To counter TSR's point - our current roster may soon be changed and we will not give up our 12hr weekends. They're hard going during but the fact it gains us an extra weekend off over the course of our link (3out of 7 vice 4out of 7) it's worth doing. Thankfully I've never had 50 crew trying to call me at once!!
It can be a decent job but I will not apologise for my overly negative post. It is not all drinking tea and surfing RailUK (he says, sipping tea, surfing RailUk while Saturday's diagrams print off....) it is hard work, tough going and can be stressful. These are parts of the job you need to know about. We've lost potential recruits and a new starter as the job was "harder than we thought it would be reading the job description"
It does also require you learn in detail crew Ts+Cs, and have VERY good knowledge of the operation you're resourcing and the geography you cover. It's not impossible, but it can be very tough for someone outside the railway, who doesn't know or fully understand how the railway works. You also have to build a rapport with your crews. Get to know them as best you can (difficult when you manger over 600crew) but it helps. You know then what makes them tick, and what suits them better than doesn't. I know the drivers who will jump for an open late turn off a stupid early, or will go from 0800 to 0300 book on as they're a bit of an early bird and like to get away by 1130!! You also come to know the ones who won't do a thing! You know the ones who can be bought and will do anything if the price is right. You have to know the diagrams. Not in detail to the point you can real off the content of any diagram given to you, but you need to know how they're made up so that anything that doesn't look right can be solved before it causes issues.
I want to wish you all the luck in the world applying for it. But as I've said, I've applied as well to move Mrs TTT towards her homeland, and I'm selfish, and I don't want anyone but me to get the job!!