in January and have been told!

It may change but I doubt it.. They do need a lot of drivers but dont have enough DIs at the

Have been told what? No courses at all next year or just none in Jan to March as planned. If its none in Jan to March then have they been told when it will be?

 

[SkinnyDave]

Read my previous posts

 

[mickdwyer]

Ah ok, probably worded it wrong, just ment It was alot of searching pages an pages an maybe not even finding anything about the role of the driver, Was thinking of buying train simulator to get an insight but not sure how realistic it is plus £39.99 for a game which iam would get boring after 30mins, no thanks. As for license i dont recall it being mentioned on the job advert, no problem with early starts my mums usually up at six an would give me a lift to work.

 

[red2005]

i have just been having a read back through this thread with interest as i am currently in training myself doing my handling hours and i wanted to see what kind of experiences some applicants were having and whether they were similar to mine!

from what i have read it looks like some of you have had a right time of it!.......my only advice is stick with it as it really is worth it in the end!...just take the kicks and just use it as extra motivation!....i remember applying for a driving position down south where i was going to have to relocate for the job....i spent what turned out to be hundreds of pounds on hotel's etc so i could attend assessments and be fresh for the day and actually getting to the final interview (manager's) and feeling it had gone ridiculously well.

HOWEVER........after waiting 10 days i was told by email i was unsuccessful which i accepted not a problem......HOWEVER.....this company who shall not be named could not even be bothered to send me one email in reply to my many requests for feedback and i found out later from an employee already working for the company that the positions had already been offered to internal candidates BEFORE my interview????

how wrong is it that applicants can be treated that way after putting in so much effort to get through the process in a totally professional manner!?.....now as luck would have it not 2 months later i applied to a company local to me with much better work and a lot more stability and within 5 months of that final interview with that awful company i was starting on my course!....the railway recruitment process is far from perfect but what i have seen is that if you do stick with it and just take the bumps in the road (talent pools,failed interviews/tests,withdrawn advertisements) in a positive manner(difficult i know) you WILL get there and you'll feel all the better for knowing that despite all the tough times you never gave up

good luck guys

red

 

[455driver]

i spent what turned out to be hundreds of pounds on hotel's etc so i could attend assessments and be fresh for the day and actually getting to the final interview (manager's) and feeling it had gone ridiculously well.

HOWEVER........after waiting 10 days i was told by email i was unsuccessful which i accepted not a problem......HOWEVER.....this company who shall not be named could not even be bothered to send me one email in reply to my many requests for feedback and i found out later from an employee already working for the company that the positions had already been offered to internal candidates BEFORE my interview????

how wrong is it that applicants can be treated that way after putting in so much effort to get through the process in a totally professional manner!?..

The companies have to be seen to be fair so they have to interview internal and external candidates even when the job has already been taken, its more to do with the employment laws than anything sinister.
Dont hate the player hate the game!

 

[red2005]

I'm all for that fairness! It's the way it should be but here's another angle.......should the applicant have a right to know if he/she is wasting their time in scenarios like that?......i think so!

I'd of had more respect for them if they'd sent me an email saying ' listen mate unfortunately the position has been filled however if you would still like the interview to gain experience you are more than welcome'. obviously that would never happen as there are very few morals within the recruitment process lol.

oh i know there are flaws in the system mate i was on the receiving end of them many a time!! took me 7 years to get my job!! however like i said once you accept those flaws and just give them their moments and try and look at the positives you eventually get there.

 

[skjonesfamily]

I'm all for that fairness! It's the way it should be but here's another angle.......should the applicant have a right to know if he/she is wasting their time in scenarios like that?......i think so!

I'd of had more respect for them if they'd sent me an email saying ' listen mate unfortunately the position has been filled however if you would still like the interview to gain experience you are more than welcome'. obviously that would never happen as there are very few morals within the recruitment process lol.

oh i know there are flaws in the system mate i was on the receiving end of them many a time!! took me 7 years to get my job!! however like i said once you accept those flaws and just give them their moments and try and look at the positives you eventually get there.[/Q

Are you with First Great Western? If so I have some questions I would like to ask.

 

[red2005]

I'm not with fgw sorry pal!

 

[oxoneil]

I'm not with fgw sorry pal!

But you were trying to be right?

 

[G136GREYHOUND]

Ah ok, probably worded it wrong, just ment It was alot of searching pages an pages an maybe not even finding anything about the role of the driver, Was thinking of buying train simulator to get an insight but not sure how realistic it is plus £39.99 for a game which iam would get boring after 30mins, no thanks. As for license i dont recall it being mentioned on the job advert, no problem with early starts my mums usually up at six an would give me a lift to work.

If you get bored after 30 minutes on a train simulator, you'd be bored TO DEATH after an hour driving a real one,

EARLY START 6 AM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I CONSIDER 6AM TO BE A LATE START !! can your mum swing past my place at 2AM in the morning for 7 days on the bounce and pick me up as well please !!

The point of this is that people need to try to get into this job with more info and less starry eyes than they seem to have

 

[red2005]

But you were trying to be right?

i tried for fgw once a while back yeah but they were not the company i had my issues with lol

 

[mickdwyer]

Hmm not sure your right with 2am starts unless you drive the cargo trains, I've never seen any passenger trains in the middle of the night, but if so there's always ways round things like grab a lift with a work college or push bike, I only live 10 miles from my preferred station. As for being bored, yes sat at computer playing train simulator which seems very unrealistic, but think it would be alright in the cockpit of an actual train, the only thing that seems a downer about the job is dealing with angry passengers and fare dodgers. That parts not really for me.

 

[carriageline]

I don't think you really know what the job is about, do you?

Oh and im sure plenty of drivers start at 3-4am


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[red2005]

am i the only 1 that can see he's on the wind up lol

 

[455driver]

am i the only 1 that can see he's on the wind up lol

No, either that or he is about 12 and mummy is letting him use the computer for the first time!

I used to quite often start at 0230, at one depot I worked at our latest early start was 0535, our earliest was 0405 but could be amended to 0230 when required.

I am a passenger driver and will shortly be doing nights regularly, they are going to be a shock to the system!
We dont just drive the trains you know, we have to prepare them before they can go into service.

 

[SkinnyDave]

It is blatant trolling that's all it is!

Hope the mods keep an eye on the posts

 

[455driver]

It is blatant trolling that's all it is!

Hope the mods keep an eye on the posts

They are, a few of my (polite) replies to him have been deleted as they referred to deleted content!
He is quite entertaining though!

 

[red2005]

ha same here and we have quite a few 0300 starts!.........and once i am out of my training i will be doing most of them lol joys of bottom link work ha

 

[455driver]

ha same here and we have quite a few 0300 starts!.........and once i am out of my training i will be doing most of them lol joys of bottom link work ha

But you will have most of the day to yourself!
you will be knackered though!

 

[red2005]

I'll be straight to bloody bed mate so i am not so sure how much of the day I'll actually see ha!

 

[afc]

FGW are 160 drivers over their numbers FACT.

Any chance of a training course happening this side of 2016 are next to none. :roll:

 

[marshyc]

They are, a few of my (polite) replies to him have been deleted as they referred to deleted content!
He is quite entertaining though!

My replies have been taken down too. I thought I'd done something wrong. Entertaining is one word for it.

 

[G136GREYHOUND]

Hmm not sure your right with 2am starts unless you drive the cargo trains, I've never seen any passenger trains in the middle of the night, but if so there's always ways round things like grab a lift with a work college or push bike, I only live 10 miles from my preferred station. As for being bored, yes sat at computer playing train simulator which seems very unrealistic, but think it would be alright in the cockpit of an actual train, the only thing that seems a downer about the job is dealing with angry passengers and fare dodgers. That parts not really for me.

No if you are serious, or a total loon, or simply a wind up, what you are posting is still important on here, as people's perceptions have no bearing whatsoever on the real job.

It's a cab, cockpits are for pilots and what have passengers got to do with driver's ? it's of no concern of a driver if anyone has a ticket or not, and if some passenger gets his moss off say : " I'm a driver, go and see customer services as I have a train to move ", and walk away, as you WILL have a train to move, and if you stand there talking, you'll be late to it.

As for passenger trains not running at night, I see 0200 either getting up, or coming home, all too often

 

[Twoonthebuzzer]

FGW are 160 drivers over their numbers FACT.

Any chance of a training course happening this side of 2016 are next to none. :roll:

There is a training course starting in March mate, FACT. And another one planned for June.

 

[tlionhart]

There is a training course starting in March mate, FACT. And another one planned for June.

There will be courses next year. When is a mystery? If it didn't happen, oh well. Least I passed the whole experience.

On my DM interview they mentioned there was a plan to have them this SEPT and those already in training (I know a few) asked trainers, etc with SEPT also being the possible start. This kept getting pushed back. The plans, according to the trainers was to have 1 or 2 courses by Dec.
I think everything is just running behind their schedule and patience is required from us in the hold pool.
FGW wouldn't have an ongoing recruitment with qualified drivers and currently phasing those through the DM process over the last few weeks if they are over by 160- FACT! Its interesting to read all the mixed opinions and hype or lows. I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't hear anything until the new year. Wouldn't even surprise me if the next email said 'due to a delay, plan to start in the summer'.
FGW is a huge TOC, so plans are different from the LTV and western depots.

Here's a question to those feeling de-motivated in the hold pool. What would you be thinking/feeling if you didn't have access to these forums? So all you know about the current stage of the recruitment is they plan to have vacancies again the new year and they will be in touch.
I must admit, I do enjoy reading the comments on here with interest.

 

[afc]

There is a training course starting in March mate, FACT. And another one planned for June.

I hope for those already through to that phase you are correct - I however was with someone on Sunday night who would know first hand that FGW have recruited approx 160 drivers too many at this stage.

 

[irish_rail]

Yes, perhaps they are over established at this moment in time, however, in a couple of years there will be many many new services, not to mention huge amounts of additional training for existing drivers, so FGW need to continue to recruit during 2015 in order to fill the upcoming void.

The fact that we are currently 160 over is irrelevant, and to be honest, Ive heard talk about courses in Jan and March last week, so as a current FGW HSS driver, my advice to guys would be keep your heads up, and don't pay too much attention to the rumour mill! It could do you more harm than good!

 

[tlionhart]

Yes, perhaps they are over established at this moment in time, however, in a couple of years there will be many many new services, not to mention huge amounts of additional training for existing drivers, so FGW need to continue to recruit during 2015 in order to fill the upcoming void.

The fact that we are currently 160 over is irrelevant, and to be honest, Ive heard talk about courses in Jan and March last week, so as a current FGW HSS driver, my advice to guys would be keep your heads up, and don't pay too much attention to the rumour mill! It could do you more harm than good!

To add, its best to have hiccups now in recruitment then at the last minute. I'm sure they knew there would be hold ups and drivers sitting around waiting for DIs, etc. training in itself is a long and patient process. Even if its not Jan, It will be at a time when the last course is at a set threshold stage in their training.
Then they will summon the next course to begin. It really wouldn't surprise me if we get to Jan and are still awaiting a course. In all honesty they may be a bit optimistic and wouldn't throw out the idea of courses to start next June and July.

 

[SkinnyDave]

160 over? Not in the West depots I frequent but maybe over in LTV land.

It is not in dispute that FGW will still need a lot of Trainees but I as mentioned earlier I have heard that 2015 (at least beginning of) it is highly unlikely

I do not post this to put a downer on anyone but please do keep your heads up and focus on the end game, the recruitment process is frustrating and God knows I got put through the mill.
It is worth the frustration and pain believe me