West Somerset Railway General Discussion

If the key people are furloughed even the best staff replacement system will not work. Furlough means furlough. No need for a "expanded argument". Just think about it. There was nobody there.

Steve

 

Oh to be in your wonderful perfect world, Martin

And please don't waste your time on a reply. Just forget it. I won't be here.

Steve

 

Which is fine - pretty much what I suggested as item as reason 2 of my post. It would be interesting to hear if all those friends feel the same way though.

 

If only it was a genuine choice between those three options.

Supporting the current structure (perhaps the word 'structure' is a proxy for 'the board'), for a good few of us, is not an option. For reasons much exercised on here and expounded by others, I personally do not want to be involved in an organisation where they conduct themselves in such an unethical and/or incompetent manner. Why would you put any of your own efforts or donations towards that? No thank you.

Forcing the issue by making a stand doesn't seem to be an option either. It's certainly not possible to influence the board through the collective action of individual shareholders, because there is no way of getting in touch with them all, other than through the PLC (turkeys voting for Christmas etc). The only way, as a shareholder, to force a change of direction at PLC board level is via the WSSRT and WSRA who, between them, hold just about enough voting power to do that. But it is clear that both the WSSRT and the WSRA are very happy, at least in public, to toe the party line and go along with the unethetical/incompetent behaviour of the PLC because it's the "only game in town". Maybe they both just want a quiet life. That is understandable, but deeply regrettable.

And if you do make a stand, the empirical evidence is that you get expelled from the WSR 'family' pretty quickly. The Board simply don't want to hear bad things, or to accept the help or the advice being offered to them by good people, or to admit they are wrong and change direction.

So that's it then. The only option left is to let things unfold. So perhaps the friend of @Sidmouth has a point. Why waste any more words on this?

 

Blimey I would have liked to work somewhere where handovers were the norm let alone one that took many weeks to write!
We once had a new staff member join the company on a Monday, on the Thursday she was sent to Los Angeles to a supplier in financial difficulty and apart letting her come back for more clothes after a couple of weeks she was there for four months managing their finances to ensure we got our kit. She did not know our systems let alone those of the supplier.
Normally we were told learn as you go along or in the words of my favourite GM JFDI

 

Quite. I'm always amused at work where we get very het up about internal changes and the difficulties they cause, yet people are on 1 month notice and often have leave to take between handing in notice and leaving.

 

Looking on Railcam today of Minehead station there has been some serious weeding going on, looks a whole lot better than last week. But why only the two lines between the platform and the seaward side.

 

Well, they have to start somewhere - after all, Rome wasn't weeded in a day



OK, so it's Pompeii really, but you get the idea....

 

Well that sounds like a poorly ran company to me, would not surprise me if you had/have a high turn over of staff.

 

Time? They really did put their backs into it and they've made a huge difference, well done folks

 

Yes outstanding effort on the weeding front. From the pictures uploaded the station is looking good for the open weekend. Just a shame the old trucks and the dmu under the torn cover can't be moved. It looks really untidy just sat there.

 

Interesting that you comment on this section of line. Someone asked a question about who would pay for its maintenance if the WSR ceased to exist or someone else operated the line. It crossed my mind that with projected sea level rises the WSR may not see its long lease run its full term as part of the line could be under water.

 

Its the issues over sea defences that discourage SCC from selling the freehold

 

Maybe in the future the MD - BA section could see the return of Volk's 'Daddy-Long-Legs' ??