The TOCs & Occupational Health

1. The TOCs & Occupational Health Steve Bence ATOC 2 July 2007

2. ARRIVA Trains Wales c2c Central Trains Chiltern Railway Co First Capital Connect First Great Western First ScotRail Gatwick Express GNER Merseyrail Midland Mainline Northern ‘one’ Silverlink Train Services South West Trains Southeastern Southern TransPennine Express Virgin Cross Country Virgin West Coast The Franchised TOCs

3. Some Questions • What’s included? • What’s the current state of play? • What are the obstacles to progress? • Is there a desire for more collective action?

4. What’s Included? • Roster design • Physical fitness • Mental fitness • Drugs & alcohol • Lifestyle management • Health management

5. What’s Included? • Musculo-skeletal disorders • Stress • Sleep apnoea • Trauma • Vibration/noise • Task design/Workplace ergonomics

6. What’s the Current State of Play? • To be honest, not really sure • However, my perception is -

7. What’s the Current State of Play? • Roster design – TOCs are assimilating the recently issued ORR guidance on Managing Fatigue in Safety Critical Work and the recently updated HSE Fatigue Index. • Physical fitness – some TOCs are getting very good at managing ‘eyes and ears’. • Mental fitness – not much activity, other than at selection – perhaps more would be done if TOCs were more convinced of the business case. • Drugs & alcohol – all TOCs have a policy & procedure - some concerns about the pros and cons of ‘new’ testing methods. Still some differences in the definition of random testing. • Lifestyle management – all TOCs provide information - some doubts about effectiveness. • Health management – all TOCs have arrangements – most involve out-sourcing - some concerns about cost and quality.

8. What’s the Current State of Play? • Musculo-skeletal disorders – some activity - perhaps more would be done (both proactively & reactively) if TOCs were more convinced of the business case. • Stress – some activity - perhaps more would be done (both proactively & reactively) if TOCs were more convinced of the business case. • Sleep apnoea – some activity - perhaps more would be done if TOCs were more convinced of the business case. • Trauma – all TOCs have robust policies and procedures. • Vibration/noise – all TOCs are undertaking the necessary assessments - feels like a lot of effort for not much reward. • Task design/Workplace ergonomics – perhaps more could be done if TOCs were more convinced of the business case.

9. What Are The Obstacles to Progress? • Traditional emphasis on safety rather than health • Difficulty in making business cases • Costs clear and quantifiable, benefits less clear and less quantifiable • Franchise lengths

10. Is there a Desire for More Collective Action? • The TOCs were recently asked - ‘Do you believe there would be value in establishing some sort of OH Group under ATOC which would meet on a regular basis?’ • 11 said ‘yes’ – 1 said ‘no’ – 2 were unsure – 6 didn’t reply

11. Is there a Desire for More Collective Action? • The TOCs were recently asked - ‘Assuming that some form of ATOC OH Group is established, what would you suggest the three top priorities for such a group should be (i.e. what sort of outputs would you find most beneficial to yourself/your TOC)?’ • The suggestions for the top three priorities were many & various!

12. Next Steps • ATOC will establish an OH group • ATOC & ARIOPS to consider whether they could work more closely together than they have done in the past.