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Leaving Gbrf for passenger (bounty compo)
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HamworthyGoods
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GBRf are (quite rightly) known to be strict at enforcing this to reclaim the cost of training of applicable.
bengley
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I wouldn't recommend migrating to a passenger TOC at this time.
the sniper
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bengley
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Well, no commentA lot of people wouldn't recommend staying at GBRf...
I nearly joined them myself and I'm sure I'd have enjoyed it. Hard work and long days but substantially better than doing one route at a passenger company for the rest of time.
NorthernTech
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I always thought it was freight that was the unpredictable one, why do you say that about going to passenger work right now?
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How long do they have a training repayment amount set for before you are free of it? I’m sure I was told that it is a high figure, presume this goes down over time.
Because passenger numbers haven’t gone back to pre covid and more people are working from home. Freight on the other hand has increased.
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It’s 5 years for GBRf before you’re free of the repayment. It reduces incrementally for every year served.
I’m only just starting out so it’s only my opinion. But one thing you can never be sure of is your job, especially with the dispute that’s ongoing. When drivers ask for more wages but revenue is down something is to give. The same thing happened in my current industry.
Its definitely a weird state of affairs at the moment but trains still need to be run and always will be, drivers are one of the safest positions you can have on the railway especially at a toc. Freight is definitely more stable then it used to be but nowhere near toc's.
nb2001uk
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The stability of TOCs is there because if anything happens to them, the government can take over but with FOCs this cannot happen, if one goes bust then that's that. So whatever number of passenger's there are on TOCs, is irrelevant.
Hopefully it doesn’t happen, but if a TOC lost say 50% of passengers would they keep all the drivers?
bengley
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You're delusional if you think passenger drivers are secure these days. With this government in power anything could happen and massive cuts to depot complements as a result of timetables being slashed are a very realistic prospect.
Freight companies are not controlled by the government and none are in dispute with ASLEF that I'm aware of.
I'm an ex passenger driver who moved to freight almost a year ago and I'm 100% certain I made the move at the right time.
Freight companies are not controlled by the government and none are in dispute with ASLEF that I'm aware of.
I'm an ex passenger driver who moved to freight almost a year ago and I'm 100% certain I made the move at the right time.
So what about when loads of freight drivers were suddenly made redundant a few years back with minimal notice then the same company decided to hire loads of new drivers lol.
If you think freight is more secure then passenger work there's only one delusional person here.
Yes things are up in the air at the moment but there's no way they are suddenly going to turn around and say oh we don't suddenly need all these drivers, do you think they are going to turn around and say oh let's just cancel all the services, the drivers aren't needed now, passengers will always travel on trains, freight contracts don't always last and its an ever shifting industry.
Numbers have been increasing since covid and some of the services I drive are absolutely rammed.
I'm glad you're happy on the freight but if you think you're at no risk of losing your job just because you aren't involved in strikes then think again, plenty of things in freight to affect jobs aside from strike action.
If you think freight is more secure then passenger work there's only one delusional person here.
Yes things are up in the air at the moment but there's no way they are suddenly going to turn around and say oh we don't suddenly need all these drivers, do you think they are going to turn around and say oh let's just cancel all the services, the drivers aren't needed now, passengers will always travel on trains, freight contracts don't always last and its an ever shifting industry.
Numbers have been increasing since covid and some of the services I drive are absolutely rammed.
I'm glad you're happy on the freight but if you think you're at no risk of losing your job just because you aren't involved in strikes then think again, plenty of things in freight to affect jobs aside from strike action.
I think redundancy as a driver at a TOC can effectively be discounted as a possibility, there are far easier ways to lose the job to worry about!
Much the same at FOCs albeit there is more risk of the government not stepping in if the FOC goes bust in the way they would with the passenger railway.
To be honest it’s dancing on the head of a pin to compare them. Both are *massively* more secure than vast majority of jobs, even including things like the civil service these days that were historically safe.
Much the same at FOCs albeit there is more risk of the government not stepping in if the FOC goes bust in the way they would with the passenger railway.
To be honest it’s dancing on the head of a pin to compare them. Both are *massively* more secure than vast majority of jobs, even including things like the civil service these days that were historically safe.
Re the OPs question, the “bounty” clauses tend to be unenforceable based on the way they’re buried in the small print of the employment contract. I left my TOC with less than three years service, my manager asked me to pay about £5k. I informed him as far as I was concerned the clause was null and void and I therefore wouldn’t be paying anything. I never heard another word about it.
Not with GBRf, I’ve just signed the contract. Along with that you sign a learning agreement. This clearly states you will be liable if you leave before the 5 years. Nothing buried in the contract.
Most companies have something stating you can't leave blah blah blah, I dont know anyone its ever been enforced on except one guy at my first toc, it went to court in the end and was basically told you cant hold people to ransom if they want to leave a company and it would never be enforceable and they dropped it.
Since then I've not heard of anyone being pursued for it, if its a few months or under a year I can understand but things can change quickly in people's lives and they can't tie you down because of it.
Since then I've not heard of anyone being pursued for it, if its a few months or under a year I can understand but things can change quickly in people's lives and they can't tie you down because of it.
Thanks for clarifying. If it’s made clear at the point of signing like that and a separate agreement then, yes indeed, it is indeed much more likely to be enforceable.
I was assuming it was like TOCs do it.
NorthernTech
Member
I think GBRf also ask for a far greater amount! It’s probably right considering the shear costs involved, but I’m sure it’s a more substantial sum than others I have heard of.
Given how many vacancies there are across all TOC’s it’s unlikely we’ll ever see redundancies.
We only have to go back a few years to see the last FOC redundancies. 350 if I remember correctly.
They can, you’re clearly in breach of contract if you choose to leave. It’s no different to any other contract, be it rent, mobile phone ect. Ultimately it’s down to the individual to decide if they want to risk being chased. Also I’m sure it would harm future career prospects, especially in the railway.
It’s called a contract for a reason. Out of internet, how many drivers do you actually know that have left, while in contract and not paid anything back?
Well the OP was asking about GBRf, and from what I’ve heard (and posted on here before) GBRf will pursue you.
I can’t remember the thread but a driver asked a similar question about a TOC. Someone responded about a guy that left during this period. His old TOC told his new TOC he was in breech of contract so they rescinded the job due to this, and his old TOC wouldn’t take him back.
Ultimately we’re all adults and it’s our choice on what we do. But to think that a TOC/FOC would never hold you to account is quite naive.
Been doing this job nearly 15 years so I'm quite aware of how the railway works thanks.
Its not naive and I'm not saying they definitely won't but its a well documented subject especially on here
In regards to gbrf then the OP needs to deal with them, speak to them and see what they say, if they want to claim the money back then the OP will have to stay the term or pay up wont they, simple really.
Its not naive and I'm not saying they definitely won't but its a well documented subject especially on here
In regards to gbrf then the OP needs to deal with them, speak to them and see what they say, if they want to claim the money back then the OP will have to stay the term or pay up wont they, simple really.
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dctraindriver
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Blimey…. £5k. Good on you for being robust.
Like you I think as driver we are pretty safe, many drivers at my TOC will be coming up for retirement in the next couple of years or so, while I don’t think I’ll see massive pay rises now the treasury are in essence running the joint hopefully I’ll be able to retire as a driver.
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