Conductor Jobs with Northern Rail

[1571238]

Hi All (my first post so very new to all this).

I wont attempt to bore with all the details but i've worked within local government for the past 17 years, my role is a Housing Management Officer within Social Housing, it is very customer focussed and we deal with difficult situations requiring swift problem solving on a daily basis.

After much thought, i'm wanting to look at other careers that I could hopefully transfer my skills into and "Train Conductor" has come up on several occasions during discussions with friends.

My current pay is £25k per year and due to mortgage, kids, etc, I need to be looking for a new job around that similar pay - and once again Train Conductor appears to be in that region.

After abit of research the job does look like something i'd be interested in, it also seems to be quite a popular job with most people on this site speaking positively about the role.

Id love to hear from any Train Conductors if possible about their experiences of the job.

Do the jobs come up often, are there many applications for few posts?
Is there decent security in the role?
Would any existing Train Conductors recommend working for Northern Rail?

I live very near to the Leeds/Sheffield line - so I have set up an alert with "Northern Rail" for any vacancies.

To be honest any advice at all would be great. Many Thanks Nick

 

[Groggy]

Hi nick
There are usually quite a few jobs for northern rail guards as there is a quite high turn over as people move up into the driving grade and also move on to over companies.
It's a great job if you can cope with confrontation. I was a guard for about 15-16 years but just got sick of the attitude of the public and that was over 10 years ago now!
It's ok money ...more than you are on now when fully passed out but the hard thing as you will no doubt read is the unsocial hours.

Security wise....well ...arriva have the new franchise as of later this year and there are parts of the franchise agreement that reduce the amount of guards on trains so maybe someone else with more knowledge than me can help you out. I personally think guards will be around for at least the next 10 years but maybe in a reduced role. I.e. Not controlling the doors.

Keep checking the northern website for vacancies and good luck.

 

[gez]

Customer service experience is what they are after. It's what they really look for but safety and responsibility is also what they are after. Have you had any experience of having people's safety in your hands? Dealt with emergencies etc? Just because you might not have done this in your previous jobs doesn't mean you haven't got that experience. Have you ever needed to call the emergency services? If so then you can use that. You say you have kids, you are used to having a duty of care.

Ideal jobs which can give good examples are people from a airline background, bus driver, ex emergency services etc but you can use skills you have developed outside of work to make up for what you may not have experienced in your career. Be confident and sell yourself.

As for the job. It's can be as easy or as hard as you make it. You are never going to get all passengers to pay, you just haven't got the time or support to deal with all fare evaders so don't take it personally or let them get to you. The worst times are when you have overcrowding, delays and disruption because sometimes, there are people who will just have a go at you and there is nothing you can do to help other than apologies. You aren't paid for what you do, you are paid for the responsibility side. It's the easiest job I've ever had but if you do some research into a couple of Merseyrail guards who have had incidents over the last few years then you will know how serious the job is.

Lastly don't worry if you don't know your Voyagers from your 142's, I trained with people who had no idea about trains but obviously had the customer service skills and experience the company wanted. Money wise, the railway pays well and usually, you can earn a lot more than your basic. Good luck!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Customer service experience is what they are after. It's what they really look for but safety and responsibility is also what they are after. Have you had any experience of having people's safety in your hands? Dealt with emergencies etc? Just because you might not have done this in your previous jobs doesn't mean you haven't got that experience. Have you ever needed to call the emergency services? If so then you can use that. You say you have kids, you are used to having a duty of care.

Ideal jobs which can give good examples are people from a airline background, bus driver, ex emergency services etc but you can use skills you have developed outside of work to make up for what you may not have experienced in your career. Be confident and sell yourself.

As for the job. It's can be as easy or as hard as you make it. You are never going to get all passengers to pay, you just haven't got the time or support to deal with all fare evaders so don't take it personally or let them get to you. The worst times are when you have overcrowding, delays and disruption because sometimes, there are people who will just have a go at you and there is nothing you can do to help other than apologies. You aren't paid for what you do, you are paid for the responsibility side. It's the easiest job I've ever had but if you do some research into a couple of Merseyrail guards who have had incidents over the last few years then you will know how serious the job is.

Lastly don't worry if you don't know your Voyagers from your 142's, I trained with people who had no idea about trains but obviously had the customer service skills and experience the company wanted. Money wise, the railway pays well and usually, you can earn a lot more than your basic. Good luck!

 

[1571238]

Thanks Gez - there's some really useful info there.
To be honest i work very much in a customer service environment, everything i do is about providing excellent customer service to our tenants in social housing as i visit them in their homes and work very much in the front line / face to face scenarios.
I also work directly with the Police and PCSO's therefore i would hope i have alot of transferable skills.

Is there anyway of finding out how many times Northern Rail advertised for Conductor/Guards in 2015 to get a flavour for how often they might come up ?

I have set an email alert up on their site so hopefully if one does come up i could apply quickly.

 

[ab130688]

Hey Gez thanks for the info. I am going to be new to the job and am starting at the end of January with LM. Can't wait!

 

[1571238]

Congratulations to you - can i ask what job were you doing before and did your previous experience count in being successful do you think?

Hey Gez thanks for the info. I am going to be new to the job and am starting at the end of January with LM. Can't wait!

 

[gez]

I think it all depends on people retiring, going driving and changing TOC's. Have a search on here for Northern Rail conductor and it will probably bring up old topics when they have advertised so that will give you an idea. Do some research into the new franchise that Arriva have just been awarded. A lot of speculation about it and concerns for the future of guards but i think you just have to look at the facts and make your own mind up on that one.

 

[ab130688]

Thanks Nick1981,

I have not yet handed in my notice as I want to pass the medical first (am confident I will but you know, just in case). I am currently a postman but have worked in a few different roles such as in a bakery and a cinema. I would 100% say that past experience is what they're looking for and my experiences definitely helped me in the interview. By the sounds of your experience you will be a great candidate for the role- it's just a matter of being prepared to answer with personal examples of how you meet their criteria. In the interview it was explained to me at the start that they were looking for me to provide specific examples from past experiences to show how I meet the criteria they're looking for. So for example they would say:

"can you tell us a time when you had to deal with a difficult customer"

and

"tell us what you think great customer service is"

and

"the role is heavily focused on health safety, can you tell us about your experiences working in a similar environment?"

Don't forget to answer the question directly using examples of past experience even if they don't directly ask you to- that's what they're after. For example showing them that you've

*worked shifts and nights
*worked with the public
*understand the importance of safety
*understand the importance of handling expensive equipment
*that you're positive, polite, good with public speaking
*great customer service
*can follow rules and most importantly in stressful situations where you may be multi tasking
*can work on your own and also be confident in a team environment

there are many more..

This video link really helped me prepare for it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPX2ojir2Kg

There were two people interviewing me, both of them were very kind and made me feel at ease- it wasn't a grilling. This is for London Midland though but I am assuming other TOCs will be similar.

It is also a good idea to read up about the company you are working for and their 'missions and values' section on the website. If you mention how you also fit in with these values then it shows them that you are self motivated to research and eager to be part of their company.

Hope this helps

 

[1571238]

That is massively helpful thank you very much - i hadnt thought to check youtube so the link is great thanks again.

I have set myself a file up and printed off such details including the mission statement (of Northern Rail) .....so its now a case of sitting tight and waiting as im sure with many others for a post to become available.

Thanks Nick1981,

I have not yet handed in my notice as I want to pass the medical first (am confident I will but you know, just in case). I am currently a postman but have worked in a few different roles such as in a bakery and a cinema. I would 100% say that past experience is what they're looking for and my experiences definitely helped me in the interview. By the sounds of your experience you will be a great candidate for the role- it's just a matter of being prepared to answer with personal examples of how you meet their criteria. In the interview it was explained to me at the start that they were looking for me to provide specific examples from past experiences to show how I meet the criteria they're looking for. So for example they would say:

"can you tell us a time when you had to deal with a difficult customer"

and

"tell us what you think great customer service is"

and

"the role is heavily focused on health safety, can you tell us about your experiences working in a similar environment?"

Don't forget to answer the question directly using examples of past experience even if they don't directly ask you to- that's what they're after. For example showing them that you've

*worked shifts and nights
*worked with the public
*understand the importance of safety
*understand the importance of handling expensive equipment
*that you're positive, polite, good with public speaking
*great customer service
*can follow rules and most importantly in stressful situations where you may be multi tasking
*can work on your own and also be confident in a team environment

there are many more..

This video link really helped me prepare for it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPX2ojir2Kg

There were two people interviewing me, both of them were very kind and made me feel at ease- it wasn't a grilling. This is for London Midland though but I am assuming other TOCs will be similar.

It is also a good idea to read up about the company you are working for and their 'missions and values' section on the website. If you mention how you also fit in with these values then it shows them that you are self motivated to research and eager to be part of their company.

Hope this helps

 

[ab130688]

No problem! There is also loads of info on this forum from others who have gone through the process so would advise to have a look through.

Good luck mate