Virgin onboard CSA help

[the red engine]

Hi everyone, been reading these forums but cant find the answer im looking for! hopefully someone could help

I recently attended a Virgin trains recruitment event in crewe for onboard CSA based at Euston. got through the tests and group exercise ok and had a good interview, but ive been told ive been put on the 'standby' list should that posistion come up again within the next 6 months as there were others who did just that bit better, ill be offered it without the need to re-apply.
Does anyone know just how likely it is this posistion will come up within that timescale? or anyone currently with virgin have the same thing happen?

Thanks in advance
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bumped

 

[adw2013]

Recruitment at Virgin is done on a points system. To get on a standby list, you'll have needed to score a certain amount of points, which is called the benchmark.

If another job becomes available, it will be offered to those people who scored above the benchmark. For example, if 3 people scored highly enough, and 3 jobs became available, you would all be offered a position. If however only 1 job came up, the 3 of you would be recalled for another recruitment event similar to the one you have already been through.

Hope that helps

 

[craigybagel]

It's also worth pointing out that there are a lot of staff moving position within Virgin at the moment. This is causing a lot of shuffling all down the ranks, and it means that it's pretty easy to predict a few months in advance where there are going to be vacancies.

Now I'm not saying this is definitely what has happened, but Euston recruits fairly regularly for on-board CSA's, hence the recruitment event that you intended. However, at the moment there are a lot of other vacancies coming up, some of them only open to internal staff (such as TM, Station Team Leaders etc) and some which whilst advertised externally, are likely to still have internal applicants for various different reasons (Euston have been taking on platform CSA's recently, and although the job title is the same as the On-board CSA, the pay is a bit better). So it is quite likely that Euston will lose some more on-board CSA's soon that will need replacing. Rather than go through the process all over again, Virgin will keep some on hold so if they do lose some more on-board CSA's, they have a pool of people to choose from to replace them.

Like I said, no guarantee that that is what is happening, I'm based further north, but something pretty similar to that has been going on up here.

 

[the red engine]

thank you both for your replies, that is extremely helpful information

 

[Air2bob]

Hi All,

Can anyone please let me know what can a onboard CSA with VT expect from a roster, is it working everyday, always on earlys, and any night stops involved, or is it fixed weekends off etc etc......are they quite good with leave.

Looking at applying and just wondering, do you get commission from sold onboard items.

If you have a copy of a roster, then pls PM me.

Thanks

Bob

 

[craigybagel]

Answer to almost all of those questions is: It varies.

Some depots (Wolves and Euston for example) have seperate early and late links for CSA's. Others (Preston and Glasgow, and I think Liverpool as well) simply have one long rolling roster where CSA's have to work both earlies and lates. No night stops involved (except for very rare occasions involving charter trains, but only specially chosen crews work them), even in severe disruption if it involves a taxi from Edinburgh to Wolverhampton (and yes it has happened), they'll get you home, eventually. A rostered day can last anything between less than 5 hours all the way up to 12 hours 59 minutes.

Weekends vary between links and depots but as trains require smaller crews on a weekend theres less work going, so most of your work is weekdays. Anywhere between 1 in 3 and 1 in 6 weekends seems to be the norm. You only get commission on weekends, and even then its not much (5% of sales divided amongst all catering crew on that trip).

Annual leave is 4 allocated block weeks (1 in spring, 2 in summer, 1 in autumn) and a certain amount of free days you can take off anytime, subject to cover (which isn't always available).

 

[sw1ller]

Answer to almost all of those questions is: It varies.

Some depots (Wolves and Euston for example) have seperate early and late links for CSA's. Others (Preston and Glasgow, and I think Liverpool as well) simply have one long rolling roster where CSA's have to work both earlies and lates. No night stops involved (except for very rare occasions involving charter trains, but only specially chosen crews work them), even in severe disruption if it involves a taxi from Edinburgh to Wolverhampton (and yes it has happened), they'll get you home, eventually. A rostered day can last anything between less than 5 hours all the way up to 12 hours 59 minutes.

Weekends vary between links and depots but as trains require smaller crews on a weekend theres less work going, so most of your work is weekdays. Anywhere between 1 in 3 and 1 in 6 weekends seems to be the norm. You only get commission on weekends, and even then its not much (5% of sales divided amongst all catering crew on that trip).

Annual leave is 4 allocated block weeks (1 in spring, 2 in summer, 1 in autumn) and a certain amount of free days you can take off anytime, subject to cover (which isn't always available).

Same question but more specifically to Chester though please. Thanks very muchly.

 

[craigybagel]

Chester is pretty unique with it being so small, with just the 3 CSA's based there (it's a sub-depot of Holyhead), covering 2 booked jobs. Not sure on the exact pattern but its something like a week of the early job (they do the morning Wrexham-London train, then London to Wolves, then travel Pass back to Chester via Crewe), a week of the late job (Chester to Euston in the evening, then a Euston to Liverpool dinner train as far as Runcorn, then back pass via Crewe), and a week spare, where they cover for sickness/annual leave for jobs normally covered by other depots.

Unlike Holyhead (who only work on Voyagers), and Manchester and Liverpool (who only work Pendolinos), CSA's at Chester are trained on both Pendolinos and Voyagers so they can cover any depots jobs within reason, although any time I've worked with them when they were on their spare week they were working London to Chester trains, covering for Euston or Wolves staff.

As far as weekends are concerned I think its 1 in 3 saturdays they do, and no sundays at present.

 

[sw1ller]

Chester is pretty unique with it being so small, with just the 3 CSA's based there (it's a sub-depot of Holyhead), covering 2 booked jobs. Not sure on the exact pattern but its something like a week of the early job (they do the morning Wrexham-London train, then London to Wolves, then travel Pass back to Chester via Crewe), a week of the late job (Chester to Euston in the evening, then a Euston to Liverpool dinner train as far as Runcorn, then back pass via Crewe), and a week spare, where they cover for sickness/annual leave for jobs normally covered by other depots.

Unlike Holyhead (who only work on Voyagers), and Manchester and Liverpool (who only work Pendolinos), CSA's at Chester are trained on both Pendolinos and Voyagers so they can cover any depots jobs within reason, although any time I've worked with them when they were on their spare week they were working London to Chester trains, covering for Euston or Wolves staff.

As far as weekends are concerned I think its 1 in 3 saturdays they do, and no sundays at present.

Thank you very much for this reply, it seems like it's more varied than I first imagined. I just assumed it would be a voyager to London and back. I like a bit of Variety in my work so this is all music to my ears.

Bit worried that there's only 3 CSAs based there though, do you know if this creates staffing problems when one calls in sick, I've had lots of jobs where I'm the only one left in during champions league games ect as people ring in sick too often (massive bug bare of mine). It also obviously means that there's only one job going too (I'd be surprised if I'm wrong here).

Best get them shoes bulled up eh. Glad Sundays are not worked too (at the moment) as I love motor sports, F1-MOTOgp-BTCC, very happy with that.

Anyway, thank you again for this insight and good luck to everyone else applying...... But not too much luck as I really want this job!! Hehe.

 

[craigybagel]

It is somewhat ironic I think that they get much more variety than the nearby fullsize depots at Liverpool and Holyhead! That said, even when you are working the same route all of the time, theres still so much variety in the job, every journey really is different. It's an aspect to it you can either love or hate, but if you hate it you won't last long!

Can't say for definite on the sickness, though I have heard of Holyhead staff appearing on the morning Wrexham train so they can be used to cover if necessary, as can Wolves. If it's known about long enough in advance they can also use the person on their spare week at Chester to cover. Every depot will always have people looking for overtime, so theres usually someone available somewhere to cover. Also, almost all trains have multiple catering staff onboard, (up to 4 CSA's, a service manager and a chef on a breakfast pendolino) so if one member of staff goes missing it's not such a huge issue. Even the Wrexham-London train is only single manned as far as Chester I think.

I had a look at the roster the other day and theres only one gap in it so it would appear that there is only the one job going alright.

I do also have to put a disclaimer in here - I've never been based at Chester, nor have I even been an On-board CSA for a year, so all of this info comes from chatting with their staff when I used to work with them, and checking their rosters and diagrams which are on our staff intranet, so no guarantees can be given with regards to accuracy.

I can promise though that if you fit the bill, you'll find it an amazing job!

Good luck to everyone.

 

[sw1ller]

It is somewhat ironic I think that they get much more variety than the nearby fullsize depots at Liverpool and Holyhead! That said, even when you are working the same route all of the time, theres still so much variety in the job, every journey really is different. It's an aspect to it you can either love or hate, but if you hate it you won't last long!

Can't say for definite on the sickness, though I have heard of Holyhead staff appearing on the morning Wrexham train so they can be used to cover if necessary, as can Wolves. If it's known about long enough in advance they can also use the person on their spare week at Chester to cover. Every depot will always have people looking for overtime, so theres usually someone available somewhere to cover. Also, almost all trains have multiple catering staff onboard, (up to 4 CSA's, a service manager and a chef on a breakfast pendolino) so if one member of staff goes missing it's not such a huge issue. Even the Wrexham-London train is only single manned as far as Chester I think.

I had a look at the roster the other day and theres only one gap in it so it would appear that there is only the one job going alright.

I do also have to put a disclaimer in here - I've never been based at Chester, nor have I even been an On-board CSA for a year, so all of this info comes from chatting with their staff when I used to work with them, and checking their rosters and diagrams which are on our staff intranet, so no guarantees can be given with regards to accuracy.

I can promise though that if you fit the bill, you'll find it an amazing job!

Good luck to everyone.

Thank you again for this information. I think the fact that its a year out of date is of no or little consequence. Given the amount of uncertainty at Virgin at the moment I would imagine very little has been done to the rosters ect (however I am happy to be corrected)

All useful stuff and I need all the help I can get. I'm very confidant of getting to the final interview again, I know exactly what's expected of me up to this point. It's just that damn final interview..... Maybe its just the luck of the draw, maybe I have been plenty good enough in the past just others have been slightly better. Only the assessors really know I suppose. Thanks very much for your help and if there's anything anybody else wants to add then please, you're more than welcome BELEIVE me! ha. :0)