I struggle with this.
I thought you read the contract handed you, if it was to your liking you signed it. If it wasn’t, you pointed out what you thought were wrong to the employer. If they didn’t change it you walked.
Have I missed something?
Darkside:
I struggle with this.I thought you read the contract handed you, if it was to your liking you signed it. If it wasn’t, you pointed out what you thought were wrong to the employer. If they didn’t change it you walked.
Have I missed something?
No you’ve missed nothing mate, because broadly speaking on the face of it…Yeh you’re right.
However, what if they try and change the terms half way through a long term employment, and you work in an area where there are plenty of jobs…yeh, but a vast shortage of good jobs worth doing, all of which that are spoken for.
Not too easy to ‘‘walk’’ in that situation is it?..unless you take a crap job which will more than likely be a lot worse than accepting the terms of your present one. 
Picklehoffer:
Is it common these days for employers to take money from hardworking drivers if they make genuine mistakes? Isn’t that what insurance is for?
I’ve worked for the aforementioned North Yorks fridge company and never had any damages taken off me. My lad worked for TEF who also deduct for damages and never had any taken off him. Basically they do it because too many drivers have a “don’t give a toss” attitude and my lad said when he took his wagon in once when he’d damaged it they said not to worry about being billed because unlike many of the other drivers at the company he wasn’t in every week having to have something he’d broken fixed. Yes, some of them are that bad they break stuff on a weekly basis.
Whilst yes they have insurance this insurance also has an excess and if you’ve got some steering wheel monkey who breaks something on a weekly or fortnightly business you’d go broke and find yourself uninsurable if you put a claim in every time.
In short drivers who very rarely do any damage need not be worried, such terms tend not to be aimed at those and they tend to find they never get “fined”.
robroy:
Thing is though it doesn’t matter if you’ve done the job for 30 years or 30 minutes, anybody can have an accident by it’s very nature and definition.
You can’t just say ''Right that’s it, I aint having anymore accidents.
The difference though is whether you’ve caused it or not. If you’re bending steps or bumpers because you decided to drive up the kerb that was clearly too high or you put a hole in a curtain because you couldn’t be bothered to take care when manoeuvring so caught a post or a trailer next to you or you took your truck down somewhere clearly too narrow and scraped it or you hit something because you couldn’t be bothered to slow down and hang back then you deserve to get billed.
In theory I could do damage every bloody week
But you don’t though do you because you take care about what you’re doing and don’t just go charging into these places. Unfortunately a lot of drivers don’t take care and would just go tanking in and if they hit something just go “oh well, tough crap not my truck.”
Conor:
robroy:
Thing is though it doesn’t matter if you’ve done the job for 30 years or 30 minutes, anybody can have an accident by it’s very nature and definition.
You can’t just say ''Right that’s it, I aint having anymore accidents.The difference though is whether you’ve caused it or not. If you’re bending steps or bumpers because you decided to drive up the kerb that was clearly too high or you put a hole in a curtain because you couldn’t be bothered to take care when manoeuvring so caught a post or a trailer next to you or you took your truck down somewhere clearly too narrow and scraped it or you hit something because you couldn’t be bothered to slow down and hang back then you deserve to get billed.
In theory I could do damage every bloody week
But you don’t though do you because you take care about what you’re doing and don’t just go charging into these places. Unfortunately a lot of drivers don’t take care and would just go tanking in and if they hit something just go “oh well, tough crap not my truck.”
Yup, I agree. See a lot of people from a certain part of society cause lots of damage and literally shrug their shoulders. Very different when it’s their property…
Conor:
The difference though is whether you’ve caused it or not. If you’re bending steps or bumpers because you decided to drive up the kerb that was clearly too high or you put a hole in a curtain because you couldn’t be bothered to take care when manoeuvring so caught a post or a trailer next to you or you took your truck down somewhere clearly too narrow and scraped it or you hit something because you couldn’t be bothered to slow down and hang back then you deserve to get billed.
Well I do not think any employee good or bad should ‘‘get billed’’
They should address that specific problem directly by singling out and getting shot of the offenders.
As much as it is downright bloody annoying, not to mention expensive for an employer (I’ve been there btw so I can empathise on that) that is what insurance is for.
Billing them is the thin end of the wedge, which has been proven to lead to a one size fits all policy, whereby billing of the rest of the drivers also, who may have an inadverant accident becomes the norm.
its in my contract am responsible for 1st £500 not something I agree with companys doing.
story short I had a minor accident about year ago company wanted £500 fair enough was my fault.
gave me a form I filled it in was section said how much a week to deduct from your wages I put £10
was called in they said 10 a week will take a year to pay off . we expect more like £50 a week. I protested. said cant afford it can only just afford £10 due to rent going up cost of living etc.
they weren’t happy but accepted it in the end
edd1974:
its in my contract am responsible for 1st £500 not something I agree with companys doing.story short I had a minor accident about year ago company wanted £500 fair enough was my fault.
gave me a form I filled it in was section said how much a week to deduct from your wages I put £10
was called in they said 10 a week will take a year to pay off . we expect more like £50 a week. I protested. said cant afford it can only just afford £10 due to rent going up cost of living etc.
they weren’t happy but accepted it in the end
So …if by your own admission you didn’t agree with those contract terms in the first place.
The obvious question would be, is this.
Why did you sign something you did not agree with? 
Are you prepared to say who you work for or not btw?
edd1974:
its in my contract am responsible for 1st £500 not something I agree with companys doing.story short I had a minor accident about year ago company wanted £500 fair enough was my fault.
gave me a form I filled it in was section said how much a week to deduct from your wages I put £10
was called in they said 10 a week will take a year to pay off . we expect more like £50 a week. I protested. said cant afford it can only just afford £10 due to rent going up cost of living etc.
they weren’t happy but accepted it in the end
That’s just not fair enough though is it!!
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On another note what’s this thing of getting rewarded for not causing any damage. Surely the reward is you get paid to do a job [emoji849]
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wrighty1:
On another note what’s this thing of getting rewarded for not causing any damage. Surely the reward is you get paid to do a job [emoji849]Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
I get it in a way.
If you are going to get charged it’s counter productive, and to some less confident drivers, it puts them under negative pressure, to the point they are too careful, and more likely to ■■■■ up.
It also breeds contempt towards their firm.
Where as if you are going to get rewarded, it’s a kind of positive pressure, and an incentive rather than a threat.
Plus it makes a driver think more positively towards his firm, and a happy contented driver is a more loyal productive driver.
Firms only reap what they sow, but many just do not see this.
robroy:
wrighty1:
On another note what’s this thing of getting rewarded for not causing any damage. Surely the reward is you get paid to do a job [emoji849]Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
I get it in a way.
If you are going to get charged it’s counter productive, and to some less confident drivers, it puts them under negative pressure, to the point they are too careful, and more likely to [zb] up.Where as if you are going to get rewarded, it’s a kind of positive pressure, and an incentive rather than a threat.
Plus it makes a driver think more positively towards his firm, and a happy contented driver is a more loyal productive driver.
Firms only reap what you sow, but many just do not see this.
Fair point just not something that I agree with.
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wrighty1:
robroy:
wrighty1:
On another note what’s this thing of getting rewarded for not causing any damage. Surely the reward is you get paid to do a job [emoji849]Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
I get it in a way.
If you are going to get charged it’s counter productive, and to some less confident drivers, it puts them under negative pressure, to the point they are too careful, and more likely to [zb] up.Where as if you are going to get rewarded, it’s a kind of positive pressure, and an incentive rather than a threat.
Plus it makes a driver think more positively towards his firm, and a happy contented driver is a more loyal productive driver.
Firms only reap what you sow, but many just do not see this.Fair point just not something that I agree with.
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Bet you would if your lot offered you it. 
robroy:
wrighty1:
robroy:
wrighty1:
On another note what’s this thing of getting rewarded for not causing any damage. Surely the reward is you get paid to do a job [emoji849]Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
I get it in a way.
If you are going to get charged it’s counter productive, and to some less confident drivers, it puts them under negative pressure, to the point they are too careful, and more likely to [zb] up.Where as if you are going to get rewarded, it’s a kind of positive pressure, and an incentive rather than a threat.
Plus it makes a driver think more positively towards his firm, and a happy contented driver is a more loyal productive driver.
Firms only reap what you sow, but many just do not see this.Fair point just not something that I agree with.
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Bet you would if your lot offered you it.
Well if you put it like that [emoji16]
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How sad do you have to be in order to START a job that states you are responsible financially for any damage?
What a pathetic bunch of spineless and weak steering wheel attendants we have in this game ffs 
You should be bloody embarrassed ffs. Are you all that desperate to drive a lorry to put up with this crap? 
Watching Convoy as a kid doesn’t make you a truck driver. Having some guts and pride about yourself goes some way however. What’s next? We have in-cab camera’s, paying for damage, no facilities etc. Maybe your boss can tie firecrackers to your ■■■■■■■■…
(Quick edit, you cant tie sweet FA to something that you do not have)
eagerbeaver:
How sad do you have to be in order to START a job that states you are responsible financially for any damage?What a pathetic bunch of spineless and weak steering wheel attendants we have in this game ffs
Watching Convoy as a kid doesn’t make you a truck driver. Having some guts and pride about yourself goes some way however. What’s next? We have in-cab camera’s, paying for damage, no facilities etc. Maybe your boss can tie firecrackers to your ■■■■■■■■…
(Quick edit, you cant tie sweet FA to something that you do not have)
1998, £750 take-home for driving a 316 Sprinter for a week. You’d have ripped my arm off. You’d have earned it, don’t get me wrong. That was what I paid my top blokes. Some spent time on one of the artics too, but nobody cared back then.
Picklehoffer:
Is it common these days for employers to take money from hardworking drivers if they make genuine mistakes? Isn’t that what insurance is for?
I can’t say about employers but it’s common practice for agencies to do that in my experience. I suppose it keeps insurance costs down? Guess who pockets the difference
One of my last jobs had that in contract, I asked for a full printed copy and read it through. Few days later was asked if I agreed to it, no problem says i 
Didn’t sign it, (you don’t have to but by accepting a wage is same as signing)
Don’t think management had proof read it,
The part that said about paying for damage read
" Any damage caused will be deducted from employees wages only with the written permission of said employee "
I would never have given that permission