Northern Conductors Employee Council (CEC) Newsletter Sunday Working Arrangements

Dear RMT member,

 

Northern Conductors Employee Council (CEC) Newsletter

Sunday Working Arrangements

 

Please read the following newsletter from the Northern Conductors Employee Council:

 

“Northern Trains Ltd have approached your Conductors Employee Council (CEC), with the aspiration of agreeing a bridging arrangement to improve Sunday cover that would be valid until a full agreement is reached as part of wider discussions.

 

The offer is as follows:

 

• Minimum payment of 9.5hrs at 125% (as now) Along with a £75 booking on allowance. 

 

For this the company of course want a commitment to work from EVERY Conductor across the business, so to be clear if you are unable to achieve cover you would have to work the Sunday no matter what notice you gave. 

 

For those on the East & Ex TPE this would include the Sunday at the end of your weeks annual leave, with only the one at the start being covered for you. 

 

Also, the continual squeeze of Sunday work into links with 1 in 3 Sundays in some, it is our contention that you would rarely be able to get any Sundays off you are booked to work, which may be as now but will only get worse. For which adversely affects your work life balance.

 

For those on the West it would, as previously mentioned mean you giving up the right to give 7 days’ notice and being assured when doing so that you would not have to work. 

 

Further points to consider:

 

• Average turn length on the West on a Sunday is currently over 8 hrs;

 

• Average turn length on the East is currently over 8hrs 30;

 

• Average turn length for Ex TPE is currently over 8hrs;

 

• The company is apparently running between 20-22% of services on the West on a Sunday. 

 

• Many Sundays are uncovered on the East and Ex TPE every week with the commitment to work as it currently is. 

 

• Northern Conductors are the lowest paid in Britain on Sundays. 

 

• Managers are rumoured to be earning £300 in addition to pay for the hours they work when covering a Sunday turn of duty.

 

The company asked your CEC that they consult the above ‘final offer’ with you the members. 

 

Thursday evening however, before having a chance to meet with the employer on Friday to discuss the offer, your CEC reps discovered that the company had intentionally circulated this proposal to depots on the East with it being surreptitiously placed in several mess-rooms.

 

It is our belief that this was intently done so to try and initiate a divide between Conductors on the East & West. It then also became apparent this information had also spread to some depots on the West, thus completely undermining the CEC discussions. 

 

Resulting from this action your CEC received considerable feedback from our members across the business, who were utterly, vehemently opposed to the offer and in acknowledgment of this feedback, we unanimously advised the management team of our rejection at the meeting on Friday. 

 

Your CEC firmly believe this offer falls well short of what we should be receiving and if we are to improve upon the situation you support your Council in their endeavours to negotiate an improved package.

 

The CEC proposal is as follows:

 

• Minimum payment of 10hrs at 200% and a £75 booking on allowance. 

 

• A ‘golden ticket’ whereby after every 5 Sundays worked you would have the right to not work 1 Sunday of your choice. 

 

The CEC believe this is not at all unreasonable given how reluctant Conductors are to work Sundays and how for those on the West they would be expected to give up a key condition. 

 

Of course, if the company were to return with an offer that your CEC deemed worthy, then we would of course undertake a referendum of you the membership, in which you would be the final arbitrator of any decision.

 

Finally, the company, as you will be aware is under immense pressure to improve coverage from users, politicians, stakeholders to name but a few. They want to operate a 7-day railway and Conductors will play a significant and fundamental part in that being achieved,

 

but you should never ever sell yourselves short, which your CEC believe you would be if this latest offer had been accepted! 

 

Please continue to support your Council.

 

KNOW YOUR WORTH.

STAND FIRM.

STAND TOGETHER.

 

Conductors Employee Council”