Govt urged to ease hiring freeze on SRT to solve train driver shortage

 

 

The Ministry of Transport will ask the cabinet to ease the freeze on employment in the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) so that it can employ new staff to be trained as train drivers.

 

Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said Friday (Feb 16) that the SRT is experiencing shortage of train drivers because many of them have retired and replacements are not possible because of the cabinet’s policy of employment freeze which is applied to all ministries.

 

Expressing concern that the problem of the shortage of train drivers will get worse, he disclosed that the SRT is in need of about 19,000 train drivers to fill up the vacancies left by retirement of old staff and to cope with the procurement of more locomotives for expanded train service.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/govt-urged-ease-hiring-freeze-srt-solve-train-driver-shortage/

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2018-02-17

According to Aslef, the UK train drivers union, there are a total of 19,000 train drivers in the UK.

 

The UK is the 17th largest rail network in the world with 17,732Km of track.

Thailand is the 44th largest rail network in the world with 4.507Km of track.

 

However according to the OP the SRT is in need of an additional 19,000 drivers!

9 minutes ago, BigBadGeordie said:

According to Aslef, the UK train drivers union, there are a total of 19,000 train drivers in the UK.

 

The UK is the 17th largest rail network in the world with 17,732Km of track.

Thailand is the 44th largest rail network in the world with 4.507Km of track.

 

However according to the OP the SRT is in need of an additional 19,000 drivers!

I used to know a couple of train drivers here. They told me they only drive 4 hours a day whereas in the UK they drive 8 hours a day or more, if they are on overtime.