One hopes. But my suspicion and fear is that this is the complacent answer, and that the sloppy practice is more widespread than is comfortable or convenient to admit. I accept entirely the explanations from those working for London Underground as to what happens and to some extent why; my sense is that this is around the awkward boundary between explanation and excuse.
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Staff using phones
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bramling
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On the latter point, I’m not sure it’s necessarily either, it’s simply reality. This isn’t unique to TFL, it’s exactly the same on TOCs, and IME on Tyne & Wear Metro too.
It’s the same in other comparable roles too. When I checked into my hotel this evening the receptionist was browsing her phone when I arrived.
I think this is just a fact of life which has to be just accepted as how it is.
Nothing wrong with it, they've got nothing to do but can't leave their post. I think there's a bit of ageism/snobbery on this thread - if they were reading a book or doing the times crossword maybe people would be less moany? So long as they put it down straight away and deal with the customer as soon as they arrive what's the issue?
Because the instances I’ve commented on are not “when a passenger arrives” but being attentive during a constant flow of passengers.
If you are in a customer facing role, you should be facing the customer. Not sat in a cubicle scrolling TikTok.
Much of this is attitude. My local tube station has one member of staff who is always out, visible and helping people. Everyone else sits in the little booth head down apart from occasionally shouting at tourists who can't figure out a ticket barrier.
Looking at a work device for legitimate work reasons is, of course, appropriate but how much of the gateline role involves that?
Much of this is attitude. My local tube station has one member of staff who is always out, visible and helping people. Everyone else sits in the little booth head down apart from occasionally shouting at tourists who can't figure out a ticket barrier.
Looking at a work device for legitimate work reasons is, of course, appropriate but how much of the gateline role involves that?
jumble
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What do you expect the station staff at Chesham to be doing between trains?
I don't especially care what it looks like; I want staff on a working barrier line to be aware of what's going on around them. That standard isn't consistently being met, and I'm reading a lot of "it's a boring job & difficult to motivate people" explanations that feel more like excuses for mediocrity.
bluegoblin7
Established Member
Have you ever done the job? Or - as another poster put it rather well - is this just your own classism/snobbishness and old school mentality shining through?
TBF to the previous poster, they were stating what they wanted from someone performing this role, I don't think they claimed or suggested that they themselves could achieve it.
But if we are looking to set a standard, the things they listed must surely be about it, right?
No, I've not done that job. I have done other jobs that classify as "entry level", provide little stimulation, and where boredom and inattention is a challenge.
I stand by my view that the requirement is and should be that there is attention being paid, and that the focus is on the public using the gates - especially where the public do struggle.
It is a reasonable point of challenge that I suppose, if the staff member was knitting or was reading Proust there might be a less vexed reaction. But in the same vein, standing with your hands in your pockets or looking like a bag of crap might also lead to you doing your duties but might be against societal expectations of how public servants or customer service staff carry themselves on duty. It's not the doing it, it's being seen to be doing it that really is the issue.
If they were sat knitting but saying hello and good morning / good afternoon / have a great journey to everyone who passed, I could probably be OK with it. But anything like scrolling your phone, reading a book or paper or even the complete works of Shakespeare which you cannot really concentrate on anything else whilst doing is a no no for me.
But maybe I am underestimating what knitting requires!!!
I believe you are, judging by my wife's language when she loses focus and has to unpick something... But fundamentally @AlterEgo has it right - and I find it disappointing that people whom I take to be Underground staff don't consider it reasonable to hold this category of staff to a high standard of quality in doing their job.
I certainly think this specific case is both overblown and driven by a wider motive/vendetta against station staff. (and personally I don't have any issue with station staff using their phones or reading a book etc - I don't doubt it's a tedious job and I couldn't do it every day! In my view it's no different to hotel staff etc using a phone when they're not busy.)
But I'm not sure setting a precedent of people being unsure about reporting (what they may, through lack of knowledge, perceive to be) concerns about safety critical staff being distracted is a good thing. Personally, when it's within reason, I'd much rather have a false alarm than miss something. Same with abandoned luggage, 99.9% of the time it's someone dirty clothes, but I'd still hope that people report it rather than not bother, and then it turns out to be something...
Don’t be under any doubt, if I walked into a hotel and saw someone on their phone at reception or reading a book, I would think it was a very, very badly managed hotel!
I would judge it there far more harshly than on the tube and you best believe there better not be a single admin I not dotted or t crossed with my stay!!!
A few months ago I tried to exit Park Royal station with a paper travelcard but the gates weren’t opening. I spent a whole five minutes trying desperately to get the attention of the lady in the (former) ticket office, but she was too busy scrolling on her phone. Eventually, nothing else having worked, I screamed ‘excuse me’ as loudly as I could, and was able to leave. That is unacceptable on any level. In fact I’d go so far as to say it was effectively an unattended gateline.
I also regularly use Paddington Crossrail, and more often than not staff stand as far away from customers as they can, scrolling away. I accept the potential argument for discretion at a small isolated station with large gaps between trains, but at one of the busiest gatelines in the city, where there’s always something they could be assisting with, it’s unacceptable. In any other company, in any other industry, it would be a disciplinary matter.
Perhaps what we need is more, not fewer, such photos being circulated. If it becomes an embarrassment to TfL, they’ll act pretty quickly. Unions would have zero public acceptance if they tried to demand staff be allowed to watch tiktok all day.
I also regularly use Paddington Crossrail, and more often than not staff stand as far away from customers as they can, scrolling away. I accept the potential argument for discretion at a small isolated station with large gaps between trains, but at one of the busiest gatelines in the city, where there’s always something they could be assisting with, it’s unacceptable. In any other company, in any other industry, it would be a disciplinary matter.
Perhaps what we need is more, not fewer, such photos being circulated. If it becomes an embarrassment to TfL, they’ll act pretty quickly. Unions would have zero public acceptance if they tried to demand staff be allowed to watch tiktok all day.
Have to agree with the OP to a point, I have noticed over the last couple of years a noticable increase in the number of gate line staff scrolling through their phones or huddled together talking and this is at busy zone 1 stations...
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I think its best for us all if we now let this thread end here.
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