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Bus Eireann interview process
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Grass is always greener....
Wouldn't go back near Bus Eireann, was with them for almost 20 years and decided I'd rather be unemployed. Most will tell you you'll be married to the job and many more claim the job cost them their marriage.
Horses for courses and all that but I'm looking for a truck job now.
Good luck.
I’m aware of some marriages that collapsed over the years but just thought of that as the normal way of life, marriages do fail.
I’m the opposite to yourself, I’d rather be unemployed than drive a truck again once I get out of it. I take your advice on board however, just out of curiosity, is there a time frame for which you cannot reapply such as a minimum of 6 months?0 -
soundman45 wrote: »I will second that. Ex BE driver here too and would never do it again. 13hr shifts common with 4hrs unpaid in middle etc, horrible rosters and not as good to work for as you might imagine, if its as good as people think why are they constantly short of drivers????
It wasn’t sold to me like that, but of course it wouldn’t be. I was told 8 hour shifts 5 days over 7. From what I seen the place was full of prospective drivers, again I say prospective, even when stuck for drivers there is a quota system in place is there?0 -
Cork Trucker wrote: »It wasn’t sold to me like that, but of course it wouldn’t be. I was told 8 hour shifts 5 days over 7. From what I seen the place was full of prospective drivers, again I say prospective, even when stuck for drivers there is a quota system in place is there?
Each area is run differently. Cork have different management to Galway, Dublin etc so even though its the same company its different rules. I know Cork are very quick to hire drivers where as is Drogheda where as Dublin are so slow could take months from application to getting interview, then driving test, then wait for a date for medical etc.0 -
soundman45 wrote: »Each area is run differently. Cork have different management to Galway, Dublin etc so even though its the same company its different rules. I know Cork are very quick to hire drivers where as is Drogheda where as Dublin are so slow could take months from application to getting interview, then driving test, then wait for a date for medical etc.
Yes i heard they were quick to hire as well. 2 days in now and still nothing. lasttime everything was within 24 hours. still good to get the opinions of someone who worked in the company.0 -
Cork Trucker wrote: »It wasn’t sold to me like that, but of course it wouldn’t be. I was told 8 hour shifts 5 days over 7. From what I seen the place was full of prospective drivers, again I say prospective, even when stuck for drivers there is a quota system in place is there?
You'll regularly do a 12 hour day and paid for 8, I know one depot where drivers are still doing a 21 hour shift, I refused to do that and had to go through a disciplinary because of it. There may be days when you won't have 8 hours driving, possibly 6 hrs, so the next day you drive 10 hrs in a 15 hour shift and due to pay equalisation you'll be paid 2x8 hr days. No overtime rates, no Sunday rates and you'll work 3 out of four of them.
And don't get me started on their lack of maintenance, I have records of reporting the same defects on one bus for 4 years. Three years to reading lights fixed on another...0 -
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You'll regularly do a 12 hour day and paid for 8, I know one depot where drivers are still doing a 21 hour shift, I refused to do that and had to go through a disciplinary because of it. There may be days when you won't have 8 hours driving, possibly 6 hrs, so the next day you drive 10 hrs in a 15 hour shift and due to pay equalisation you'll be paid 2x8 hr days. No overtime rates, no Sunday rates and you'll work 3 out of four of them.
And don't get me started on their lack of maintenance, I have records of reporting the same defects on one bus for 4 years. Three years to reading lights fixed on another...
Is that how it works? wasn't explained like that at all, re the hours. As for the maintenance, every pit they had available in the depot had a bus or coach parked in it, not sure if they were being worked on but they were full with other buses queued up outside, 4 years and it kept passing a CVRT? did you leave because you were sick of it or did redundancy get offered? alot of the older guys who are jumping ship of late are going because the money on offer to leave is too good to be true they said, but like yourself they did raise issues in one or two area's. I don't expect to get in but it is still valuable knowledge to have, what you are saying.0 -
Cork Trucker wrote: »Is that how it works? wasn't explained like that at all, re the hours. As for the maintenance, every pit they had available in the depot had a bus or coach parked in it, not sure if they were being worked on but they were full with other buses queued up outside, 4 years and it kept passing a CVRT? did you leave because you were sick of it or did redundancy get offered? alot of the older guys who are jumping ship of late are going because the money on offer to leave is too good to be true they said, but like yourself they did raise issues in one or two area's. I don't expect to get in but it is still valuable knowledge to have, what you are saying.
I had hoped for redundancy but too many ahead of me, I just quit. The shift patterns and hours worked cause genuine illness, I'd just had enough.
Bus Eireann used to do their own testing and had to outsource due to the conflict of interest, however, the places that now do the testing (in my opinion) are keen to keep BE happy and it shows. An example, I had to delay the service one day as there was no coach available until one came back from test, it came in with a fresh cert' and without looking for any defects I found 4 failures. Unfortunately BE garages operate with very few spares, so buses that need work are often left out on service until the parts are in stock.0 -
I had hoped for redundancy but too many ahead of me, I just quit. The shift patterns and hours worked cause genuine illness, I'd just had enough.
Bus Eireann used to do their own testing and had to outsource due to the conflict of interest, however, the places that now do the testing (in my opinion) are keen to keep BE happy and it shows. An example, I had to delay the service one day as there was no coach available until one came back from test, it came in with a fresh cert' and without looking for any defects I found 4 failures. Unfortunately BE garages operate with very few spares, so buses that need work are often left out on service until the parts are in stock.
Genuine illness is very understandable as a reason to leave, pity you left empty handed after 20 years. Yes i remember them doing their own testing here in Cork, i know one of the test centres where the testing is done and well lets just say one particular tester in question has previous form for 'looking after' clients. were the defects extreme to the extent that the vehicle would be deemed unsafe by a PSV officer? the Cork depot is never empty, always spares but i wonder is that due to a lack of drivers.0 -
Cork Trucker wrote: »Genuine illness is very understandable as a reason to leave, pity you left empty handed after 20 years. Yes i remember them doing their own testing here in Cork, i know one of the test centres where the testing is done and well lets just say one particular tester in question has previous form for 'looking after' clients. were the defects extreme to the extent that the vehicle would be deemed unsafe by a PSV officer? the Cork depot is never empty, always spares but i wonder is that due to a lack of drivers.
Historically I would have known of coaches running in service with seriously dangerous defects. Emergency doors jammed, collapsed suspension where the overhang was scraping the road, bald tyres,,, another example, interior handle for the emergency door was broken off, I defected it and when I next saw that coach a year later it still had the broken handle. I'm sure all depots are different and the local manager is what makes all the difference, years ago there was a tiny little depot with only a handful of drivers, they had the best of coaches and an impeccable maintenance record, quite simply the manager wouldn't tolerate anything less than the newest best kept vehicles.0 -
Historically I would have known of coaches running in service with seriously dangerous defects. Emergency doors jammed, collapsed suspension where the overhang was scraping the road, bald tyres,,, another example, interior handle for the emergency door was broken off, I defected it and when I next saw that coach a year later it still had the broken handle. I'm sure all depots are different and the local manager is what makes all the difference, years ago there was a tiny little depot with only a handful of drivers, they had the best of coaches and an impeccable maintenance record, quite simply the manager wouldn't tolerate anything less than the newest best kept vehicles.
Would that be coaches like what happened in 2005 with the school bus? emergency doors jammed is serious, the air bags broke was it? if a coach is going around that long like that it's a wonder why no one from the authorities were contacted or intervened. i'm hearing that they all operate differently alright, Stranorlar and Capwell are both Bus Eireann but run differently for example. the smallest depots are always the best.0 -
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Cork Trucker wrote: »Would that be coaches like what happened in 2005 with the school bus? emergency doors jammed is serious, the air bags broke was it? if a coach is going around that long like that it's a wonder why no one from the authorities were contacted or intervened. i'm hearing that they all operate differently alright, Stranorlar and Capwell are both Bus Eireann but run differently for example. the smallest depots are always the best.
We used to have to threaten to ground buses in the North with the psni back before we had the RSA doing what they do. I threatened to report a coach to the Health & Safety Auth' after several years of my defect dockets going ignored. I did a 300 mile service with the front door unable to be opened either by the button or with the emergency release because there was no other coach available, seriously every driver has a list of stories to tell.
You'll regularly be 'told' to report defects, and you'll regularly be 'encouraged' to ignore those defects especially when a service has to be delayed or cancelled because of it. Then when you do ignore it and something goes wrong, which it sometimes does, you'll be told "you're a professional, you should have known not to drive it". It's the kind of job, no actually they're the kind of employer where everything you do is wrong, even when you do the right thing it'll be wrong according to them.
I would have been considered a troublesome driver as I knew more about the Road Traffic Act, Construction Of Use, Testing requirements, Working Time Directive, Tacho Regs than most of my 'superiors', and I made sure I didn't get walked on. As a new driver you'll need to have a working knowledge of these things and know that keeping your head down and not creating hassle for those above you will make life easier for everyone. Once you're an appointed driver you'll be able to be a little more selective about the amount of ****e you want to take. Here's the lesson I tried to teach all new drivers; look out for number one !
I realise I sound pretty negative about Working for BE, but that's because I became jaded, after so many years with no support, no proper management, abuses of regulations and staff, and the family time you'll have to do without.
If you take it on I wish you all the best there.0 -
We used to have to threaten to ground buses in the North with the psni back before we had the RSA doing what they do. I threatened to report a coach to the Health & Safety Auth' after several years of my defect dockets going ignored. I did a 300 mile service with the front door unable to be opened either by the button or with the emergency release because there was no other coach available, seriously every driver has a list of stories to tell.
You'll regularly be 'told' to report defects, and you'll regularly be 'encouraged' to ignore those defects especially when a service has to be delayed or cancelled because of it. Then when you do ignore it and something goes wrong, which it sometimes does, you'll be told "you're a professional, you should have known not to drive it". It's the kind of job, no actually they're the kind of employer where everything you do is wrong, even when you do the right thing it'll be wrong according to them.
I would have been considered a troublesome driver as I knew more about the Road Traffic Act, Construction Of Use, Testing requirements, Working Time Directive, Tacho Regs than most of my 'superiors', and I made sure I didn't get walked on. As a new driver you'll need to have a working knowledge of these things and know that keeping your head down and not creating hassle for those above you will make life easier for everyone. Once you're an appointed driver you'll be able to be a little more selective about the amount of ****e you want to take. Here's the lesson I tried to teach all new drivers; look out for number one !
I realise I sound pretty negative about Working for BE, but that's because I became jaded, after so many years with no support, no proper management, abuses of regulations and staff, and the family time you'll have to do without.
If you take it on I wish you all the best there.
As an ex BE driver I can verify this. In my time in Broadstone a driver on early shift would sometimes park his bus in the defect bay on return to the depot as he would feel there may be a problem only for garage staff to turn it around and leave it ready for the unsuspecting driver on a late shift to take it out on his duty. BE are no better or worse than most other companies and likewise I would not want to discourage anyone from working there but some guys go in thinking its the bees knees and get a shock when they see whats involved, as a "junior man" you will get messed around with duties ie get the bare minimum 10 hr rest period between duties. That said when I was there there was great relationship between drivers etc but yes management will blame you for anything, its very much a "click" too, you have to fit in.0 -
You did a cross border service often then? The PSNI wouldn't tolerate the nonsense that goes on down here. You'd definitely need to know the regulations inside out. like yourself, in my current employment i would be known as troublesome, more of a thorn in the side that they would be glad to see the back of but i don't create trouble, just need to have things above board.We used to have to threaten to ground buses in the North with the psni back before we had the RSA doing what they do. I threatened to report a coach to the Health & Safety Auth' after several years of my defect dockets going ignored. I did a 300 mile service with the front door unable to be opened either by the button or with the emergency release because there was no other coach available, seriously every driver has a list of stories to tell.
You'll regularly be 'told' to report defects, and you'll regularly be 'encouraged' to ignore those defects especially when a service has to be delayed or cancelled because of it. Then when you do ignore it and something goes wrong, which it sometimes does, you'll be told "you're a professional, you should have known not to drive it". It's the kind of job, no actually they're the kind of employer where everything you do is wrong, even when you do the right thing it'll be wrong according to them.
I would have been considered a troublesome driver as I knew more about the Road Traffic Act, Construction Of Use, Testing requirements, Working Time Directive, Tacho Regs than most of my 'superiors', and I made sure I didn't get walked on. As a new driver you'll need to have a working knowledge of these things and know that keeping your head down and not creating hassle for those above you will make life easier for everyone. Once you're an appointed driver you'll be able to be a little more selective about the amount of ****e you want to take. Here's the lesson I tried to teach all new drivers; look out for number one !
I realise I sound pretty negative about Working for BE, but that's because I became jaded, after so many years with no support, no proper management, abuses of regulations and staff, and the family time you'll have to do without.
If you take it on I wish you all the best there.
As for doing without family time, it can't be much worse than what i have at the minute anyway. I don't see myself being selected however after a conversation i had with a driver about how my assesment went, the interview was fine but i was pulled up on a few things in the driving aspect of it, all i'm driving is artics for the last god knows how long,and the odd rigid. i'd definitely need a bit of training if taken on. All i was told was to expect a call inside a week if i get the nod, anything other than that is a 'sorry no thanks'0 -
soundman45 wrote: »As an ex BE driver I can verify this. In my time in Broadstone a driver on early shift would sometimes park his bus in the defect bay on return to the depot as he would feel there may be a problem only for garage staff to turn it around and leave it ready for the unsuspecting driver on a late shift to take it out on his duty. BE are no better or worse than most other companies and likewise I would not want to discourage anyone from working there but some guys go in thinking its the bees knees and get a shock when they see whats involved, as a "junior man" you will get messed around with duties ie get the bare minimum 10 hr rest period between duties. That said when I was there there was great relationship between drivers etc but yes management will blame you for anything, its very much a "click" too, you have to fit in.
I've heard a few stories about Broadstone, as for parking in the defect bay, this said bay was used for driver training. the job is not what it was 20/30/40 years ago, many drivers of that era said it was fantastic and they would love to go back if it were under those terms, but they'd run a mile now if they were asked to join under current conditions. as in my previous post i do not expect to get the nod.0 -
Cork Trucker wrote: »You did a cross border service often then? The PSNI wouldn't tolerate the nonsense that goes on down here. You'd definitely need to know the regulations inside out. like yourself, in my current employment i would be known as troublesome, more of a thorn in the side that they would be glad to see the back of but i don't create trouble, just need to have things above board.
As for doing without family time, it can't be much worse than what i have at the minute anyway. I don't see myself being selected however after a conversation i had with a driver about how my assesment went, the interview was fine but i was pulled up on a few things in the driving aspect of it, all i'm driving is artics for the last god knows how long,and the odd rigid. i'd definitely need a bit of training if taken on. All i was told was to expect a call inside a week if i get the nod, anything other than that is a 'sorry no thanks'
Personally I only did cross border a few times but I know how seriously they take things up there. And yeah I would be the same in regards to having everything above board, as the whole of BE is just one big grey area from top to bottom, they still seem to think the rules only apply to everybody else.
I missed a huge part of my kids lives because of that job and wouldn't wish it on anyone, thankfully they don't hold it against me and realise that it had to be done for the sake of a mortgage and stuff. I'd much rather a minimum wage 9-5 than go back to that.
I wouldn't be too worried about the driving assessment as those assessing have to be seen to be somewhat superior, and as long as there wasn't anything seriously wrong you'd be fine. And as you said, a small bit of retraining will have you fresh as a daisy.
Hope you get the call and your next 20 years with them is better mine.
;-)0 -
Wow... having just read through this whole thread those comments by ex BE drivers have put me right off my breakfast! ;o)
Do you not have a Union you can use re safety issues and/or poor working conditions?
I applied to BE a few months back, got through online assessments ok now waiting for next invite to "supervised assessment" (have had to decline 2 of them previously as too short notice for me).
I currently work for for National Express in UK (Buses as opposed to coaches although I've driven coaches for some NX private contracts). Been there 6 years of which past 4 have been part-time, now only do 2 days a week.
I can obviously identify with the general dislike for 'split-shifts' e.g. four hour unpaid breaks etc but as society created rush-hours and the like I don't see them ever going away. My own NX experience taught me that providing there are enough drivers working out of a depot, it's worth exploring the fact that different people have different preferences. In my own case, the majority of drivers prefer early starts whereas I prefer a lay in and a late shift hence I rarely had a problem swopping a shift with another driver.
My prime objective in joining BE is to relocate/retire to Ireland (we already have a place there), hence I'm prepared to sacrifice my current 'semi-retirement' for a year or two full time with BE and any of the $hite that comes along with it (on the plus side it'd keep me off the beer and put a few pound into my pocket). Then I'd probably look to going back to less hours by driving for one or two of the smaller local firms.
In terms of getting potential grief from passengers, I can assure you that driving in Ireland bears absolutely no comparison to driving in England!
Good luck to anyone who's waiting somewhere in the BE employment stream and also to those who've chosen to find pastures new.0 -
I applied in May, some everything in 3/4 weeks, got rejected at the end of June. Multiples of current drivers warned me to avoid it. I can’t reapply now until next June. I’m an ex coach driver/son of an ex C.I.E driver myself. Best of luck with it.0
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Just want to throw my 2c into this
Reports from previous drivers are true and even sadder the same bollox still goes on today
Swapping out defective buses to other drivers without telling them, regular break downs which is a kick in the nuts when is in the middle of nowhere and you're on the way home, waiting hours for rescue.
Treatment from management and supervisors has progressively gotten worse in recent years, the passengers are mostly against us, if it's not scumbags and junkies it's sly comments from people that are supposed to be mature !
I've been talking to newer drivers recently who have come from private companies and are shocked at how badly the company is run. They have no faith in it.
Drivers have come over from go-ahead, most have gone back. Drivers have come from other privates and have gone back !
The writing is on the wall for the company anyway, it won't last much longer. Privates will only get bigger0 -
Hi everybody. Read everything here about interviews for bus eirann. It's very helpful
Just wander if someone can write about report writing exercise you suppose to have on Supervised assessment. Mine is on Monday 11.
Tnx in an advance!0 -
Not from here wrote: »Hi everybody. Read everything here about interviews for bus eirann. It's very helpful
Just wander if someone can write about report writing exercise you suppose to have on Supervised assessment. Mine is on Monday 11.
Tnx in an advance!
Learn the 24 hour clock and make sure you can add/subtract/divide/multiply0 -
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Hi. My next step is personal interview next Thursday (4.2.). What type of questions are they prefer? Found bunch of it on the net, but I'd like to hear from somebody who has been questioned by bus eireann interviewers.0
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Not from here wrote: »Hi. My next step is personal interview next Thursday (4.2.). What type of questions are they prefer? Found bunch of it on the net, but I'd like to hear from somebody who has been questioned by bus eireann interviewers.
You'll have the driving assessment on the same day, if you can get a lesson or two before it. The interview varies from person to person, no set questions in a sequence. I was asked about how i found the driving assessment, my employment history both past and present, how would i deal with an abusive passenger, how would i assist someone with a disability, such as a person with a guide dog.Also if you have any criminal history they will dig deep into the questioning on that.0 -
Applied online for a driver position, even in the current climate, completed the online application, got the email acknowledgement and the portal lists the application as 'completed' so unless i'm mistaken that's it? no online test etc? can't remember it like that before.0
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Hey has anyone sat the online assessment recently ?
I sat mine recently but feel part 1 went terrible part 2 was fine I got through all the math's questions handy enough actually.
Regarding part 1, I understand there was 24 questions but only 8 minutes to answer them all and each one had a good paragraph of reading to do so basically about 20 seconds per question ? I doubt I even got to answer half of them maybe only 10 if even I just feel I've blown my chances and wondering how you's got on with the online assessment or did anyone hear back to make it onto the supervised assessment after only answering about 10 of the 24 in the first part .
Cheers Jimbo.0 -
I went to one of their information talks in August. The advert said part time positions starting from €18.65/hr appealed to me. I was told at the end to email them once I got my D license. Didn't hear anything back. I decided to make a general application instead and about 2 weeks later I got an email response to this saying "We will contact you in due course regarding your application". That's now nearly 2 week ago. I would like to hear from them, but I am turned off by the impression that the application process takes so long.
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@gbob I will second that. Ex BE driver here too and would never do it again. 13hr shifts common with 4hrs unpaid in middle etc, horrible rosters and not as good to work for as you might imagine, if its as good as people think why are they constantly short of drivers????
Would that be something like driving from Cork to Dublin and having to wait around for 4 hours in between?
@gbob There may be days when you won't have 8 hours driving, possibly 6 hrs, so the next day you drive 10 hrs in a 15 hour shift and due to pay equalisation you'll be paid 2x8 hr days. No overtime rates, no Sunday rates and you'll work 3 out of four of them.
And can you tell me about what stunts might they try to pull on me when it comes to this 'pay equalisation' thing, and how can one protect themselves against it. Are you supposed to get paid for time in between?
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2 weeks is nothing if you are applying to BE, you may not even hear from them for a few months, you have no way of knowing how many applicant's are ahead of you in the que for one thing, secondly it's BE, things just dont happen quickly there, back in the day when I worked there the application process took at least 6 months from memory, but eventually I had to ring them and ask had I got the job or not as I got tired waiting.
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Have an interview Friday for the driver training programme, anyone else on here going for that also? Wondering what to expect
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Are BE training B holders now, like DB and GAI?
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