Start Class 1 training in a few weeks, and got a couple of questions for those of you who have upgraded from Class 2 to Class 1 and got drving artics.
Was it all it was cracked up to be when you finally started driving artics or was it a let down?
Do you wish you hadn’t bothered?
Maybe you got it and never used it. If so why not?
Or was it the best thing you ever did and never looked back?
At the very least it’s another string to the bow.
For me it was worth it for the increase in wages alone.(But that was a few years ago, before they started wanting stupid money for training/testing)
I did it to cover another driver who went away (as in holiday, not jail) for 3 months, at the end of the 3 months I was quite happy to return to the class 2 work. I had some fair old loads to shift about, 12’ wide loads down country lanes and in and out of central London. Trying to get excavators round busy residential areas to a school in Brixton, I had a fair crack but it didn’t hold my interest quite the same somehow.
If I’d have been landed with it permanently I guess it may have been different, driving someone else’s shagged out unit is never going to feel that great. If I were put out of work I’d not be looking too hard for class 1 work.
It was only a let down to me in the context that I’d automatically associated driving artics and drawbars with more long distance international work opportunities which is what I wanted.However that’s not the case with British employed driver work.Class1 is great but you need to be an owner driver to make best use of it depending on the type of work you want.
Getting my Class 1 was the best thing i ever did.
I couldn’t get any class 2 work for love nor money, but within 2 months of passing Class one, i got a job,so it worked out better for me.
C-Kay:
Getting my Class 1 was the best thing i ever did.I couldn’t get any class 2 work for love nor money, but within 2 months of passing Class one, i got a job,so it worked out better for me.
Pretty much the same response from me was about two months before bagging a job, never thought it was going to happen, but it did.
bottom line is
there will aleays be more jobs advertised as class1 as oppossed t class 2
the bigger the waggon the easier the jobs become as predominantly ypu get less drops and more bulk
the money is better (some companies pay the same i accept but generally speaking the money is better.
the stress is less aa in general you get more respect from customers work colleugues when it comes to needing help reversing (especiallly blindside)
when there is a downturn as we are experiencing now you as previously mentioned need that and any other feather in the cap as poss.
swallow the expense just now as in 2-3 years i will gaurntee you understand and agree with the above points.
must point out though transport companies are going through a phase at the moment where they are screwing drivers to the wall and trying evgery dirty trick knowm to keep a lid on costs.so be patient as i reckon it will be a couple of years before things even begin to show any signs of improvement.
regards 9tjc