Garbo2018:
I’ve noticed that there’s no thread on this forum so far about the best or worst job you have sent to via an agency. Here’s mine so far:
Best:
Delivering pork pies out of a well-known company based in Leeming Bar for two days in August. Basically job ‘n’ knock. Deliver to two Morrison’s RDCs (Wakefield and Stockton) and that was basically your lot for the day.
Worst:
Working for a well-known Teesside-based furniture retailer, supplying their stores in Battersea, Crawley and Hove. Arsey managers on a power trip and their weird way of loading the truck. Firstly, they load the furniture for one store at their Riverside Park warehouse, and then you have to drive a few miles to another warehouse at Cannon Park to load accessories for the same store. Then back to Riverside Park to load furniture for the next store, followed by another trip to Cannon Park to load accessories. You’ll be doing FOUR trips shuttling between the two warehouses before eventually setting off on your run South!
What are yours?
You must be on the same agency as me, i’ve done both of them jobs.
The first one I could do anytime, great company to work for.
The second, I only did it once, never again, it’s all handball.
Garbo2018:
I’ve noticed that there’s no thread on this forum so far about the best or worst job you have sent to via an agency. Here’s mine so far:
Best:
Delivering pork pies out of a well-known company based in Leeming Bar for two days in August. Basically job ‘n’ knock. Deliver to two Morrison’s RDCs (Wakefield and Stockton) and that was basically your lot for the day.
Worst:
Working for a well-known Teesside-based furniture retailer, supplying their stores in Battersea, Crawley and Hove. Arsey managers on a power trip and their weird way of loading the truck. Firstly, they load the furniture for one store at their Riverside Park warehouse, and then you have to drive a few miles to another warehouse at Cannon Park to load accessories for the same store. Then back to Riverside Park to load furniture for the next store, followed by another trip to Cannon Park to load accessories. You’ll be doing FOUR trips shuttling between the two warehouses before eventually setting off on your run South!
What are yours?
You must be on the same agency as me, i’ve done both of them jobs.
The first one I could do anytime, great company to work for.
The second, I only did it once, never again, it’s all handball.
Have you delivered to their Battersea store (referring to the second one)?
When I delivered there, I had to ask a dozen different staff members on where the deliveries go. When I eventually found out (it’s an outbuilding) I then had to manhandle everything from canvas paintings to fully assembled reclaimed mahogany wardrobes along a very narrow footpath with a small sack barrow. Plus, parking there (typical London) is a complete PITA!
Also, as part of their online service, you also had to collect sofas and other heavy furniture from their southern stores to bring back to their main warehouse in Boro, so they can then ship them to their final destination.
Got offered that job for the run-up to Crimbo. The agency said that I was dead picky when I said “No way, Jose” to that one!
Have you also done the PTS job, just off Portrack Lane in Stockton? I did a fortnight with them, delivering combi boilers, copper pipes and radiators to building sites and private houses, sometimes on behalf of British Gas (Centrica). You did your deliveries in the morning (they run two Sprinter Lutons and two Iveco Eurocargo 7.5 tonners). And once you were done, and if there were no urgent jobs for that day, you spent the rest of the day in the warehouse, stacking rads on the racking, picking orders, etc.
Best definitely has to be a few weeks I did with Still in Exeter delivering and collecting forklifts and the such. Good kit, interesting job and by far the best transport manager I have ever had the pleasure of working with.
Second best was delivering to farms on a short wheelbase 18 tonner. Not everyone’s cup of tea I know but I enjoyed it. Again top management.
Worst by a long shot was doing wet waste tankers for Gregories when they first got the contract from south west water. To say they didn’t have a clue would be an understatement.
Best job has to be Proctor & Gamble, Thurrock. First two hours was spent drinking coffee, then took a box round corner to Tesco’s, got back and they said go and have a kip and we’ll give you a knock when it’s time to finish. Unfortunately only did the one night in there.
Garbo2018:
I’ve noticed that there’s no thread on this forum so far about the best or worst job you have sent to via an agency. Here’s mine so far:
Best:
Delivering pork pies out of a well-known company based in Leeming Bar for two days in August. Basically job ‘n’ knock. Deliver to two Morrison’s RDCs (Wakefield and Stockton) and that was basically your lot for the day.
Worst:
Working for a well-known Teesside-based furniture retailer, supplying their stores in Battersea, Crawley and Hove. Arsey managers on a power trip and their weird way of loading the truck. Firstly, they load the furniture for one store at their Riverside Park warehouse, and then you have to drive a few miles to another warehouse at Cannon Park to load accessories for the same store. Then back to Riverside Park to load furniture for the next store, followed by another trip to Cannon Park to load accessories. You’ll be doing FOUR trips shuttling between the two warehouses before eventually setting off on your run South!
What are yours?
You must be on the same agency as me, i’ve done both of them jobs.
The first one I could do anytime, great company to work for.
The second, I only did it once, never again, it’s all handball.
Have you delivered to their Battersea store (referring to the second one)?
When I delivered there, I had to ask a dozen different staff members on where the deliveries go. When I eventually found out (it’s an outbuilding) I then had to manhandle everything from canvas paintings to fully assembled reclaimed mahogany wardrobes along a very narrow footpath with a small sack barrow. Plus, parking there (typical London) is a complete PITA!
Also, as part of their online service, you also had to collect sofas and other heavy furniture from their southern stores to bring back to their main warehouse in Boro, so they can then ship them to their final destination.
Got offered that job for the run-up to Crimbo. The agency said that I was dead picky when I said “No way, Jose” to that one!
Have you also done the PTS job, just off Portrack Lane in Stockton? I did a fortnight with them, delivering combi boilers, copper pipes and radiators to building sites and private houses, sometimes on behalf of British Gas (Centrica). You did your deliveries in the morning (they run two Sprinter Lutons and two Iveco Eurocargo 7.5 tonners). And once you were done, and if there were no urgent jobs for that day, you spent the rest of the day in the warehouse, stacking rads on the racking, picking orders, etc.
I didn’t do the Battersea shop, by the time they’d loaded it with Hove and Guildford, there was no room left thank god, i’d heard how bad the access to Battersea was.
I’ve done PTS many times, it has it’s bad days and good days (mostly bad).
Worst , any class 2 job involving fresh and frozen foods
Best the couple of weeks I did at my current firm delivering plants , then went away to a temp to perm food delivery job that didn’t work out and got a full time job , been here for 3 years
other best was refuse collection on local council beck when drivers could still do proper work and not just sit on yer bum
Garbo2018:
I’ve noticed that there’s no thread on this forum so far about the best or worst job you have sent to via an agency. Here’s mine so far:
Best:
Delivering pork pies out of a well-known company based in Leeming Bar for two days in August. Basically job ‘n’ knock. Deliver to two Morrison’s RDCs (Wakefield and Stockton) and that was basically your lot for the day.
Worst:
Working for a well-known Teesside-based furniture retailer, supplying their stores in Battersea, Crawley and Hove. Arsey managers on a power trip and their weird way of loading the truck. Firstly, they load the furniture for one store at their Riverside Park warehouse, and then you have to drive a few miles to another warehouse at Cannon Park to load accessories for the same store. Then back to Riverside Park to load furniture for the next store, followed by another trip to Cannon Park to load accessories. You’ll be doing FOUR trips shuttling between the two warehouses before eventually setting off on your run South!
What are yours?
You must be on the same agency as me, i’ve done both of them jobs.
The first one I could do anytime, great company to work for.
The second, I only did it once, never again, it’s all handball.
Have you delivered to their Battersea store (referring to the second one)?
When I delivered there, I had to ask a dozen different staff members on where the deliveries go. When I eventually found out (it’s an outbuilding) I then had to manhandle everything from canvas paintings to fully assembled reclaimed mahogany wardrobes along a very narrow footpath with a small sack barrow. Plus, parking there (typical London) is a complete PITA!
Also, as part of their online service, you also had to collect sofas and other heavy furniture from their southern stores to bring back to their main warehouse in Boro, so they can then ship them to their final destination.
Got offered that job for the run-up to Crimbo. The agency said that I was dead picky when I said “No way, Jose” to that one!
Have you also done the PTS job, just off Portrack Lane in Stockton? I did a fortnight with them, delivering combi boilers, copper pipes and radiators to building sites and private houses, sometimes on behalf of British Gas (Centrica). You did your deliveries in the morning (they run two Sprinter Lutons and two Iveco Eurocargo 7.5 tonners). And once you were done, and if there were no urgent jobs for that day, you spent the rest of the day in the warehouse, stacking rads on the racking, picking orders, etc.
I didn’t do the Battersea shop, by the time they’d loaded it with Hove and Guildford, there was no room left thank god, i’d heard how bad the access to Battersea was.
I’ve done PTS many times, it has it’s bad days and good days (mostly bad).
Another of my favourites is Newman Scott.
Took me at least three hours to get from Toddington to Battersea! Most of that time was sitting on the North and South Circulars.
I guess you had the 10-plate Iveco Stralis as your motor. Not a bad size cab.
The load for my second run was loaded right up to the gunwhales!
Had a lot of good agency work in the late eighties for wincanton in west london.Also did agency for a big electrical company out of croydon heading up M1 to do a trailer swap.
Can’t ever say I had any bad jobs but I am sure they are around maybe more so now than then?
The worst one I’ve had was taking shredded paper waste from Tilbury to Cemex in Rugby. The stuff absolutely stunk and even after only a few weeks the smell was everywhere, in my car, my boat, no matter how often I changed and washed my clothes it followed me everywhere. The people were all nice though.
The best, I’m not sure. The one I’ve got now is good, it’s own account work so there is no pressure to maximise income from the truck, it just serves their main business. They pretty much leave me alone to get on with it and the hours are reasonable- 0600 starts and I’ve averaged 8.5 hour days with breaks paid this week, free time is as important to me as money so it suits me.
The beauty of doing agency work is that if I did need to earn more money, I would simply phone the agency and tell them I needed to be working 13 hour shifts and they would find me something along those lines.
Best paying, but worst I’ve had was shifting refuse waste between Inverness and Peterhead, Stinking trucks sweeping out the trailer in the height of summer, everything stunk, the wagons were as you can Imagine, was expected to tramp out too, not so nice
Best was a night trunk from Inverness to Glasgow, show up drive to the depot, sleep while they load you, back up the road park up and sod off home, payed 13/14 hours a night for minimal effort, second to that was driving a rigid delivering tree saplings easy as you can imagine!
Nightshift from grangemouth to fort william trailer changeover.
Also most container work. Always took the 1 hitters.
Tescos as well pick your starting times and choice of drops from transport. Do couple short runs in 1 shift or pick a 1 distance one.
Worst
Any multidrop. Stressed all day and getting asked to go 60 miles out to middle of knowhere for a next day pallet pickup that came in when your on way back to depot.
Leggetts Enfield, driving those godforsaken ERFs they had pulling trailers fit for scrap.
Best was Parker Knoll down Brimsdown, rigid delivering furniture all over UK. You’d often have a fun that would last all week and be totally left to it
Was a ‘Shunter’ in a Unit for a year at a place. 12 hours on / 12 off. But the place was practically dead 90% of the time. They just needed a driver on site to change over trailers around. It took about 4 to 10 hours to fill a trailer. There was only 4 trailers. I did nothing most of the time. I had a lot of time to read, did a few online courses, etc. Best job I ever had, it paid very well too.
Worst
Did a one of job for Maxi once. Maybe it was just that day. But went their under the impression it was a trunk. Turn out it was a small job 3 hour trunk. I returned ready to finish and they give me an additional 8 hours job. I finished pretty much clothing my 15 hours. I finished at 7am, and was in bed by 9am, to get a call at 9:30 asking me where I was?!
I haven’t done that job again.
