jessejazza:
Evil8Beezle:
I can’t deny that mass immigration has screwed the wages for the common man/woman, but that’s the fault of our nose in the trough politician, not the immigrants. As if the shoe was on the other foot, wouldn’t we do the same in search of a better life? It’s not just the driving game that’s suffered though, just about all low skilled work has been hit and why I believe we won the BREXIT vote. Whether it’s too late, or we get to grips on our immigration I don’t know. But I’ll stop there, as otherwise me old mate Krusty will get on one!Sorry to hear that wages and competition are that bad in your area, but they are not great anywhere. Even down here you’ll be lucky to get £11 an hour, but wages/demand does seem to be showing signs of growth. As the Beaver says, Class 1 does give you better opportunities, but if you think you’ll be seeing the like of £25 an hour in the near future, I think you’ll be disappointed. Wages come down to supply and demand, and while there is plenty of supply, wages will go nowhere. So if you’re looking to get into this game to earn £25 an hour, come back in 10 years and you’ll probably still be disappointed, as by then you might find that some of the basic work is being down by driverless trucks.
Yes you CAN earn a good wage in this game, but generally only if you want to do 2 weeks work in a single week, often on a flat rate for all of it…
So in summary, if there is lots of competition in your area and wages are suppressed because of it, are you sure you want to pursue it?
I agree with what you’re saying - I was giving just £25ph as an example as tanker drivers I gather are supposed to be the best. I started driving and found I enjoyed it. Today I got a job to start on Tue which is £10ph. Trouble is now I have paid for Class 1 1-7 Feb so I am going to have to negotiate that. But the firm do have W&D so hopefully in favour.
Why do you think you have any power to negotiate? You’ve already said that you’re in a poor wage area, which generally means there is plenty of labour to put bums on seats. I don’t mean to be rude but if they have an avenue to Class 1 work, even if it’s W+D, shouldn’t you just ■■■■ it up and use them in the same way they are using you? Do your class 1, get some class 1 experience and then move on, hopefully to better things…
As for fuel tanker drivers, yes they are generally on the better wages, which I believe is £16+ plus, but do you think the work is easy? They have to deal with LOTS of H&S rubbish, wear lots of annoying PPE kit, and are monitored more closely then most other work, Then there is the fact they don’t stop on their shifts as they are timed and expected at their drops (So no kipping on the bunk like other gigs) and have to stand out in all weathers whilst offloading. And if you get it wrong and cross fill (i.e. Put Derv in the Petrol tank) are probably down the road sacked! 
Couple that with driving a mobile bomb, possibly now at more of a risk of hijack than ever, do you still fancy it? 
So yes they earn more, but they earn it and deserve it…
Best of luck on the new job Tuesday though!