Posted 8th November 2009 | 11 Comments
Remembrance Sunday trains cancelled as First Capital Connect drivers stay at home
First Capital Connect has cancelled nearly all Great Northern services for Remembrance Sunday, as drivers continue their unofficial ban on rest day working. The company said it was 'disappointed' that there would be hardly any GN trains to take people to the Cenotaph. It has been contacting local officials of the Royal British Legion to warn them of the problem.
Pay talks have been continuing. FCC is currently offering a two-year deal which would mean no increase with effect from April this year but an increase of RPI+1% or 3%, whichever is the greater, in April 2010.
Drivers have been refusing to work overtime and rest days for the past two weeks, and all FCC routes have been affected by cancellations and delays as a result. A Class 377 familiarisation programme launched in March for Thameslink drivers has also been suspended.
FCC employs around 600 drivers, and just over half work on Thameslink. Although there will be almost no Great Northern service, the Thameslink line from Bedford is expected to run normally. Industry sources have suggested that the Thameslink drivers were unwilling to let down war veterans and others making their way to London.
Replacement buses are being provided from principal Great Northern stations to provide road links with stations on other routes nearby, and FCC car park charges will be suspended.
Reader Comments:
Views expressed in submitted comments are that of the author, and not necessarily shared by Railnews.
A.Freind, st Albans
In response to Alan from Harpenden.I'am sure there are a great deal of passengers that have'nt had a pay rise this year i'am also sure there are many who have but if what your saying is if all the passengers don't get a rise then the drivers should'nt, well i'am right with you,but lets be honest it's not like is it.Now let me tell you how it really is to sack all drivers would bring FCC to a complete standstill and you can't just hire drivers to drive trains like you can to drive say a HGV truck it is'nt that simply without sounding disrespecful to HGV drivers. For years now T/L drivers have been asking for a automatic PA system so they can get on doing what there good at and thats driving the train safely without getting distracted by making annoucements using a PA system that sounds like a broken record.Up until now the drivers on FCC along with local managers have always made sure the jobs get covered by working overtime. They don't like what is happening no more than you do please take my word for it higher FCC managment have caused this
Sean, Cambridge, England
Would'nt have happened with a railman like Mark Causebrook in charge. R. Callaghan, among many others, has no idea. Take it from me, with first hand knowledge, how TL route drivers would welcome back Thameslink management tomorrow.
This is the real world , not toy town trainset enthusiast fantasy.
On a polite note, if any readers would like to become train drivers there are many vacancies at FCC. (Obviously). Apply NOW. Approximate pass rate is 1 per 200 applicants.
7 days on the trot with 02.25 starts on a winter week should prove no problem to the smart Alecs.
One last thing, the comments about not working are innacurate. The one I know just did 8 days in a row and fancied a day off. They all work , only some want time away from work , its called a rest day, in line with their conditions of service. The company has driver shortages which have been well documented for years.
Andy, Telford, England
A disgrace!
Amir, Eastbourne
"The usual mess form the privatised railway. When will these heavily subsidised Train Operating Companies realise that the industry is a 7 day a week operation. They simply cannot be allowed to get away with this volunteer-only Sunday working. Bring back British Rail."
Why don't people do research before babbling a load of utter tosh.
For a start the sunday voluntary work was created long before privatisation happened it was err British Rail that agreed to it or NSE part of BR
Heavily subsidised. Err FCC pay money to the govt. to run the service so there is no subsidy! Most of the subsidy goes to err Network Rail the nationalised err private company.
It will happen every sunday just the spin that FCC using rememberence for their own gain. And if you don't want to work overtime then that is not a strike they should get a workforce that can cover the work! So R. Callagham you have no clue at all. Grow up and DYOR instead of bubbling utter useless nonsense
Sean, Cambridge, England
FCC drivers just spent most of last 12 months learning new routes to Kent and new traction on the old Thameslink route. Most have given up rest days to help the company because of the situation re: Hidden, hours and maximum days worked etc.
They have agreed to work more rest days than ever before to help over the training programme.
They have now been offered a 0% pay increase as a thank you for the past year. This should also have been resolved last April. Hell of a" thank you" from a company making a small fortune and still paying good dividends to shareholders.
R Callaghan, Stoke-on-Trent, England
The fault lies entirely with the management for allowing voluntary working on Sundays. The railway is a service industry and a such drivers need to be rostered for sunday working. It is quite simple really.
Maybe hospitals, power companies, petrol stations, service industries etc should introduce voluntry Sunday working. Then they can refuse to serve or supply train drivers. Let's see if they like it when the boot on the other foot. The train drivers are acting disgracefully in refusing to work. It's not like it's hard work compared to the past and as I know several drivers currently working in the industry I know the pay is not bad either.
Chiltern Commuter, London
"Striking by another name. Over not getting a pay rise this year!
What planet are these people on. Do u think any of your passengers got a rise this year? Should sack them and hire drivers who can at least manage to announce which stations the train stops at above a rude mutter. Disgusted."
Alan, let me correct that entire comment.
If an employee has refused to work overtime, they are not striking!
The fact is that Sundays' on F.C.C are voluntary overtime working for the drivers, therefore if no driver wishes to work overtime, the service will of course be affected.
The fact that a select number of services are being cancelled during the week strongly suggests that F.C.C have an inadequate number of drivers within their company and are hoping their drivers will work overtime to compensate.
With no pay increase on offer, I don't blame them!
If I was an F.C.C commuter, I'd be questioning the management asking why they have a less than adequate workforce!
Alan, Harpenden, Uk
Striking by another name. Over not getting a pay rise this year!
What planet are these people on. Do u think any of your passengers got a rise this year? Should sack them and hire drivers who can at least manage to announce which stations the train stops at above a rude mutter. Disgusted.
chuffer nut, london, england
What have the drivers done wrong?
They have worked their shifts and are just refusing to do any extra work. Its the companies fault for having contracts that make sundays volantry, but then who would vote to have them as compolsary?
And to have a pay offer with a year of no increase - i bet the Board etc have a nice fat increase this year.
Geoff Steel, Northampton, United Kingdom
As with the recent debacle with LM not being able to run trains on a Sunday this is yet another example of a fragmented privatised railway ineffective due to the "micro management" of the Department for Transport and a Rail Regulator that appears to be sterile and ineffective allowing this to happen again.
Whilst taking NXEC back (and I hope keeping it that way) into public ownership this Government should do the right thing and progressively bring back all the rail companies back under one roof and leave franchising to McDonalds
R Callaghan, Stoke-on-Trent, England
The usual mess form the privatised railway. When will these heavily subsidised Train Operating Companies realise that the industry is a 7 day a week operation. They simply cannot be allowed to get away with this volunteer-only Sunday working. Bring back British Rail.
To show such comtempt for passengers on Remberance Day is an utter disgrace.