CASUALISING DANGER ON THE TRACKS

Working on the ground next to tonnes of rolling steel is a dangerous job. Receiving and forming up trains, carrying out brake tests and then releasing a train carries with it a lot of responsibility. And these are just a few of the many jobs that groundstaff can be called on to perform. Workplace conditions are not for the faint-hearted. Underfoot is ballast, ready to move and cause you to slip and roll your ankle at any moment. The most common injuries for rail groundstaff are sprains and strains. For some workers, their injuries have been much worse including crushed and lost limbs. Four shunters have been killed in the course of their work in the last ten years. Three of the fatalities were attributed to getting trapped in between two vehicles while carrying out manual coupling. According to a report published earlier this year by the Rail Safety & Standards Board shunters are most at risk when moving around and between work areas where they have to negotiate rails, ballast and cabling as well as other hazards left on or near the line. There is often no place of safety or walkway. In July 2006 a shunter working for Freightliner was crushed and killed after falling between a locomotive and a wagon during a shunter move at Dagenham Dock down yard. It is believed the shunter either tripped or collapsed and fell towards the moving train. If he tripped then the Rail Accident Investigation Branches own investigation says that “the damaged condition of the trackside walkway… presented a tripping hazard”. The investigation also found a number of other potential contributory factors to the accident. In August 2007 a shunter was struck by a train moving within a yard at Harlow Mill, losing both his lower legs as a result. RMT News spoke to a number of EWS groundstaff about the job in the light of what union members say are worsening conditions. Their concerns are that an already dangerous job is being made more unsafe by company practices. “People need to know how dangerous the job is” one EWS employee told us. “There are not many based in the yards any more. Most are mobile shunters who work from home with a van. Sometimes you can drive 2000 miles in a week, all over the country, when it’s busy. “People have had accidents on their way home from falling asleep at the wheel. I’ve fallen asleep myself,” he says. Health and safety was taken more seriously in the days of British Rail. “At BR you weren’t allowed to do a job unless you were competent in it. Now you get 2-3 days training and are considered competent,” says an aggrieved shunter. Another told us that “on my site there used to be a proper safety briefing off the job, in a room. Now it’s just a sheet of paper. So by law they are conforming, but it’s a lowering of safety standards”. Mobile shunters have a whole number of jobs which they are expected to be skilled in and be able to carry out on a site that they may be visiting for the first time. One shunter said that he could be asked to do anything including: tipper operator; loads examiner; freight guard; inspecting the wagons. “That isn’t all of them,” he said. Mobile EWS groundstaff have what is ostensibly a flexible roster, but the flexibility is with the company. Shifts can run from 1.00 am to 1.00 pm followed by a long drive home. On some jobs workers are being expected to work over 12 hours. Also, extensive weekend working can put a tremendous strain on family life, with some workers doing five weekends out of seven. The lack of staff means that it is difficult to take holiday’s. Groundstaff believe that management are taking every opportunity they can to get rid of people. This has helped create a climate where workers don’t want to speak out for fear of getting sacked. As if the job itself isn’t hard RMT helpline 0800 3763706 :: november/december 2008 :: RMTnews 22 CASUALISING DANGER ON THE TRACKS Groundstaff carry out some of the most dangerous jobs in the rail industry, yet casualisation is a real threat