2006 will not only be remembered as the year of tight budgets and demanding objectives, but also as the year in which resources and priorities were reassessed. The Company now knows what it has to achieve financially and has established the levels of labour required to operate train services and provide back up facilities. It has also determined the number of paid employees that it can afford and has concluded that a significantly increased volunteer commitment will be required in various areas, and to varying degrees.
The Society is seeking to provide the greatest support possible and has therefore established a Volunteer Recruitment Team. The challenge that we face is not a new one nor is it unique. The demand for volunteers has always changed year on year, but now the need is greater, not just because some have drifted away or because higher profit generation is vital, but because students now have loans that they need to subsidise by pursuing well paid seasonal jobs, which impacts on the cost of temporary Summer staff. There is also an increased demand for traffic staff out of season as train services continue further into the winter .
We have to address this problem on both an immediate and a long term basis.
We are now past the 2006 summer service, during which we have suffered severe labour shortages in some of the most important areas of the operation - those where the railway makes most of its revenue - i.e. catering at Porthmadog and Tan y Bwlch, the Buffet Cars, the shops and Porthmadog Booking Office. It is appreciated that these may not be 'glory' jobs but the image of the Railway is damaged if these operations cannot be run efficiently due to staff shortages and, equally importantly, its finances are damaged by a reduction in the income that we so badly need.
There are many of us in the Society who may not be regular volunteers but who have the skills and ability to adapt and learn the simple procedures required to reinforce an existing work team. If you are visiting North Wales, could you spare a day or two to work on the Railway? If you are giving time to the Railway already, could you persuade your partner to join in for a few hours during your stay? If you are a lapsed volunteer and your circumstances have changed, would you like to join us again? Are you what is sometimes referred to as an "armchair" member who perhaps would like a little activity but are unsure of what you could do? There are some activities that you can even do in the comfort of your own home. Please give these ideas some serious consideration. Tricia Doyle, the Volunteer Co-ordinator, is anxious to hear from those who would like to discuss how they might help. You can ring her on 01766 516035 or email her at: tricia.doyle@festrail.co.uk. There is also volunteering information in the Discover Volunteering section of this website.
In order to address the railway's long term requirements, work is also taking place to improve the way that volunteering is handled generally so that problems relating to volunteer retention can be solved. We have to ask ourselves 'Do we look after our volunteers well enough that they will keep on coming back'? As part of this process, the way new volunteers are introduced to the Railway on their first working day is under review. A sensible and objective "Induction Pack" and a complementary introductory process is being developed which should ensure that each new volunteer understands Health and Safety requirements, what is expected of them in the job they will be doing, what training that they will receive, how they can gain the most satisfaction from working on the FR and how they can share their enjoyment of volunteering with others.
The Railway can only address volunteering problems if it knows about them. Feedback forms will therefore be provided in the introduction packs. However, if there are current volunteering concerns which you would like to raise with the Volunteer Recruitment Team, please ring Howard Wilson on 0116 2704992 or email him at: howard@quarrylane.net.
Please help us to help you help your Railway.
The Volunteer Recruitment Team - Chris Jones, Howard Wilson and Richard Wilson.