Double-shifts leave little room for father and son

Many fathers have dreams of having their sons follow in their footsteps. They have visions of leaving a legacy of hard work and contentment behind for their children. But one Dublin bus driver does not want his son to follow his path.

"I definitely wouldn't let him into the buses," Alan Murray says. "Of course, when he's 18 he can make his own decision. But I definitely want him to go to college. Right now, he wants to be a doctor."

Murray, 29, has been driving the 134 Finglas route for Dublin Bus for six years. Every weekday, and on most weekends, he sets out before the sun comes up to drive the 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. shift. And most days he drives a second shift in the evening. "It's very difficult," he says. "You have to work two shifts just to cover the bills. We couldn't survive on what I make on just one shift. We need the overtime to just to get by."

Murray's plight is a familiar one to bus drivers around the city. With long hours, shift work and low pay, drivers are having a hard time keeping their families afloat. Their hopes lie with the National Bus Workers Union, which is still working for a 20 per cent pay rise for drivers.

"The interim pay rise should help a bit," Murray says. "But the 20 per cent increase would really relieve the situation. Then it would be easier to put a bit aside every month."

Still, putting money aside is something that Murray and his fiancee, Shirley, are good at. They saved for three years to buy a house in Donabate, Co Dublin, and have been saving for the past two to pay for their wedding, which is planned for August. But even with scrimping it is difficult for the couple to care for their five-year-old son, Shaun, the way they would like to - on £223 a week.

"Sometimes, you just want to give him something he'd like, you know that Pokemon stuff is all the rage," Murray says. "But you can't do it. That stuff has to come last, after the bills, and we can't afford it."

Having a second income would certainly help Murray's situation, but because of the changing nature of shift work, it has been hard for Shirley to find a job that would mesh with his difficult schedule. It took her months to find a part-time job that would allow one of Shaun's parents to be with him whenever he is not at school.

And still, with all of this careful planning, the couple still often has to ask Shaun's grandmothers to pick the boy up from school.

"We're lucky to have them," Murray says. "And right now, we don't have to pay for day care. But if she goes back to work full time, we would have to pay £95 a week for it. We would have to sit down and figure out if it's worth it."

And getting by today is not Murray's only concern - he is also worried about the future. He notes that the company provides drivers with a pension of £43 a week, but only after 20 years' service, and only when the driver reaches 65 years of age. However, lack of money is not the only problem this career brings to his home life. Because of his long hours, family time is a rare commodity.

His second shift often ends at midnight; his fiancee is usually asleep when he gets home. He often goes days without seeing his son awake. Most weekends leave little time for a home life, because he works on Saturdays and Sundays - with only every fifth weekend off. "I miss a lot," Murray said. "At Christmas Shaun was in his first school play - he was very excited. It was his first year in school and I couldn't be there because I was working 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the play was at one."

Yet despite the difficulties his job presents, he genuinely enjoys his work. He likes the other drivers, the passengers and the work itself. And he is looking forward to a promotion to driving a large-capacity bus as soon as one opens - which would bring a significant pay rise along with it. "It was a great place to work when I got here in 1993. But it's really changed since then."