The HR team at Arriva Trains Northern is helping the company get back on
track after the Strategic Rail Authority ordered it to improve its services.
Arriva hit the headlines in September when its former managing director
Nigel Patterson was sacked following the cancellation of nearly 2,000 services
over the previous three months, mainly due to driver shortages.
Julie Allan, HR director for the Arriva Trains group, said the company,
which has just appointed Ray Price as its new MD, is only a month away from
adding 120 newly trained drivers to its staff.
An additional 170 will be qualified by December next year.
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"There will be a progressive improvement throughout the coming months
and I am confident that by May 2002 the service will be fully restored,"
she said.
Allan added that Arriva Trains Northern has broken down its HR department
into three reg-ional HR teams so they are closer to the operational managers.
