Predictions regarding the future role of train drivers

[Moterman31]

Evening all,

Apologies if this is the wrong place to ask, but I am interested to know some of the more long term railway employees opinions.

Obviously with covid, the lack of commuters and this new enabling framework about the future of the railway, what do people feel like the future will be.

Having come from the police, joining back In 2006 and then the government going after our pay, pensions and conditions meaning we were all worse off, it is clear that this seems to be the perfect time for the government to go after the railway. Do people see pay freezes for drivers, getting moved onto worse pensions, longer hours, something for new drivers or we all get moved onto it, or is it something that will take many more years before we see any real difference (I have come to learn that anything on the railway takes along time to move!) The railway unions are a million more miles better then what we ever had in the police so there is abit of hope in me that they would put up a fight more then the federation ever did for rank and file, but I'm just worrying with another 25 years or so left, is it all going to change and yet again I just happen to join the industry just as we all get crapped on from a big height.

I totally understand it is all speculation and noone knows exactly what is going to happen, but certainly from my young in service view and outsiders looking in, it would be interesting to know what some of the old timers feel / can see is the future for us drivers and rail staff..

 

[dctraindriver]

It’ll be a day or two yet until this thread is locked, I’ll just get myself some popcorn……….

If you’ve worked for the police since 2010 expect some change, but unknown what change yet. Just keep your nose clean and a good SOL record…..

 

[WoollyMammoth]

It’ll be a day or two yet until this thread is locked, I’ll just get myself some popcorn……….

If you’ve worked for the police since 2010 expect some change, but unknown what change yet. Just keep your nose clean and a good SOL record…..

Helpful answer…. Thank you! (For the record this won’t help me anyway haha)

Evening all,

Apologies if this is the wrong place to ask, but I am interested to know some of the more long term railway employees opinions.

Obviously with covid, the lack of commuters and this new enabling framework about the future of the railway, what do people feel like the future will be.

Having come from the police, joining back In 2006 and then the government going after our pay, pensions and conditions meaning we were all worse off, it is clear that this seems to be the perfect time for the government to go after the railway. Do people see pay freezes for drivers, getting moved onto worse pensions, longer hours, something for new drivers or we all get moved onto it, or is it something that will take many more years before we see any real difference (I have come to learn that anything on the railway takes along time to move!) The railway unions are a million more miles better then what we ever had in the police so there is abit of hope in me that they would put up a fight more then the federation ever did for rank and file, but I'm just worrying with another 25 years or so left, is it all going to change and yet again I just happen to join the industry just as we all get crapped on from a big height.

I totally understand it is all speculation and noone knows exactly what is going to happen, but certainly from my young in service view and outsiders looking in, it would be interesting to know what some of the old timers feel / can see is the future for us drivers and rail staff..

From a totally unsubstantiated and non-evidenced position I think it’s fair to say that the terms and conditions are going to be significantly worse (comparatively) over the next 25 years or so. They cannot get much better than they already are and you need to be realistic in your expectations. There is a reason why train driving positions are over-subscribed and continue to be attractive. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an incredibly challenging role but the positions against which they are going to be measured against when it comes to reasonable pay will be other public and “semi-public” sector jobs. They are not in the same sphere as other private sector roles that possibly pay more but offer less security.

IMO with you having come from the Police and joining the railway you have pretty much won the lottery already. Expect wages in the railway to stagnate and plateau in comparison with other public sector roles and plan accordingly. The train driven by you which has been laden with gravy cannot last forever.

 

[wobman]

Helpful answer…. Thank you! (For the record this won’t help me anyway haha)



From a totally unsubstantiated and non-evidenced position I think it’s fair to say that the terms and conditions are going to be significantly worse (comparatively) over the next 25 years or so. They cannot get much better than they already are and you need to be realistic in your expectations. There is a reason why train driving positions are over-subscribed and continue to be attractive. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an incredibly challenging role but the positions against which they are going to be measured against when it comes to reasonable pay will be other public and “semi-public” sector jobs. They are not in the same sphere as other private sector roles that possibly pay more but offer less security.

IMO with you having come from the Police and joining the railway you have pretty much won the lottery already. Expect wages in the railway to stagnate and plateau in comparison with other public sector roles and plan accordingly. The train driven by you which has been laden with gravy cannot last forever.

How is being a train driver being on a gravy train ? Its not a beneficial comment to the discussion.

The way I look at it is that the Tory government hate traincrew and the general public believe the right wing anti traincrew agenda. This is shown by the anti traincrew comments perpetuated on forums, which get written by non traincrew.
Just look at the most recent TFL bailout with driverless trains being researched again by Boris being written into the contract.

The government will come after the traincrew t&C's for sure, they want a 7 day 24/7 railway for no extra cost, plus they want the £ billions in the pension pots.

It's a case of being aware of these issues and understanding the implications of any changes in the industry.

 

[Stigy]

Evening all,

Apologies if this is the wrong place to ask, but I am interested to know some of the more long term railway employees opinions.

Obviously with covid, the lack of commuters and this new enabling framework about the future of the railway, what do people feel like the future will be.

Having come from the police, joining back In 2006 and then the government going after our pay, pensions and conditions meaning we were all worse off, it is clear that this seems to be the perfect time for the government to go after the railway. Do people see pay freezes for drivers, getting moved onto worse pensions, longer hours, something for new drivers or we all get moved onto it, or is it something that will take many more years before we see any real difference (I have come to learn that anything on the railway takes along time to move!) The railway unions are a million more miles better then what we ever had in the police so there is abit of hope in me that they would put up a fight more then the federation ever did for rank and file, but I'm just worrying with another 25 years or so left, is it all going to change and yet again I just happen to join the industry just as we all get crapped on from a big height.

I totally understand it is all speculation and noone knows exactly what is going to happen, but certainly from my young in service view and outsiders looking in, it would be interesting to know what some of the old timers feel / can see is the future for us drivers and rail staff..

Truth is, nobody knows what’s going to happen yet, and everything is speculation. It just so happens that some people enjoy this speculation to an almost unhealthy level, especially the negative parts (some seem strangely anti-railway, considering this is a rail forum…).

 

[scouseyb123]

Truth is, nobody knows what’s going to happen yet, and everything is speculation. It just so happens that some people enjoy this speculation to an almost unhealthy level, especially the negative parts (some seem strangely anti-railway, considering this is a rail forum…).

100% agree with this, especially the bit in brackets.

 

[Turtle]

100% agree with this, especially the bit in brackets.

Hear, hear!

 

[UTV]

Truth is, nobody knows what’s going to happen yet, and everything is speculation. It just so happens that some people enjoy this speculation to an almost unhealthy level, especially the negative parts (some seem strangely anti-railway, considering this is a rail forum…).

Totally agree with this, what I will say is the government have made it crystal clear they will be looking at all aspects of the railway. They are spending £800m per month propping the railway up, so something has to give.

 

[16.19]

Boris and his driverless trains.

Still hilarious

 

[Bodiddly]

Boris and his driverless trains.

Still hilarious

Indeed, it's only non railway staff that seem to believe this is possible in the near future.
We are so far away from driverless trains, any driver working in the rail industry at the moment needn't worry about it. The wider railway is more at threat from a scaling back of services and station staffing levels. Smart ticketing and TVM's will eventually lead to gateline and booking office staff being surplus and hospitality grades could see a threat to their jobs as well.
Maintenance will also be another target for the bean counters but the demographic most at risk will be middle management.
I expect to see a massive cull in an already bloated area.

 

[Bucephalus]

Could I speculate that all these potential cuts to the workforce could lead to more railways being built (financial viability) and hence a renewed need for staff?

I'm not a railway staff member by the way so can't give a proper answer

 

[16.19]

Indeed, it's only non railway staff that seem to believe this is possible in the near future.
We are so far away from driverless trains, any driver working in the rail industry at the moment needn't worry about it. The wider railway is more at threat from a scaling back of services and station staffing levels. Smart ticketing and TVM's will eventually lead to gateline and booking office staff being surplus and hospitality grades could see a threat to their jobs as well.
Maintenance will also be another target for the bean counters but the demographic most at risk will be middle management.
I expect to see a massive cull in an already bloated area.

I have around 30 years to give the Railway and as a driver I’m more than confident there won’t be any ‘driverless’ trains on the mainline. Unless it’s a section of track that has been built specifically for that purpose.

Other than that, no chance! Not enough funding for our ageing infrastructure and far too many variants.

 

[the sniper]

Could I speculate that all these potential cuts to the workforce could lead to more railways being built (financial viability) and hence a renewed need for staff?

I'm not a railway staff member by the way so can't give a proper answer

More likely they'll cut too many before realising they might actually need people like timetable planners, control staff/train crew managers, competency assessors/managers, then have to recruit inexperienced staff or bring back old staff out of early retirement to pick up the pieces.

Alternatively they'll freeze recruitment of operational staff, only to be caught short even before passenger numbers pick back up. Then there'll spend years trying desperately to get staff productive as more and more trains get cancelled due to a shortage of staff. Meanwhile, over time goes through the roof.