Seems very slack to me this year. Last year I was being badgered to work every available overtime shift, some paying sizeable bonuses, this year I haven’t been offered any overtime at all. How are others finding trade this year?
Was quiet for me last week(construction)
Early finishes all week…and got subbed out to a general haulage co,on Thursday.
Funny you should mention that, our own account operation is very quiet for the period.
Could the deliberate removal of old fashioned family type Christianity from the country, and it’s replacement with diversity, mammon, days off, frivolous trinkets and another excuse to get ■■■■■■■ finally be having the effect they didn’t account for.
I don’t speak as an evangelist here by the way, i’m as lapsed a soul as anyone, but you can feel the difference in the country from even a couple of decades ago, it just doesn’t feel like Christmas any more in Britain, apparently if you went to a CoE church you are more likely to be indoctrinated in social lefty morals and inclusiveness than hear about the Christian message.
Can’t compare it to any other years Harry - as it’s my first.
Last night I worked… Turned up and did 2 hours work. Then sat in the truck on POA for 6 hours and 45 mins reading a book. Only for the office staff to then tell me to clock off.
The week before I no shift was shorter than 12 hours. However, that doesn’t mean I did a lot of work. Waiting 4 hours for a trailer twice a night get’s a bit boring after a while.
Tbh… everyone at this supermarket is talking about the ‘busy Christmas period’. Seems to me that it’s the same amount of work as normal with just a lot more agency drivers and hire trucks. Must be costing them a fortune. The stores are getting a bit more stock… But they are not selling it. Many now have to put the stock in their staff canteens as they have run out of space.
We do not carry anything for the christmas trade, however, traffic levels over the period are not as bad as they have been in the past. Even central London is not as busy in recent days on the odd occasions I have been there. The amount of small vans has certainly increased though, online shopping has created more small vehicle deliveries.
My situation is slightly different, as I rarely have to deal with the agency I work for, we are managed alongside the regulars on a contract by the office manager, but as the staff are winding down ahead of being made redundant at the end of the year, the work for me is starting to get patchy and I’ve been getting 3-4 days in each week. It’s frustrating when the manager leaves it until just before she goes home at 5pm to tell anyone that they are going to be stood down due to insufficient work. Leaving us little time to speak to anyone to try to find alternative work for the next day. Despite some of them having been doing the work for over 5years, 3 of the other agency drivers have jumped ship and found alternative full time work, leaving 2 of us driving C+E on days, and 1 on nights, another 2 drivers share the day work on the rigid and sprinter.
Add in a diminishing fleet of trucks to drive as the contract winds down, even my regular truck (spot hire) was dehired 3 weeks ago, leaving me cab hopping the scabby trucks that are on lease hire. One of these snapped a prop shaft so last week myself and my mate shared the remaining spare truck and working alternative days while the prop shaft was repaired.
I’m willing to stick with the current job up to Xmas eve due to the fact I’m going through the process of doing my Driver medical (which I did yesterday) and driving license renewal which runs out 10 Jan, & the manager doesn’t need to see my license every day, also in true limper style and I’m heading to Fuerteventura straight after Xmas when the work drops off into the bleak season, this break will allow dvla process the new license while I’m away.
I completed my DCPC recently, so with the contract ending, renewing my license, I’ll be in a better position in the new year to look for more work
Been busier than I should be after the end of the busy period for where I am but next week is looking a bit thin. That’s more down to me only wanting to go to one place rather than a lack of work because if I would do Stobbies at Tesco Goole I’d have all the work I could handle. I’m flexible with doing days or nights and don’t mind flipping between both for a short period so I’m getting more work than most where I am.
I’ve still got 3 weeks holiday to use by end of March and am going to be taking a fortnight off for Xmas for the first time ever. Agency are usually the first drivers back in in January due to it being still the company Xmas closure and them needing to get Scottish store runs sent up there for Monday delivery.
Juddian:
Funny you should mention that, our own account operation is very quiet for the period.Could the deliberate removal of old fashioned family type Christianity from the country, and it’s replacement with diversity, mammon, days off, frivolous trinkets and another excuse to get ■■■■■■■ finally be having the effect they didn’t account for.
I don’t speak as an evangelist here by the way, i’m as lapsed a soul as anyone, but you can feel the difference in the country from even a couple of decades ago, it just doesn’t feel like Christmas any more in Britain, apparently if you went to a CoE church you are more likely to be indoctrinated in inclusiveness, social lefty morals and inclusiveness than hear about the Christian message.
Bang on, once again.
Last week was very quiet for me.
Silly season kicked off for us last night . Volumes are noticably up - mince pies , shortbread , wine on the ambient side and in about a week the turkeys are going to appear . On a normal Saturday night I would have about 25 cages of ambient - last night I had 45 . It only gets worse from here on in - 17 - 23 December is just a nightmare - loads for shops that have no more room in the stores .
They’re all skint,after black Friday.
As soon as the next pay cheque comes in…they’ll be going"wild in the isles"again.
Iam busy as normal 2 vehicles booked out for next 6 days between 7 different customers .
Been doing lots of back loads to Toscos in Reading Zb place
blue estate:
Been doing lots of back loads to Toscos in Reading Zb place
Nightmare trying to get a seat, there’s always people crashed out across them! 
Looking at my old notes, (I still have a couple of my rate per job and wage per year books 
), from when I last worked 16 years ago December was one of the busiest (part) months of the year in construction and firms were trying to finish jobs off before the enforced Christmas and New Year two week lay off. I think most years were like that, and then January and February were almost a waste of time and a lot of hauliers/drivers had holidays overseas then. Possibly all changed now though, the World is a vastly different place, but haulage rates are possibly not that much better! 
Pete.
Harry Monk:
Seems very slack to me this year. Last year I was being badgered to work every available overtime shift, some paying sizeable bonuses, this year I haven’t been offered any overtime at all. How are others finding trade this year?
The ‘Christmas rush’ hasn’t been a thing for perhaps a decade now. Back in the day you could pretty much take your pick from an endless stream of work from around September time as an agency driver and you’d be flat out until the end of the year but it’s been getting weaker and weaker every year. Supermarket work still has legs in it though and I doubt you’d struggle to get work with at of the RDCs for the next 4 weeks. Looking longer term I think there’s a big downturn in the economy coming within the next 2 years which is going to put the UK into a deep recession. I could be wrong but there’s a lot of warning bells going off.
Even back before I retired, we were saying that the madness before Christmas was tapering off. I think that one big reason for it is that the stores are getting more sophisticated with their ordering; all the long-date stuff is already delivered and by now, it’s just the short-date fresh goods that are scheduled, plus the odd panic when the logistics people ■■■■ it up. Many supermarkets have discounts on wine atm, to encourage the public to buy early.
Given that the 25th is a Tuesday, I bet that many places will be closed down from Friday 21st, right through to Wednesday 2nd Jan. Of course, anyone who depends on the automotive industry will probably get a much longer break than that.
Been doing own account medical/hospital deliveries for the past 10 years now, so don’t experience the retail-driven increase in the run-up to the Winter Solstice. What we do see though (and it’s the same this year) is a significant increase in the size/weight of deliveries to the big hospitals as the NHS gears up for the Winter season (as well as increasing the stocks they hold on site to see them through the Bank Holidays).
We are pretty busy as we have a few new MRI trailers and other medical trailers nearly ready to roll and this is the time of year most trailers are being collected and returned after their yearly service.
Even got a new full time driver starting Monday which takes the total to four drivers so a 25% increase lol.
I’m just sat in the airport for my flight to Belfast for a day’s work, busy busy busy!
Flat out going out the way, but everything is to the continent.
No busier than usual coming back in.
Not got going yet this year. Frozen food deliveries definitely quieter than this time last year. Chilled and produce won’t kick in with higher volumes until week commencing 16th Dec… then it’s expected to go ballistic. Supermarkets can’t make their minds up either when the big day into RDC is going to be. In all the years I’ve been involved It’s always been the 24 hours of 21st Dec as the big day into depot, this year it might not be, so I’m told. There’s no regular pattern any more.