Network Rail Signalling jobs

[Razor1967]

I am considering a career change and am quite keen to apply for Signallers jobs. However I see that most of the jobs are either temporary or fixed term contracts until late 2013.

I am prepared to relocate to certain areas and today a Signallers job has come up at Pevensey near Eastbourne, however it is a Fixed contract until December 2013.

If I applied and was successful, after the initial (6 month ?) training period the contract would practically be at an end. Is it likely the contract would be renewed as I would not want to uproot my family and move to find I had no job !

I know there is a programme of closures for signalboxes but am not sure if any on the South Coast area falls into an earlyish closure.
Surely they would not train an external candidate for the sake of such a short term contract.

I am prepared to apply but I would apprecaite any advice as there is no point in bothering for such a short term or to be replaced by and internal Signaller who has been displaced by a box that has closed.

Many thanks for your help !!!

 

[Mix107]

Hi there

I was originally a Signaller at Wembley Mainline (Grade 8) in 2007-2008, left for personal reasons and the very long commute from Essex. Nothing to do with job, it's a good career and you become the operational heart of the railway. I loved it! But had been looking at getting back on the railway since January for a second chance.

So I applied for numerous signaller vacancies and was looking to relocate and up root the wife and children. Pevensey was originally advertised in March as 2 x full time vacancies as I applied for it. I did the communication assessment and passed which you only have to do once it seems to cover all the vacancies I was applying for. Plus the originally psychometric tests i did back in 2007 assessment I was told were still valid. But none of the vacancies inc. Pevensey, Buxton, Parbold, Halifax, etc. ever got past stage 2. Just on hold all the time on the e-recruitment and then goes to unsuccessful, sometimes months later without even an email from the NR recruitment team.

I have an inside contact at NR from my time before and it seems internal candidates are being placed in these vacancies when they are being advertised externally as we'll. Hence why the number of vacancies I applied for always changed status to unsuccessful eventually without an explanation.

Now I feel the temporary contract ones are probably there, but as far what happens after the contract period, I wouldn't like to guess. But I would say it is a risk to up root your family, when I have seen and heard what is going on. NR will be scaling down the number of signal boxes and signallers (by natural wastage) considerably over the next 20 years, but as boxes close they obviously get first choice to relocate into new jobs.

So it is a gamble, but probably still worth pursuing and that is something you can always ask at the interview stage. Although they probably won't give guarantees, like you say it costs a lot to train you up, so would be silly to let you go. But maybe be prepared to relocate again. The safest jobs are in the bigger power boxes or IECC's for now, however NR is only going to have 14 centres I believe controlling the whole country eventually.

I'm now starting as a trainee train driver next month which really looking forward to, using my past experience as a Signaller to bring to the role.

Regards