Hundreds of train drivers are looking for a position at Renfe. This is to be expected after the company announced the opening of a call to hire 550 new machinists, within its replacement plan and with the aim of expanding its workforce. Although there is no concrete data on the impact on Ouigo and Iryo, previous calls anticipate a flight of workers to the Spanish company.
550 seats. This is the number of train drivers that Renfe expects to hire in the coming months. The call is already underway and is part of a larger employment plan with which it is expected to hire a total of 2,000 workers.
The deadline to register ended in March and the process consists of three phases. In the first, it will be verified that the minimum requirements are met and the merits of the candidates will be assessed. The second phase consists of an in-person test and, finally, the third will be a test in a simulator.
A flight of train drivers. It is the fear that Ouigo and Iryo can have. Both companies offer higher salaries than Renfe but the stability of a publicly owned company is still very attractive. In fact, it is not the first time that there has been a massive transfer of these companies to the Spanish side.
In 2023, Ouigo and Iryo saw how a third of its staff He joined Renfe’s lists, according to the CNMC, after a call to hire new train drivers. This led the regulator to require Renfe to notify of these calls to their rivals a month and a half in advance before making them public and they cannot incorporate new workers into the workforce until three months after the resolution of the process, with the aim that these companies have enough time to replace the possible departure of their machinists.
Because? The flight of train drivers is not a question of money. Or, at least, it is not in the short term. And the Spanish company’s machinists earn less starting money than in rival companies, but their future projection does promise more attractive salaries.
Furthermore, it must be taken into account that both Ouigo and Iryo can never offer the same stability as Renfe for years to come. And the Spanish company has a greater number of vacancies available throughout the country and, furthermore, it is a public service so You will have to be present no matter what, wherever this obligation binds you..
How much does a machinist earn? As we said, an “entry train driver”, as new train drivers are described, earn less money on Renfe if we talk about base salary. According to the signed agreementa driver starts at 21,973.56 euros to which must be added a supplement of 1,286.64 euros per year for the “driving” concept and another 192.99 euros under the training category.
These figures make up a base salary of about 23,500 euros per year to which must be added travel allowances to the place of residence and for minutes worked. Those minutes are paid more expensively the more minutes they have been used.
For its part, an Iryo cobra machinistbase, 23,374.78 euros. To this figure we must add a bonus for minutes worked, as in the case of Renfe, or kilometers traveled. If we talk about Ouigothe base salary in this case is 18,000.00 euros and is increased to 21,693.00 euros with two years of seniority, to which bonuses such as days away from home or overtime must be added.
It’s not just money. Union representatives point out The Country that the salary differences in favor of the private company (the bonuses are paid better and, therefore, they charge more from the start) are not being sufficient to compete with Renfe since the latter also allows the choice between Medium Distance or Cercanías trains and high-speed trains, so the possibilities within the company are greater.
In addition, seniority weighs heavily in the Spanish company, which is why it rises quickly in the salary tables. These improvements due to seniority are reflected in the base salary but, in addition, the bonuses also grow as they add years to the company. So, a level A chief engineer (the highest range) is close to 60,000 euros gross before applying the bonuses for minutes worked.
A first (and expensive) filter. Of course, aspiring to be part of the staff of Renfe or any other company in the sector is not easy. Obviously, the new driver must have the required qualifications that are obtained through theoretical and practical tests. But perhaps the biggest filter comes from economic limitations. And the courses to acquire these skills are expensive. The one from Renfe, specifically, It lasts one year and is offered for 21,200 euros.
Photo | Andre Marques
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