Seen a lot of jobs advertised lately that say 0 hour contract , had a quick Google & its legal , even to the point of being on the employees premises waiting to work but without being paid … hmmm
I’d rather do agency and that’s saying something
Ive noticed them cropping up quite a lot in the last 6 months, I wont apply for them out of principle. Id like to hear an employers response if I turned up for 3 days then said "Ive earned enough this week, see you next Monday". No guarantee of hours should work both ways.
Sorry I don’t understand this 
could someone elaborate please?
dri-diddly-iver:
Sorry I don’t understand this
I’m not 100% on the ins & outs of it all but from a quick Google search they offer you a zero hours contract that could mean you work 0hours or 45 in a week , depending on the requirements of the job , basically your a flexible employee who can be called upon whenever , maybe somebody else has more knowledge, there has definitely been an increase in job ads with this in , not just transport but all sectors …
Zero hour contract means that the company do not guarantee you any minimum hours or number of shifts per week,but at the same time,you dont guarantee to be available any set days…it used to be called ‘Casual work’ but now firms like the sound of Zero hours.Our place used to have a few driver’s on Zero hrs,they also did work for the racing teams up at Silverstone track,which meant they could do their racing work when they wanted and then ring us with any other days they were free
So it’s basically agency work? They either have work or they don’t? Or do you have to be at an actual employers place just in case??
dri-diddly-iver:
Sorry I don’t understand this
Most jobs are advertised as full or part time ie: the employer guarantees a certain amount of hours, 40,48,60 and so on, so you at least know how many hours you will be working and what your weekly wage is going to be. This makes sense as we all have rent, bills etc. to pay.
On a zero hours job the employer doesn`t have to guarantee you a wage, you may work a full day on Monday, turn up on Tuesday only to be sitting around with no work to do and no pay coming in. It also allows them to kick you out on the spot, say if one of their customers goes elsewhere for their haulage needs, then there would be no work therefore no need for your services, no need to give you notice or pay redundancy.
dri-diddly-iver:
So it’s basically agency work? They either have work or they don’t? Or do you have to be at an actual employers place just in case??
At our place they use the Zero hrs drivers before using the agency drivers,so they get as many or as few days as they want…
I had an interview in a mini-bus about 10 years ago.I was offered a zero hours contract which I accepted,havent seen or heard of the bloke since. 
alamcculloch:
I had an interview in a mini-bus about 10 years ago.I was offered a zero hours contract which I accepted,havent seen or heard of the bloke since.
Simply the fact that the interview was being held in a mini bus should tell you all you need to know!
I suppose if I turned up for an interview as a driver and was told to meet him outside a bank where there’d be an Audi Quattro with the engine running, I’d be a tad suspicious.
Zero hours contracts mean you don’t get paid for having your time wasted, whilst there’s nowt to do.
If there’s no job, you have no work.
If there’s no work, you don’t get paid.
Bookings and cancellations are at the drop of a hat.
Basically, if this is a so-called “full time” job that’s being advertised, then it’s not a job at all - it’s merely a pecking position as a casual employee - agency or no.
Once a firm commits to paying someone regardless of work being there or not, they’ll pay a set wage (maybe even a “retainer”) just to make your services exlusive to them.
There’s no limit to the number of zero hours contracts you can sign upto at once, and then work on a “first booked, first turn up” basis.
Any firm who thinks they can get your exlusive labour by giving you nothing concrete in return cannot really expect you to jump through any hoops - so don’t!
Once you are signed up all over the place, you’ll find work being offered sooner and sooner before the event, because if it’s left to the last minute, “you’ll already be booked out somewhere else”…
It makes me laugh when some firms phone me to offer work about 2 hours before the event, and think I’m going to turn over the work I’ve already been given days before - just because they’re paying a little more per hour for it… Sorry bud, the professional sticks to the first booking. Any abuse by say, too many early bookings followed by last minute cancellations means drifting towards the other offers… Standard business. Standard human nature - it’s not just me. 
I was on a 0 hour contract when I was on Roadways, not sure if they’re still running 0 hour contract for new employees.
I was given a motor, and regular work from about April to New years eve, then I was told there was no work in 1st week in January. Holidays ran Jan - dec so were all gone, no money and no work = me emptying my truck and going back on agency where I got 2 days work in that week … 2 days is better than none though.
I was always given my next days duty when I was signing off at night, if there was no work, that’d be when you’re told, not when you turn up in the morning.
But, if you went in and did 1 job taking 2hrs, and there was nothing else, you got 2hrs pay, but this never happened to me, but on the above new years eve I only got 4.5hrs, I was not a happy chap.
I wouldn’t go on a zero hour contract again unless I was retired and just wanted to do a bit, as others have said, agency is similar except most guarentee you 8hrs once you turn up and pay overtime after that, most 0 hour contracts are a flat rate for all hours - at least mon - fri.