@Shelby97
Congrates! Did they mention what stations you may be based at? And is employment started on training start day or after training is completed?
Also been reading up on some other forums that CSS2 is a 'shafted' role. Alot of lone working and mostly nights, does anyone know what this role actually entails? And whats the the difference between CSS1 and CSS2, apologies if this is a silly questions!
Thanks
CSS2 is most small, generally lone-working stations outside of zone 1. The list is too exhaustive to reproduce as it is essentially the majority of the underground. Like CSAs, you will be allocated to an Area and cover all of the stations within that Area on a rostered basis, as well as stations in adjacent Areas that are part of the same Cover Group from time to time.
Employment commences on day 1 of training although is conditional on both passing training and completing a probationary period. ‘Length of service’, pension etc all run based on day 1.
CSS2 is a primarily lone working grade, but isn’t mostly nights: it is full 24/7 cover so there are some nights required. The individual rosters differ from station to station and Area to Area so again are hard to summarise generally.
I don’t necessarily think it fair to say that CSS2s are ‘shafted’ - there is still a lot of ill-feeling from the ‘Fit for the Future’ programme over a decade ago and many staff were essentially forced to become supervisors despite not really wanting to. It isn’t the most attractive of jobs internally, for sure, but much of that comes down to either the salary (when compared to Train operator) or again some of those perceptions. Some staff love being a CSS2 on the quieter stations and have actively worked to get themselves there, so it really is personal preference.
CSS1s are generally found at bigger zone 1 stations or interchanges and will usually have a number of staff working under them. There isn’t that much difference between the grades beyond that, as individual licenses will depend on the stations worked - such as lifts, escalators, control rooms etc. Broadly, though, CSS2s will be a lot more hands on with customers and day to day things like ticketing issues and enquiries, whilst CSS1s are more focussed on keeping big stations running smoothly and specifically co-ordinating any issues or incidents that may arise.
As I said right at the start of this thread, this is a fantastic opportunity for external candidates to get into the railway. There will be a lot to learn, but it is very much achievable.