by Alejandro Martínez Treceño | Jun 16, 2022 | UE Commission
On 14 and 15 June, together with CESI (www.cesi.org), we held meetings with European authorities in Brussels.
On the first day, we met with the Cabinet of the Commissioner for Transport, Adina Vălean, and that same afternoon we were with the heads of the Directorate-General for Mobility (DG MOVE) of the European Commission.
On the second day, we had meetings with 5 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and their assistants.
The topics we discussed directly with them were the following:
– Situation after Covid on the railways
– Job shortage
– Women’s integration
– Loss of railway operations after Covid -19
– Sustainable Transport and Railways
– Safety Culture
– Revision of the Train Drivers’ Directive
We all agreed and welcomed the intention to continue working hand in hand and we have proposed to monitor, with information and data from our side, the evolution of the recovery of rail traffic.
Bearing in mind that being a train driver in Europe does not provide any incentive, nor do the regulations make such a specific profession, with such high psychophysical demands, attractive to the new generations.
The average age of the train driving community and the European railway community is, in general, very high.
If we do not manage to attract professionals to the sector by means of appropriate regulation, we will soon find ourselves unable to put trains on the rails because there are no workers available.
It is time to act accordingly.
by Alejandro Martínez Treceño | Jun 2, 2022 | News
On the 31 of May and 1 of June ALE celebrated his board meeting in the perfect context of Rome. At the event participated all the European members involved in the activities of ALE at EU level. The European Year of Rail 2021 has come to an end and we could discuss and assess most of the statements and initiatives produced at the EU and national level related to boosting railways in order to reach the Green Deal target.
ALE considers that there is still a long way to go to achieve these goals and claims that the different organizations and Member States have to get more involved. In some countries, the railways have experienced a setback. There cannot be two railways in Europe moving at two different speeds.
After the pandemic, international cross-border and national trains have still not recovered from previous rates in several Member States. It should be a demand of the Union towards them, considering also the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) tool set up for this purpose. This situation has led to a worsening of working conditions such as employment rights, workplaces, lower levels of wages and unfair competition practices in some countries. We are working actively at EU and national level to return to previous standards of service and quality in the train drivers sector and railway workers.
ALE is aware of the importance of rail interoperability as a key element of union, development and prosperity. Work on the standardization and implementation of important issues such as ERTMS or the application of the train driver’s directive equally in all countries. Up to now, there have been widely differing interpretations in the individual countries for obtaining a train driver’s license. There must be common criteria and provisions, which would equalize safety and quality standards in each Member State.
Ultimately we want to send all our support to Ukraine, to its citizens, and the train drivers and railways workers in particular. All the members of ALE are collaborating with them from different lines and in first person our Polish, Hungarian and Czech colleagues. The great and unceasing work that the Ukrainian train drivers and railwaymen are doing, under extreme conditions of war to provide their compatriots with survival and subsistence conditions, demonstrates the European spirit of our collective.
by Alejandro Martínez Treceño | Nov 18, 2021 | News
On the 3rd, 4th and 5th of November, the “Rail Safety Days”, promoted by the ERA (European Railway Agency), were held in the Portuguese city of Porto.
The event was attended by numerous experts in the field, from all the railway institutions and organisations with relevance in Europe and related to Railway Safety, like Railway Undertakings, Infrastructure Managers, Suppliers, etc.
The European train drivers’ union, ALE, participated as one of the 4 commentators who intervened throughout the event after the rounds of presentations and made a final summary at the end of the conference. In addition to highlighting the value of the profession of train driver and its close relationship with Safety, a fundamental part of our interventions and demands in Europe, the importance of accompanying the Safety Culture in the railway sector with the application of a Just Culture, which really serves to make the system safer, generating a climate of trust when it is necessary to report incidents or events related to Safety without the fear of being punished or persecuted for it, was also highlighted. Drivers often feel that they are the last link in the safety chain, and sometimes the only link.
Train drivers were one of the main levers that served as an example of a group that is affected in a special way. For all these reasons, we will continue to highlight the professionalism of all our colleagues and the importance of developing a Justa Safety Culture and useful reporting tools, as a safe railway is an attractive railway for both workers and users. Professions such as ours are nourished by female train drivers who decide to join this beautiful profession because it is becoming more reliable every day.
ALE continues to be a benchmark for railway driving in Europe and from here we continue working to make the European railway a safer and more efficient railway, which serves as an element of recovery and fulfils its function as a backbone in line with respect for the environment.
by Alejandro Martínez Treceño | Sep 14, 2021 | ERA
One of the main demands of ALE as a defender and spokes organization for train drivers throughout Europe is the commitment to a Safety Culture in the railway sector that really works, that is a Just Safety Culture: which does not punish the professional who makes decisions in tenths of a second; a professional who, on most occasions, is the last link in the safety chain.
In order to further improve safety in the European rail system, the European Agency for Railways (ERA) is launching a unique safety perception survey open to all rail professionals working in the European Union and in EFTA states: the European Rail Safety Climate Survey (ERA-SCS). It is an online survey hosted on the EUSurvey platform, accessible in 22 European languages on smartphones, tablets and computers. And now ALE is involved as one of the main collaborators together with the ERA in disseminating the survey and reaching out to a more specific target group: European train drivers.
To reach all those professionals contributing to the European rail system and working in those organizations who did not participate as partners and those who wanted to answer solely at the European level, the standard ERA-SCS has been launched on the 16th of June and accessible until the 7th of October.
Click here to access the different language versions of the ERA-SCS
It is essential that this survey receives feedback from European train drivers, as our perception of safety, our profession and the way we experience it are very specific and decisive in the development of such a sensitive issue as SAFETY.
If you are a train driver, fill in the survey!!
by Alejandro Martínez Treceño | Mar 8, 2021 | News
- In the last 10 years, the number of women train drivers has grown considerably.
- Reduced working hours, uniforms, breastfeeding and adaptation of the workplace are among the improvements to be implemented.
With slogans such as “for equality, full speed ahead”, “I want to be a train driver, not a princess” or “I am not brave, I am a train driver” … the collective of women train drivers, belonging to ALE, reaffirms the feelings of the collective in the run up to 8 March, International Women’s Day.
As an example, in Spain, women train drivers represent 4.5% of train driving staff, according to data collected by the Train Drivers’ Union. This translates into 260 female professionals out of a total of 5,600.
At first sight, this figure seems very low, as the incorporation of women in the railways, especially in driving, has been late and has had a very gradual impact. This is due to the fact that, at the beginning, the promotions of train drivers came from the military service, and it was not until the 80s that the incorporation of women in the railways was encouraged.
However, the figures are not bad if we consider that only 10 years ago, in 2011, the percentage of women train drivers was 1.73% (a total of 70). This 350% growth in just a decade shows the effort and initiatives of professional Unions of Train Drivers, together with the companies, are putting into practice to incorporate women into train driving.
The people responsible for Equality in our union affirm that “there has been a great advance in the incorporation of women. For out of 52 railway depots, spread throughout the territory, 44 of them already have women on the driving charts. This is almost more important than the overall number, as it helps to visualise and normalise the capacity of women driving of a train”.
ALE, as a trade union representing more than 40.000 train drivers among Europe, set itself the objective, a few years ago, of initiating actions to analyse the organisational structure of the sector. A programme carried out by women, from the point of view of women and the suitability of their needs in the performance of their work duties. With the aim of normalising the social conception of women in the railway sector, correcting possible gender deficiencies and increasing the incorporation of women in the profession.
As a result of various working groups organised by ALE member organizations, the first results were soon obtained. The issues raised by the women drivers revealed the rigidities of a system that is not “used” to female professionals.
The main shortcomings identified by the professionals were:
The scarce or non-existent adaptation of the workplace to maternity issues, both during pregnancy and breastfeeding. The difficult reduction of working hours to allow for family reconciliation, the lack of adaptation of the toilets to meet the needs of feminine hygiene. And also the lack of visualisation of women train drivers in the social imaginary.
The deficits were mainly due to the lack of a global and homogeneous strategy in all the management departments of the different companies. Each one addresses these requirements with its own solutions. In some cases this is satisfactory and in others it is not.
Curiosity on gender bias
In addition, one issue that attracted a lot of attention, raised by the train drivers in the working groups, was the uniforms provided. In the case of women train drivers (there is evidence that this is also the case in other professional groups), they are offered the possibility of requesting high heels and a choice between skirt and trousers.
The heel and skirt contravene normaly the Companies´ own self-protection and occupational risk prevention protocols. The work of the train driver requires getting on and off the train from the track (there may be more than one metre) with large slopes, walking on the stones of the track, accessing cabinets and chests that may be in the engine room or under the train, etc. As for the trousers, the women’s model is tight-fitting and has no pockets. Women train drivers cannot keep their access keys, the train controls for changing cabs, the key to open the lockers, or the pens needed to write down notifications from the control room.
This circumstance implies a gender bias, since in the case of women, image is prioritised over utility and comfort, due to the stereotyped sociological use of women’s image.
Trying to change this, aims at favouring the entry of women train drivers, visualising their image and attracting them to the railway sector. Once this first part has been achieved, they should not be forced to leave driving to take up other jobs that are more conducive to reconciling family and professional life.
Despite these shortcomings, it can be said that the incorporation of women in driving and in the railway sector in general is progressing at full speed.
Undoubtedly, in order to achieve a better awareness in society of women as professional train drivers, we must be aware that the train on which you put your longings and emotions when you go on a journey… the train on which every morning, you catch up on your sleep… the train that fulfils your illusions by bringing you a visit from a loved one… and the train that, with relief, leaves you at home at the end of each long journey, is surely driven by a woman.
