WORK ACT WAS IGNORED!

It amazes me that the Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act 1920 has recently been brought to light regarding heritage railways, as certainly in my case, it was ignored by BR, 60-odd years ago.

I finished school at 15 years old, just before the Easter holiday in 1961, and a few days later, I started work as an apprentice fitter at Crewe North Shed.

Within less than an hour of reporting, I was getting my hands dirty. There was no induction of any sort in those days. I was given a small booklet on safety, a rule book and a small leaflet telling me that I should not move locomotives; all in exchange for my signature!

By the end of the week, I was on top of the bogie of a ‘Duchess’. It was just about the dirtiest place one could get, being shown by the fitter, who was looking from the outside through the hole in the frame plates, how to disconnect the inside valve spindles so the valves could be withdrawn.

I later found out that a good number of motive power apprentices started work at 15.

It was no bad grounding, as I finished my career as the engineering director of one of the privatised rolling stock companies and a former chairman of the Railway Division of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Allan C. Baker, High Halden