GasGas:
I had a press release from a PR woman last night.
In my opinion, we need a return to Trades Councils, which were introduced in the early years of the last century by that well-known lefty Winston Churchill. This is how he explained the need for them in 1909:
"It is a serious national evil that any class of His Majesty’s subjects should receive less than a living wage in return for their utmost exertions. It was formerly supposed that the working of the laws of supply and demand would naturally regulate or eliminate that evil.
Do feel free to pass this information on to anyone you feel might benefit from it.
Best wishes
It would seem we haven’t progressed much in just over 100 years, if the speech from Churchill is anything to go by, but asking the PR person to pass it on seems a waste of time, she’s probably still trying to find the advert where the dog give the speech. 
Conor:
ROG:
If that were the case then newbies would be snapped up for full time well paid permanent jobs the minute they passed
Well they are being snapped up for full time jobs. My lad passed his test and within a week was working for a local company on pallet network class 2. As soon as a vacancy for tramping came up they gave it him straight away. He got fed up around Xmas and phoned up about another job and even though he’d only been driving lorries less than 8 months at that point they offered him it at the interview.
Regarding agency work, so far this year the post Christmas January to March lull hasn’t happened and we’re busy to the point I’m struggling to get the 10 days holiday I still have to take by the end of March and the agency have said they’ll carry over unused holiday to next year even though they normally don’t. Was supposed to be on holiday all this week and ended up bailing them out last night. Ignored the phone this afternoon when it rang though. 
Can’t comment on what it’s like in previous years as I’m very new. But since passing I’ve been offered far more work than I either want or could legally do.
There is a shedload of work around. Agencies won’t bin a driver at the moment. I’ve crashed a couple of times. And have even upset a customer when I refused to drive for them and went home. But today and tomorrow I’ve been working on a nice cushy number. I’ve been offered full time jobs by agency clients - and I’m not exactly dream driving material.
My suspicions are that the people who say there is not a shortage of drivers are not working on agency and they have not been looking for work recently. Anyone could get a job at the moment in the midlands, and what’s more, they could have their choice of what type of job they liked.
This is only class 2 - class 1 might be more competitive.
sammym:
Conor:
ROG:
If that were the case then newbies would be snapped up for full time well paid permanent jobs the minute they passed
Well they are being snapped up for full time jobs. My lad passed his test and within a week was working for a local company on pallet network class 2. As soon as a vacancy for tramping came up they gave it him straight away. He got fed up around Xmas and phoned up about another job and even though he’d only been driving lorries less than 8 months at that point they offered him it at the interview.
Regarding agency work, so far this year the post Christmas January to March lull hasn’t happened and we’re busy to the point I’m struggling to get the 10 days holiday I still have to take by the end of March and the agency have said they’ll carry over unused holiday to next year even though they normally don’t. Was supposed to be on holiday all this week and ended up bailing them out last night. Ignored the phone this afternoon when it rang though.
Can’t comment on what it’s like in previous years as I’m very new. But since passing I’ve been offered far more work than I either want or could legally do.
There is a shedload of work around. Agencies won’t bin a driver at the moment. I’ve crashed a couple of times. And have even upset a customer when I refused to drive for them and went home. But today and tomorrow I’ve been working on a nice cushy number. I’ve been offered full time jobs by agency clients - and I’m not exactly dream driving material.
My suspicions are that the people who say there is not a shortage of drivers are not working on agency and they have not been looking for work recently. Anyone could get a job at the moment in the midlands, and what’s more, they could have their choice of what type of job they liked.
This is only class 2 - class 1 might be more competitive.
I not vry for life.I have not bad income.I have 5 years expirience,no point.I buy professional maked CV long time ago and put in most job sites.1 month ago i update my CV.And i have call from 2 crap agency.And in last 3 years i had just one call from really company(not agency).If they looking for drivers that why they not call to anyone who looking for job at job sites???In my view -not so much drivers shortgate.But big drivers turnover.Some drivers leave agency,company without reason and go to another agency.
peirre:
ROG:
How are they allowed to spout lies 
Why not contact the BBC’s right to reply and put your point across, you may get your 10secs of fame on tv this weekend
Better still complain to the Bugger Bugger Children corp, first, if you don’t like the scripted response, complain to the Bugger Bugger Children trust, demanding that they reduce the TV TAX, Personally i just don’t watch the crap anymore
muckles:
Riho:
Here the argument goes that EE depress wages in that thread the argument goes that its native born drivers fault of not asking/demanding a decent salary.
No sane EE will come and work to the UK for minimum wage on an arctic.
It’s not about EE drivers working for minimum wage, it’s about the haulage industry complaining that there won’t be enough HGV drivers left in the UK if the EE drivers don’t come here to work, when even a parliamentary report into the issue found there were enough HGV licence and DCPC holders to more than cover the requirements of the haulage industry, its just they don’t want to work under the present pay and conditions the industry offers as standard.
As for cost of living, my brief experience of being in Poland last year I would say that cost of many normal items were far cheaper than the UK, tried to spend my remaining Zolty’s stocking up my truck before going back in to Germany and still had loads left from £20 worth.
Did you pay health insurance or pay for any hospital treatment while you were there?