Stagecoach Supertram - Tram Driver

[samuel791]

Stagecoach Supertram are now advertising for external tram drivers to join the company. Applications close on Friday 27 December 2019 with testing (SCATT) to take place in early 2020. This is a 4 stage application process, and once passed you will be placed into the talent pool of drivers.

The main points are:

- £12.53 per hour once qualified (£24,186.53pa) or £11.09 per hour while undertaking the 10 week training programme (£21,406.92).
- 37hr guaranteed week
- Paid monthly on 15th of every month
- Time and half for any time in excess over 37hrs per week
- Free Stagecoach staff pass for you and your spouse which can be used UK wide
- Enrolled into benefits scheme
- Enhanced sickness pay after 1 years service

Supertram are also currently in the middle of a 3 year pay deal with the pay increasing to £12.84 or £24,772.03pa from 1 May 2020.

You can also progress onto the 24 line TramTrain roster once you have completed the set service levels and remain a Green driver with no blameworthy accidents/incidents to progress onto a much higher salary and then, like 10 of the original 24 have done, progress onto heavy rail in either freight or passenger service.

You can apply by downloading an application form from: https://www.stagecoachbus.com/supertram/work-for-us

 

[TO123]

I’ve applied for this job. Could I have some further information please?

What’s the TramTrain salary? Do they recruit often for this?

Is there overtime readily available?

What are the pension contributions?

 

[43066]

Supertram are also currently in the middle of a 3 year pay deal with the pay increasing to £12.84 or £24,772.03pa from 1 May 2020.

I must say this seems a very poor salary for a tram driver and more akin to that of a bus driver. For comparison, Croydon Tramlink drivers are now on £45k (albeit in a far more expensive area of the country).

Also worth pointing out that progression to train driving would be subject to applying and passing the relevant aptitude tests. A tram driver would be an “off the street” applicant as far as TOCs and FOCs are concerned (albeit that tram driving would provide good safety critical experience to draw from).

 

[Rockhopper]

I'm shocked how low the wages are - we employ cleaners who earn more per hour than that!
Tramways are operated more like buses than railways hence the comparison in wages perhaps.

 

[samuel791]

I’ve applied for this job. Could I have some further information please?

What’s the TramTrain salary? Do they recruit often for this?

Is there overtime readily available?

What are the pension contributions?

TramTrain drivers are currently on £26,155pa (£13.55ph) for upto 37hrs per week and £20.34ph for any additional hours above this. You can only apply once you've been a qualified tram driver for 12months from your pass out date, and have no blameworthy accidents/incidents and remain a Green driver.

TramTrain is now highly sort having had the driving staff on that rota devise their own duties and roster. Most duties are around 6-7hrs pay, with the longest duty being 7hrs 50mins pay (book on 1242, book off 2120). There are also a number of spare duties, which are 9hr spreads. These being: 0500-1400, 1200-2100 and 1500-2400.

Overtime is readily available as there is currently a driver shortage. However this isn't guaranteed. You can put your name down in the overtime book each Thursday for the following week. In all the years I've been at Supertram, I've never done this and always got overtime - usually through been directly asked. You can walk away with a good £2,500pcm after tax if you do around 45hrs overtime (not for everyone!).

Pension contributions are 8% (5% from yourself and 3% from Stagecoach). Obviously you can opt in/out of this and change the voluntary contributions yourself.

 

[samuel791]

I must say this seems a very poor salary for a tram driver and more akin to that of a bus driver. For comparison, Croydon Tramlink drivers are now on £45k (albeit in a far more expensive area of the country).

Also worth pointing out that progression to train driving would be subject to applying and passing the relevant aptitude tests. A tram driver would be an “off the street” applicant as far as TOCs and FOCs are concerned (albeit that tram driving would provide good safety critical experience to draw from).

Sadly, this is the case although in Sheffield/Rotherham and the surrounding area we're lucky in the sense that most things are much cheaper than the rest of the UK. Indeed, you can pick up an house in central Rotherham for £30-35k. So in theory it is one of the best paying jobs around the local area. Bus drivers in South Yorkshire are paid the best at First South Yorkshire, but their A rate is only £11.23 and that's after 5 years service.

Progression to TramTrain requires a Network Rail approved medical to check for colour blindness etc. That's it. It was deemed by Network Rail and East Midlands Train trainers at the time that tram driving was already a very skilled job, especially working to line of sight rules and signals that can change on you as you approach them, along with throwing in pedestrians/vehicles into the mix. That is why training was very short (2 weeks in total to pass out, that included 2 days PTS training, 5 days classroom training learning signals/regulations/rule book etc. and then 3 days driver training).

 

[samuel791]

I'm shocked how low the wages are - we employ cleaners who earn more per hour than that!
Tramways are operated more like buses than railways hence the comparison in wages perhaps.

Trams are essentially buses on rails. Also, don't forget in terms of Sheffield/Rotherham the wages are actually pretty good. Especially when contrasted to other jobs and the cost of houses. You can pick up a 2up, 2 down terrace in central Rotherham for between £30-35k, that's ready to move into. You have to look at local market factors.

Just as an example: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/propert...e&mustHave=&dontShow=&furnishTypes=&keywords=

 

[notadriver]

Just looking at the bus driver vacancies in Sheffield, a trainee starts on £9.57 an hour with qualified pcv holders maxing out at £11.23. London bus drivers can earn 40k and are much closer to the 45k croydon tramlink drivers earn.

Sorry a lot of what I wrote was repeated above. Interestingly it seems very quick to convert an tram driver to a tram - train driver on network rail lines but when it comes to converting a tram driver to working in a TOC such as northern the training process takes much longer.

 

[TO123]

Thanks for the info Sam