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0607a Aslef journal.qxd 29/6/06 13:55 Page 8CONFERENCE NEWS■ ■ ■ ■ ■ The ASLEF Journal July 2006A first time ASLEF delegateRON PEGLER from Three Bridges Branch was a delegate for the firsttime this year. These were his impressions of conference:‘The first couple of days are daunting and you feel a great weight ofresponsibility when you realise all the issues you will be dealing with.When the General Secretary says you will be making decisions thatcan affect our 18,500 members, it puts it into perspective.You have to start thinking about issues that concern other people,outside the things you talk about in your own branch or involve yourown company.It is a responsibility and an honour – but by the end of the week you realise what apleasure it has been to meet and talk and share problems at work with other driversfrom across the country.’an old hand …RAY JACKSON, the chair of the Retired Member’s Section (RMS), was delighted toreport that it now represented 1,461 people – which he said was a tribute to everyoneon his active committee. He praised ASLEF for the lead it has taken on occupationalpensions, but stressed that there was much work to do on the state pension – whichstood at a miserly £84.25 a week, and was still subject to means testing.‘It’s very telling when a Labour Chancellor thinks a CBI man (Turner) is too radical!’Ray declared. ‘Last year 30,000 pensioners died of cold-related illnesses and 87% ofwomen get no pension at all!’We will be hearing more from the RMS in the future, as delegates agreed to theirsending a delegate to AAD conferences.…a pensions expert …FORMER EC President and now pensions expert Dave Tysonoutlined the role of a trustee director and examined some of thecauses of the pensions crisis. He pointed to employers who werereluctant to pay their share (including some companies who had putillegal proposals); the Chancellor who had cost the schemes over£80 million by a change in the law and the financial meltdown afterthe Twin Towers attack.But it was not all bad news, he said, as he referred to onecompany which had reopened its scheme – ‘a remarkableachievement’. Dave was confident that railway pension schemes were safe, but pointedout that they have no control over markets and warned that a range of actions may haveto be taken to protect final salary schemes.…. and a president!ALAN DONNELLY, the EC President, opened his address to conference by saying, ‘Wemust never forget that our major task is to look after and protect our front-linecolleagues – and to fight for those who are being harassed for standing up forthemselves and their mates’.His central message was that the union existed to represent and protect all those atthe ‘sharp end’: the ordinary train driver. But he was also proud of everything the unionas a whole had achieved over the previous twelve months.Alan had special praise for the ‘unrecognised efforts of our retired members’,especially in the area of pensions – but he had some harsh words for government.‘I will not let the government away with the fact it raised the retirement age for workingclass people,’ he said. ‘That is something I would not like to be remembered for.’He stressed that our financial problems are not over – but, he said, they are beingaddressed, and he welcomed a new era of openness and transparency, somethingsymbolised by the electronic voting system used at conference.Alan highlighted industrial problems where progress had been made, and made apoint of thanking ‘all our LUL members for their loyal support and solidarity – just as wethank all other ASLEF who have been involved in industrial disputes’. He also spoke ofthe on-going challenge of harmonisation talks.He congratulated members on their support for union campaigns – especially freighton rail, corporate manslaughter and company pensions and felt progress was beingmade on Specially Monitored Drivers. He also congratulated Pauline Cawood on beingthe first ASLEF woman elected onto the TUC Women’s Committee.Looking overseasASLEF’s vice-president Tosh McDonald said hewas delighted that ASLEF’s agenda items oninternational matters at this year’s conferencehad been put forward by branches rather thancoming from the top table. ‘It is a mark of thematurity of our union and a welcomedevelopment,’ Tosh told AAD delegates.The conference● condemned attacks against gay people inColombia, Jamaica and Iran● pledged itself to defend the democratic andprogressive government of Venezuela● condemned the continued illegal imprisonmentwithout trial of US prisoners inGuantanamo Bay● offered its continued support to the campaignfor Justice for Colombia.The union will also call on the Prime Ministerto review his appointment of Ruth Kelly as hisequalities minister in view of her membership ofOpus Dei, an organisation which is anti-gay, antiwomen’srights and opposed to a woman’s rightto choose to have an abortion.Delegates also called for ASLEF to applyethical and fair trade policies to garments andother products used and sold by the union.The union also registered its concern forBritish soldiers in Iraq and other countries. ToshMcDonald pointed out, ‘Ordinary soldiers areworking class people. The problem is not thesoldiers but politicians who make irresponsiblemilitary decisions from their safe and comfortablehomes.’Thinking about a moveASLEF is to review whether the union’s HQcontinues to be suitable to the need of the unionand will consider moving to more modernpremises which would comply with theDisabilities Discrimination Act 1995 and be lessof a drain on union finances. However,assurances were given that the Arkwright Roadheadquarters would not be sold as a short-termmeasure to counter immediate financialproblems.The general secretary confessed to his ownattachment for theHampstead building,home to so muchASLEF history – buthe remindeddelegates that it wasnot the union’s firsthome and that itsroots lay in Yorkshire.He was also adamantthat the union neededto get its financesright before takingany action. ‘Our firstduty it to balance thebooks – but it isuseful to carry out thereview,’ he said.A delegate loses hishead in ArkwrightRoad debate!8
0607a Aslef journal.qxd 29/6/06 13:55 Page 9CONFERENCE NEWS■ ■ ■ ■ ■ The ASLEF Journal July 2006Conditions in cabs: ‘offensive,insulting and often insanitary’ONE issue that united every ASLEFrepresentative at this year’sconference was the need for drasticand speedy action to improveconditions in the driver’s cab. Thislooks like becoming one of the majorcampaigns for the coming year after a procession of delegatescondemned excessive noise levels, inadequate heating, nonexistentventilation, hazardous seating and ever-present dirt.The Class 66 type locomotive came in for special mentionwhen noise levels were discussed but the message was clear:cabs – our member’s working environment - need afundamental and comprehensive overhaul. Minimumstandards as currently expressed clearly need to be raised.‘Air conditioning is not some brave new world,’ the generalsecretary insisted as he summed up the debate. ‘You get it incars and taxis – and you certainly get it in offices.‘Yet the driving cab is, for our professionals, their place ofwork – and what do they have to put up with? Cabs that aretechnological deserts and cooling systems that involve drivershanging out of an open door. Instead of clean air, we’reoffered a bottle of water now and again.‘We wouldn’t accept these conditions in an office – and weare not going to tolerate them in the cab. We all have a right toa clean environment in the workplace.’Drivers complained that they used to be compared withairline pilots – but that the comparison these days was quiteludicrous.KEY WITNESS‘I WORK for a company which prides itself on being innovative,professional, and wanting to be the 'best train operatingcompany to work for' – yet their driving cabs are a disgrace.‘The norm is warped cab doors creating turbulent sounds wayabove the legal decibel limit. (Regulation of Noise at Work Act,2005). It’s quite absurd that we’re not allowed to play music orlisten to radios as they could distract us – but we’re providedwith 88 decibels of pure, monotonic, ear-busting wind noise.We have filthy, clapped out, dysfunctional driver’s seats, withbroken armrests and worn out seat cushions, making you feelyou’re sitting on a hard surface. (Our company recently offeredadvice to drivers on how to adjust the driver’s seat in order tosit comfortably!) This is without mentioning damp, smelly,rusty, shabby and filthy cab decor. (Does the ManagingDirector’s office look like this?)‘Our company recently issued a staff pack, containing a listof words which supposedly reflect the company’s values. Hereare some of them: Caring, clean, efficient, enjoyable,comfortable, modern, innovative. What exactly are these wordsapplicable to? Because they certainly do not apply to HSTdriving cabs.‘ASLEF must share blame with the TOC for allowing theseconditions to deteriorate, and for allowing its members to workin these appalling conditions. It’s no use having ‘Proud to be aunion’ as our motto when the reality of the job is so radicallydifferent.’Greg Burton PaddingtonCONFERENCESHORTSINDUSTRIAL ISSUES Theconference called for:● the extension of free travelfacilities to all rail workers● a national qualification for alldrivers which would enablethem to carry over promotion,transfer, redundancy and longservice awards if they moved toa new employer● smaller differentials betweennewly qualified and longerservice drivers; and● an extension of flexibleworking – for both women andmenDelegates also agreed achange to the Driver’s Charterso that the union should aspireto a 32-hour working week overfour days with a maximum shiftof no more than nine and a halfhours a day. There wasopposition from delegates whoargued that it was not realisticin freight - but the change wasadopted on the basis that theCharter was aspirational ratherthan compulsory.NEEDLESTICK INJURIESNeedlestick injuries havebecome a matter of realconcern for drivers who havesome cleaning duties writteninto their job descriptions.Reference was made to arecent incident on theHeathrow Express where oneof our members went through ahighly stressful period afterbeing injured by a hypodermicneedle while emptying a bin.The union is charged withworking with companies todraw up company polices thatwill ensure safer working.WORKING TIMEDIRECTIVE The WorkingTime Directive, which isenforced across most ofEurope, has made little or nodifference in this country. It wasreported that in EWS, 26 driversregularly work more than 48hours a week and it is believedthat this figure is not unusualfor many other companies.CIVIL PARTNERSHIPS Theunion conference has called onall railway and tram operatingcompanies to ensure thatemployees entering a CivilPartnership are given the sameemployment and pensionbenefits as married couples.ARE THESE TESTS FAIRTO ALL? The union hasserious concerns that psychometrictesting could be biasedagainst women and ethnicminorities and has demandedan independent examination ofhow they work in practice,leading to a ‘best policy’ guidefor employers. There is littledoubt, delegates said, thatdrivers seldom reflected the sexor ethnic origins of thepassengers they carried.ONE UNION, ONE RATEFOR ASLEF ‘FAMILY’Proposals for a reduced rate forASLEF membership duringtraining were rejected at thisyear’s AAD.Andy Botham (Derby)insisted, ‘We are one ASLEF –so we can’t have differentrates,’ and Ian Smith (Glasgow)said, ‘It’s not about money – it’sabout representation. It’s ourjob to make sure people getwhat they pay for.’The consensus was thatASLEF provides excellentservices for members, but thatsometimes we fail to trumpetour achievements as weshould. ‘We need to be the lionthat roars,’ declared AngelaButler from Birmingham as theconference concluded that weshould mount a membershipcampaign based not on thegrounds of cost – but on qualityof representation. ‘We will sellthis union on its reputation andits integrity,’ declared onedelegate. ‘We are a family.’9
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