Should CFAVs who are prescribed certain medications be allowed to use an SOV or transport a cadet in a private vehicle. Drugs I’m thinking about are opioid analgesics, psychoactive drugs such as SSRIs or even who are type 1 diabetics on insulin. Whilst many of those drugs are perfectly allowable for driving oneself, but should it be allowed for cadets?
I can speak from experience with this one. I’ve got a history of epilepsy and when I applied for a Commission with ATC (as was!), I had to jump through lots of hoops all the way up to the RAF CMO who signed off my application - but made a number of additional stipulations regarding my T&COS. One of which was “no driving on RAFAC business” - no differentiation for vehicle types, no allowance for the stabilising medication I was on. Just a blanket “no driving”.
A few years later - and because of a change in my medication - i queried this, and had it tweaked under a different CMO - I can now drive myself for RAFAC business - and other staff - but not cadets.
Weirdly, over subsequent years, I’ve seen colleagues go through with a range of other medication dependent conditions - and we’ve all had weird and wacky variations applied depending on the risk appetite of the CMO at the time of application. Some can drive. Some can’t. Some needed DfT medical reviews. Other didn’t.
Also weirdly, nobody queried driving when I was a CI. Only when I applied for commission…
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It is still the ATC!
Is that when the VRT commissions were active and therefore was under military law?
Yeap. The one and the same.
So therefore, the RAF had vicarious liability for you and your actions as a uniformed staff member.
The issue is the new instruction about driver hours and the mandated requirements for SOVs to use FMT105 daily forms.
It’s not mandating it’s use. It says that where drivers hours need to be recorded/checked, they say it’s advisable the FMT105. Unless I am missing something?
- Prior to any use of a vocational vehicle by an occasional user, confirmation of their last 45 hour weekly rest period should be provided and therefore it is advisable that for occasional users i.e. RAFAC personnel, the F/MT105 Drivers’ Hours Record Card is used. F/MT105 Drivers’ Hours Record Card
Never mind, @pEp is right!
i. Recording of Drivers’ Hours (SOVs). While not a requirement of the Section 19 Permit, due to RAFAC holding a duty of care, there is a requirement to maintain a robust process to ensure we comply with RAFAC guidance and policy. Therefore, prior to driving a SOV, the driver must complete a F/MT 105 to provide an auditable trail, demonstrating they have had the pre-requisite 45-hour rest period within the preceding 2 weeks.
Need that on a t-shirt.
Anyway, I don’t understand this point. You absolve yourself of responsibility but then mandate the use of an admin heavy process to cover yourself. It doesn’t really make sense to me.
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The other issue is classifying ALL cadet activity as work, meaning that the number of people we need to actually run anything and still comply with duty hours is about to go through the roof. If I want to do a DofE expedition, for example, I will likely need 2 people who literally drive, then disappear for the remainder of the time.
If all cadet activity is classified as ‘work’, does the working time directive apply? Does the hours worked actually impinge on the hours worked for a CFAVs permanent occupation?
From the NCVO website:
Voluntary workers
It’s important to recognise the difference between ‘volunteers’ and ‘voluntary workers’.
A volunteer provides their services voluntarily, without being paid. A voluntary worker also provides their services without being paid – but they’re under a contractual obligation to do so. The organisation is also under contractual obligation to provide them with work.
A voluntary worker is not entitled to national minimum wage.
They:
- may receive reasonable expenses, such as travel or lunch
- may be entitled to certain benefits that volunteers are not, such as accommodation
- will have some form of contract
- are entitled to the same rest breaks and holiday as workers and employees under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (though the holiday is effectively unpaid, since they don’t receive payment for their work)
- receive protection under the Equality Act 2010.
No. we are not voluntary workers as far as the WTD or EA is concerned.
But the term work is being defined differently within the context of drivers hours, which shouldn’t be confused with WTD.
Specifically, we are under no contractual obligation to provide work nor are the RAFAC under any obligation to provide opportunities to work.
Isn’t this what MyDrive is for?
I suppose what they’re suggesting is that as we’re “casual”, it may be easier just to have an A4 bit of paper kept in the cab rather than logging it digitally. It means those who need to check the hours (permit holder, Sqn OC, CWC, camp IC etc) can then just check the paper log, as the wouldn’t have direct access to our MyDrive records.
It does as far as my employer is concerned, I had to opt out if so wanted to volunteer.
So, How does this fit with having to do at least 12 hours a month duty? Is this not a part of our contract?
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that 12 hours is an expectation but no contract - nothing is signed to agree to it. and that 12 hours is buried in a policy document not an appointment agreement or similar personal document.
Fairly irrelevent what ACP 20 says here. The key thing is we have a single contract, which is the volunteer agreement, which states:
m. understand that, as I am volunteering my services, there is no legal obligation on me to accept any voluntary activities. Nor is there any legal obligation on the RAFAC to provide me with any voluntary activities. However, I accept that in order for the RAFAC to plan its activities, if I am subsequently unable to attend an activity that I have previously agreed to attend, I will contact my Squadron or Section in advance, so that alternative arrangements can be made.
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