LNER apologise for Train Manager's language

@nauticant

There's always, always a tweet or two that exposes people, isn't there?

This is all very funny.
Until it isn’t.
Until the likes of the cheery train conductor gets Cancelled, loses his job and his home and gets a hate crime conviction.

OTT? Maybe, but it’s heading in that direction.

I’m glad I’m old enough that by the time this kind of shit starts silencing the majority, I’ll be old and dothery.

Lucky it wasn't Milton Berle making the announcement.

"Good evening, ladies and germs," Berle would say to his audience.

"I mean ladies and gentlemen. I call you ladies and gentlemen, but you know what you really are."

As you're obviously, in your opinion, neither a lady nor a gentleman you can safely assume I wasn't fucking talking to you.

There’s no fun in having a quiet word through is there? No drama or opportunity to tell as many people as possible about your plight.

Do people still use the expression ‘brass neck’?

From the Twitter thread, "sort out your social media toddler", is a wonderful phrase which I will be stealing in future.

@BlackForestCake I agree, when a quiet word would have been sufficient and seen as being helpful. I have read accounts of Waterloo depot that suggest the complainer may not be popular for what may be seen as snitching.

Does SWR have a policy about talking to the media, which this is almost an example?

“Edward says we need a... a depot station!"
"Of course! The question is..."
"What is a desperation?"
"It's when engines tell the Fat Controller something's wrong.”

Thomas the mainline record-holding Super Train (self-identified), story The Deputation. ttte.fandom.com/wiki/The_Deputation

[quote Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]@DdraigGoch, the complainer's LinkedIn account says they are employed as a commercial guard on SouthWest Trains. This appears to be an updated term for ticket inspector. Also a Labour Party activist.[/quote]
Instagram shows pictures of the inner-suburban SWR trains. I assumed that these were operated by non-commercial guards but that might just be older staff.

A Guard for those not familiar is the member of staff responsible for the safe conduct of the train. Most have revenue responsibilities too these days. In many places they have been rebranded "Conductor" or "Train Manager". Not to be confused with the minimum wage bouncers hired from agencies purely for security.

I wonder what Lawrence's colleagues think of this. If the Waterloo messroom is anything like the ones which I am used to, 'they' won't be very popular for doing this.

When I think of all the issues around trains - violence and harassment, safety, disability access, overcrowding, punctuality, hygiene, ticket prices etc. - I have to wonder how fortunate in life someone must be if this is the thing they complain about.

One of the appalling things about this incident is that this is a trade union rep grassing up his own members and colleagues to management and demanding they be disciplined. Great solidarity there.

I agree that this is in the same style of Challenor's successful complaint as a PP mentions.

I'm always amazed by the kerfuffles around this - by and large I've never encountered a train company that cares that not only are their announcements inaccessible to deaf people but mostly incomprehensible to anybody with hearing loss and often to people with adequate hearing. As PPs and Sarah P remark, solving a common accessibility/inclusivity issue like that would take financial investment and a change in culture (with no special badges or championship status involved).

The Train Manager (another title for the guard/conductor with some of the long-distance operators) was almost certainly an RMT member. The agitator in all likelihood probably neither knew nor cared who was being dropped in the brown stuff. TRAs don't really care who gets pushed under the bus in their quest.

[quote newnortherner111]An RMT union activist complaining sounds a bit rich. Look at all the men (no women) on their 'about us' page.

www.rmt.org.uk/about/[/quote]
I'm wondering what job this person did on the railways before/alongside becoming a rep. Won't have been clerical as they're represented by TSSA and drivers mostly by ASLEF. I doubt that they'd cope with anything involving unruly drunks so not a guard, ticket inspector, barrier staff or dispatcher. I'm assuming that they are employed by an operator though I suppose that they could be in a Network Rail signalling grade but that also seems unlikely.

I hope that my union subs aren't funding this BS. I also hope that this person isn't getting released from duties or days of overtime from their employer to do their agitating. As someone who hasn't had a Sunday since March and only one RDW, I'd be very annoyed.

As a tfl driver myself we’ve had this nonsense drummed into us for a while now. I tend to go with a cheery good morning/afternoon. Have known some colleagues receive complaints about the use of ladies and gentleman.

My speculation if it was an RMT activist, the train manager belonged to another trade union (ASLEF, TSSA perhaps) or was non-union. Any reasonable transport worker would have just gone and spoken to the train manager concerned.

If I announced "Ladies, Gentlemen, and those with their headphones on..." does anyone think that there would be a reduced chance of the latter group missing their stop because they weren't paying attention?

Look at all the men (no women) on their 'about us' page.

Well, unless they identify as women of course. If 50% of them do that then everything is fair.

An RMT union activist complaining sounds a bit rich. Look at all the men (no women) on their 'about us' page.

www.rmt.org.uk/about/

Attention all - if there’s an flipping emergency. Otherwise ladies and gentlemen (sex based) is absolutely fine. You are - quite literally - one or the other.

Jesus christ, this has proper tipped me into a new demographic. I read this and thought, "A spot of National Service would sort Lawrence right out".

God help us if there's a war, etc.

*Firefighter on loudspeaker “ok ladies and gentlemen... the incident is at the far end of the platform - can you please make sure you...”

‘Eeeeekkkkkkkkk! Did you just use gendered language? Hate crime! Someone call the police!!!!*

Which is why ATTENTION ALL is much clearer and more succinct.