Exactly - I had been in the RAF cadets since third form at school. I had handled live ammunition and firearms. I had been on camps, exercises, expeditions ( self planned often) etc etc. I held a shot gun certificate at 18 ( gave it up when I went to uni). I had experiences I could have used.
I suspect (from experience outside the railway) that the crucial bit is not WHAT you answer but HOW. Any recruiter that can’t tailor expectations of answers to an individual’s stage of life shouldn’t be doing the job.
Is being able to explain one's life experiences part of the job?
I play Train Sim World everyday
The MMI is black and white though, it's looking for specific requirements the candidate either has or hasn't. The recruiter scores it to the OPC standards, not his/her own standards.
There is no linked promotion between the two grades and the driver recruitment process isnt easier if you have been a guard either.
Absolutely against the law to hire based on age these days, you aren't even allowed to ask date of birth on application forms.
Quite true, and by following the law one can still employ the younger person.
ok - but you will if you want to work for a big company. It is clear you don't like or understand these interviews but that doesn't invalidate the concept. Of course, such questions are only PART of the process. For technical roles I would expect a theory and practice test and some kind of team "fit" test.
Though if you've got half a braincell you can work out how old they are by simply going through their education and employment history...
Or at least that’s the spin
Being cynical, I wonder if the DfT hope that younger applicants will be less likely to join ASLEF etc. It’s hard to see it making that much difference to the current recruitment practices as the majority of people recruited into the driving grade tend to be well above the minimum age of 21 anyway.
To add to what was mentioned earlier, you can't get your full ATPL until you're 21. So you're not going to be in command of an air transport vehicle until then. (Technically you could start your own commercial operation and operate on a commercial pilots licence before 21, but I bet you'd struggle to get insurance) But the point is that it's slightly different.
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Exactly. Working railway shifts that early on in your life is not going to set you up well. You risk being institutionalised into the railway. The only people you'll really get to know are fellow rail workers as your social life will suffer.
Yes. It isn't linked. But we are talking about a change to the current situation. Is it the best change, or can a direct line of promotion, building upon exisiting knowledge and experience, be linked? Personally, i think it would be great for drivers to have worked their way up through a grade or two first. I accept of course, that that isn't the nature of this change. But what does this change achieve on it's own? Working up through grades and rolls is accepted in many industries. And it would be an additional incentive, if you were on a pathway towards driver while starting in another position.
I don't know how sensible it is to force employees through roles for which they are neither suited nor interested, just to eventually end up in the job they wanted in the first place.
You mean a talent pool that is actually working and contributing to the industry, while gaining experience. Verses the kind of talent pool where job applicantants often sit in limbo for months, sometimes years, between the various stages or the recruitment process?
