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East Coast Mainline

East Coast Mainline has been certified as one of Britain's Top Employers 2013. Independent research into its employee offerings showed this company has outstanding working conditions. On this page you will find out exactly what makes it one of the best companies to work for in the UK.

 

East Coast Mainline
East Coast House
Skeldergate
York
YO1 6DH

0845 059 3634
www.eastcoast.co.uk

From the research by the CRF Institute

The Top Employers Certification is awarded only to organisations that meet the highest standard in Human Resources (HR). The research assesses all critical areas of HR management of the participating organisations. The research showed that East Coast Mainline has outstanding employee offerings and thus qualified for the exclusive Top Employers certification. The research

Communication Channels

  • Brainstorming sessions
  • Formal sessions
  • Works groups or works councils
  • Special access to CEO/Leadership
  • Suggestions box/email
  • Forums/blogs on Intranet
  • Instant messaging (e.g. MSN/Skype/Connector)
  • Social media (e.g. Facebook, Twitter)
  • Special/social events
  • Employee surveys

Development Programmes

  • Internship programmes
  • Graduate development programmes/traineeships
  • Talent management/high performer programmes
  • Leadership development programmes
  • Coaching/mentoring programmes
  • Peer support programmes
  • Job rotation programmes
  • General training programmes
  • Industry-related/job-specific training programmes
  • Self-selected training programmes
  • International exchange programmes

Benefits

  • Car/travel allowance
  • Laptop
  • Childcare facilities/vouchers
  • Gym or gym subsidy
  • Health insurance
  • Meal subsidies or subsidised canteen services
  • Religious and/or spiritual facilities (e.g. prayer room)
  • Sabbatical/approved extended leave of absence
  • Extended maternity leave/payment
  • Study leave
  • Study (financial) support
  • Other insurance
  • Pension scheme
  • Overtime pay
  • Performance-related bonuses based on individual/team performance

Onboarding Activities

  • A tour around the organisation
  • Induction course (covering the organisation’s mission, vision, values)
  • Employee handbook that specifies HR policy and regulations (hardcopy or online)
  • Networking events for new employees
  • Follow-up session one year after joining
  • A mentor is assigned to the new employee
  • Meeting with HR to explain procedures
  • Standard meeting after specified period
  • Meeting with the CEO
  • Meeting with Executive Management
  • Formal session on targets

About the company

East Coast runs fast, frequent passenger train services on the East Coast Main Line between London King’s Cross to Scotland. Running 155 services per weekday and carrying 19 million customers per year, we employ 3000 people across the East Coast of the UK.

Facts and figures

Industry: Transport & Logistics
Number of employees: 2600

“The opportunity to see more of the country with your rail passes is something I try to make the most of when I can”

"Having studied for a PhD in Immunology, I was looking for a new challenge and a change of direction. After meeting some of the East Coast Learning and Development team, I thought the EC philosophy was similar to mine, so it seemed the logical choice. Working here has been challenging but worthwhile. I have been exposed to a variety of business areas in the last 17 months, from one end of the country to the other. This has been an excellent way to see the bigger picture of the company while being able to network on future projects."

"East Coast provides excellent graduate training and opportunities to attend many courses to improve your abilities. The people here are friendly and made me feel very welcome from the start. The opportunity to see more of the country with your rail passes is something I try to make the most of when I can. There are also great career opportunities – for example, a colleague who started at the same time as me as a Customer Service Assistant is now a trainee guard. I'm proud to say I work for East Coast and when challenged, always put a positive note that it is improving all the time."

Dan Flower, HR Business Analyst, joined East Coast Mainline in October 2011

“People take pride in their work and everybody has been open and eager to share”

"I began my incredible journey in October 2011 starting with the Business Planning team, where I focused on how we measured and reported quality standards and customer satisfaction. I was lucky enough to get involved in the planning for the Olympic Games and was project manager of a large procurement process. The flexibility of the programme allowed me to gain a useful network and follow my interests in East Coast."

"My other placements have included Stations and On Board services, where my people management skills were put to the test, progressing from two teams of four employees to leading 34 employees in just two months. I have had lots of opportunities to develop, I have felt valued throughout the program, and cannot speak highly enough about working for this company. Every day is different, people take pride in their work and everybody has been open and eager to share wisdom of their departments. I must admit I never thought I’d be working for a rail company after my business and management degree, but working for East Coast has been an unforgettable experience which I certainly do not want to end."

William Munton, Crew Manager King’s Cross, joined East Coast Mainline in October 2011

“We’ve made great strides to engage our workforce, who feel great about working here”

"At East Coast we’re committed to delivering our vision: ‘to provide the very best customer experience and to make East Coast a great place to work’. Since November 2009, when East Coast took over the business, we have improved the value of the franchise and taken steps to improve our service proposition. We’ve also made great strides to engage our workforce, who feel great about working here. Our first employee survey in 2010 recorded an engagement score of 62%. While this was a good result, we knew we could improve on this. We were delighted to learn from our most recent engagement survey in 2012 that this had increased to 71% of our employees feeling positively engaged about working for East Coast."

"It’s a given that customer satisfaction depends on providing a great experience, but these rising scores also reflect the pride our teams are now feeling about working for East Coast. In summary, our people are happy in their work and willing to give that extra discretionary effort, which is so important to making the customer’s experience a memorable one. This year-on-year improvement actively demonstrates we’re one of the best train companies at engaging with our people and bringing to life their passion for their job."

Karen Boswell, Managing Director, East Coast Mainline