Press release -
Virgin Trains among UK’S best workplaces
Virgin Trains has been recognised as one of the best companies to work for in the UK.
Ahead of British Airways, EasyJet and Transport for London, Virgin Trains’ east coast business was ranked second out of all transportation and logistics companies, and 43rd overall in an independent UK-wide survey of 1,600 companies.
The Bloomberg-sponsored survey, which lists the top 400 employers in the UK, used a robust sample of 15,000 UK employees who answered questions about their employer.
Clare Burles, People Director for Virgin Trains on its east coast route, said: "We’re absolutely delighted to feature so highly in this list. It’s our people – both customer-facing and behind the scenes - and their commitment, skills and personality that drive our amazing business.”
The company has already enjoyed an eventful January – delivering the first of its newly refurbished trains as part of a £40m investment in its train fleet. This includes a stylish makeover with new interiors, including luxurious leather seats in First Class, and new carpets and fittings throughout to bring added customer comfort and a touch of the glamour for which the Virgin brand is famous, as well as an improved working environment for staff.
Since it launched in March 2015, Virgin Trains has been transforming the business including introducing new uniforms, a revamped staff benefits package and a Red Hot awards ceremony to recognise the great work of its customer-facing, operational and engineering employees.
A new recognition scheme, Virgin Stars, has also been launched to recognise and celebrate the company’s best people, and examples of customer service. Meanwhile, Newcastle Driver, John Scott was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours.
Topics
- Public Transport
Categories
- business news
- east coast
- awards
Regions
- England
Contact the Virgin Trains East Coast Press Office: 0116 366 3988 during office hours (09.00 - 17.30 Mon-Fri). Outside these times, and for urgent media enquiries only, please call 08700 005151 and ask for the duty Virgin Trains East Coast press officer to be paged.
Virgin Trains East Coast is the brand name of InterCity Railways Ltd (ICR), which is owned by Stagecoach Group (90%) and Virgin Group (10%). Virgin Trains East Coast began operating services on the East Coast Main Line on Sunday 1 March 2015, serving key UK cities including London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Leeds, York, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Inverness. In November 2014 the Department for Transport awarded ICR a new franchise until at least 31 March 2023.
Virgin Trains East Coast is committed to delivering a high speed, high quality service with new services, faster and more frequent journeys, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. More than £140m is to be invested in delivering improved service and a more personalised travel experience for customers.
Visit the Virgin Trains East Coast Media Centre at: http://www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/media-centre for the latest news and images.
STAGECOACH GROUP
• Stagecoach Group is a leading international public transport group, with extensive operations in the UK, mainland Europe, the United States and Canada. The Group employs around 38,000 people, and operates bus, coach, train, and tram services.
• Stagecoach is one of the UK’s biggest bus and coach operators with around 8,300 buses and coaches. Around 2.8 million passenger journeys are made on Stagecoach's buses every day on a network stretching from south-west England to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. The Group’s business includes major city bus operations in London, Liverpool, Newcastle, Hull, Manchester, Oxford, Sheffield and Cambridge. Low-cost coach service, megabus.com, operates a network of inter-city services across the UK and continental Europe.
• Stagecoach is a major UK rail operator, running the South West Trains, Island Line and East Midlands Trains networks. It is also the majority shareholder (90%) in the new Virgin Trains East Coast franchise and has a 49% shareholding in Virgin Rail Group, which operates the West Coast rail franchise.
• Stagecoach also operates the Supertram light rail network in Sheffield.
• In North America, Stagecoach operates around 2,400 buses and coaches in the United States and Canada. Megabus.com links around 130 key locations in North America. Stagecoach is also involved in operating commuter, transit, airport express services, contracted, charter and sightseeing services.
