Franglais:
English driver 1970:
Construction workers have earned all the top money over the last 5 years, and continue to.
Bricklayers average 200 upto 250 per day.
Even ground workers and hod carriers average 150.
Normally 8am till 4.30pm 2x half hour breaks.Don’t need no qualifications to do any of those jobs. Just the ability to do the job.
Do hod carriers still exist?
Bucket carriers
I worked apparently for buttons & peanuts for years , yet paid my house off 20 yrs ago , the lad next door who is a builder was hoping to finish his by 55 , 15 yrs after me , whilst we had 2 x2 week hol abroad the highlight for his wife was a week at Yarmouth , granted my car is only a 65 plate focus , his is a 09 civic
Maybe he will pop his clogs & we will find out he’s 1,000,s stashed away , but from my vantage point he doesn’t look that well paid
Nb his mrs was telling mine recently they only go for a meal mon - fri as they get the 2 meals for 0ne deals , not exactly trappings of wealth is it
^^^ Maybe yon builder neighbour isn’t ■■■■■■■ every penny up the wall to impress the Jones’s next door, not everyone wants what the Joneses want out of life.
If the perfect consumer wants someone to look down their nose even further, they could look my way, our cars are 2005 2008 and 1996, nothing made recently in car world is of the slightest interest all look the same all boring, neither of us have a valid passport because we have no interest whatsoever in being herded like cattle or assumed to be terrorists by the self important quasi military uniformed gits at airport security, my Polish friend tells me you now have to arrive at the airport 6 hours before flight is due to have a stake driven up your nose to the base of your brain and pay something like £100 each kerching for the pleasure of being tested for some fake virus.
As for meals out, not everyone wants to go out to eat, if they do they possibly don’t want to be jammed in like bloody sardines on a Fri/Sat night and prefer the quieter weekdays, as for getting 2 for 1 food bloody good on them.
They’ve got some savvy next door.
Juddian:
^^^ Maybe yon builder neighbour isn’t ■■■■■■■ every penny up the wall to impress the Jones’s next door, not everyone wants what the Joneses want out of life.If the perfect consumer wants someone to look down their nose even further, they could look my way, our cars are 2005 2008 and 1996, nothing made recently in car world is of the slightest interest all look the same all boring, neither of us have a valid passport because we have no interest whatsoever in being herded like cattle or assumed to be terrorists by the self important quasi military uniformed gits at airport security, my Polish friend tells me you now have to arrive at the airport 6 hours before flight is due to have a stake driven up your nose to the base of your brain and pay something like £100 each kerching for the pleasure of being tested for some fake virus.
As for meals out, not everyone wants to go out to eat, if they do they possibly don’t want to be jammed in like bloody sardines on a Fri/Sat night and prefer the quieter weekdays, as for getting 2 for 1 food bloody good on them.
They’ve got some savvy next door.
No argument with anyone’s “life style” or whatever choices. And as you describe it, has lots to commend it. But does that possible scenario square with the given info that Mr Neighbour can’t pay his mortgage off early?
Maybe Mr Neighbour and wife secretly fly off on a Lear jet every Weds eve for dinner in Monaco, but don’t want their neighbours the Dozys to feel inferior? [emoji3]
Conor:
You’re imagining things. £40k is over 30% more than the national average wage. In my town the only people getting paid £40k who don’t own the business or are partners in it are managers of the bigger businesses/public sector and car salesmen and lorry drivers. And whilst yes we may do a lot more hours remember this is a job where the entry level is almost at zero, effectively if you’ve a pulse and can manage to pass a driving test you can go earn £40k even if you can’t add 2+2.Go do a job search on Indeed for your local area. Look at the hourly rates on offer, the jobs they’re being offered for and the entry requirements for those jobs then tell me we’re badly paid. I was looking around my local area for what there was this week and even going back to IT and electronics engineering, roles with entry level requirements of professional certifications and BEng I’d be taking a significant pay cut not just on total salary but on hourly rate too. When I went to work for a software company as a systems engineer in 2017 I took a 25% pay cut. Going to work there now given how much pay has gone up driving lorries I’d be looking at a 30% pay cut for the same hours.
Good comments. If some of the reason for driver shortage is the working conditions, and to compensate that, drivers have a higher salary, surely, if conditions improve as they real should, then the need to compensate a driver is reduced. With reasonable conditions and management, driving could and should become a good trade.
There is and will also be a need for driver behaviours and attitudes to adapt as well, but that may be for another post.
Indeed Franglais, there may be good reason the looked down upon neighbours haven’t paid off their mortgage early, record low mortgage interest rates and our potless 
neighbour might have found some better use for any spare money, letting it do some work for him and playing the system and making a handsome profit.
One wouldn’t let the Joneses know too much, they might even discuss one’s affairs on some bloody lorry driver’s forum 
Getting back to the thread itself.
I humbly suggest making hay whilst the present sunshine lasts, what goes up has a nasty habit of coming back down again.
I also suggest it still being the wise decision to keep that permanent job if you have one and have a good record and some seniority within, and not necessarily to try and play the highest agency bidders off against one another game.
We might be on a roll for a while but there are other forces at work at the root of all that is happening, try and strike a happy medium if you can is my suggestion, get good binding pay deals where possible in your full time employment and continue to put your best efforts into your steady jobs, when the upward spiral peaks and starts to go the other way (it will and in ways and for reasons we haven’t yet seen) as is always the case these days those who have proved their worth will be kept on, others will be cast off without a moment’s hesitation.
Same old problem, want the money,work max hours,live up to what you earn,can`t work anymore hours, not taking into any cost of living inflation, in consequence that 30k needs to be more then that bit extra is reduced because you pay more tax etc. a revolving situation. This is why many Drivers include n/o money as part of their wages 
Themoocher:
English driver 1970:
Construction workers have earned all the top money over the last 5 years, and continue to.
Bricklayers average 200 upto 250 per day.
Even ground workers and hod carriers average 150.
Normally 8am till 4.30pm 2x half hour breaks.Don’t need no qualifications to do any of those jobs. Just the ability to do the job.
Yeah none of them are on the books it’s all self employed.
Take your 6 weeks holiday off and any courses and benefit you get been employed.
If I was on 13 or 14 a hour driving a truck. I would rather drive a truck for 10 hours then be out shovelling for 150 a day for 8 hours.
I’m on about 15 a hour. time 1/4 during week and time half sat and double Sunday. a brickie or a chippy will average the same over the year maybe work few hours less. I would rather put few extra hours in myself and be warm and dry and spectate from my cab.
The construction industry is unrecognisable to that of 20 years ago. Very rare to be self employed these days. Because of health and safety, shovels are only used these days to lean on. Hods have been replaced by buckets, which turned upside down are used to sit on. And of course construction workers don’t have to worry about rules, regulations, and laws that could involve heavy fines. Or members of the public thinking they know or can do a better job than them. Very good onsite facilities for workers, that was on a par with today’s drivers facilities not many years back.
[quote="elsa Lad
Carnt see this lasting very long , the money is going through the roof now. It’s going to ■■■■■■■ the small haulier, No way can they compete with that.[/quote]
That has to be good news get rid of poor paying hauliers chasing work for peanuts all the tin pot outfits gone
robthedog:
[quote="elsa LadCarnt see this lasting very long , the money is going through the roof now. It’s going to ■■■■■■■ the small haulier, No way can they compete with that.
That has to be good news get rid of poor paying hauliers chasing work for peanuts all the tin pot outfits gone
[/quote]
January 2021 A “revolution” started in the transport industry.
January 2023 Most agencies and tin pot haulers gone.
January 2025 Most HGV,s on today’s roads Amazon operated.
Harry Monk:
One of my boys has a B.A. and an M.A. (Hons) (he gets his brains from his Mum) and has just started work on the technical support team for a well-known manufacturer and he’s on £18,000 a year.
I hope he’s only working 16 hours per week - for that…
English driver 1970:
robthedog:
[quote="elsa LadCarnt see this lasting very long , the money is going through the roof now. It’s going to ■■■■■■■ the small haulier, No way can they compete with that.
That has to be good news get rid of poor paying hauliers chasing work for peanuts all the tin pot outfits gone
January 2021 A “revolution” started in the transport industry.
January 2023 Most agencies and tin pot haulers gone.
January 2025 Most HGV,s on today’s roads Amazon operated.
[/quote]
Ahh… But will they be offering decent £18-£20ph full time contracts that ARE “wearing the shirt”, and are NOT “Any five from seven”…? 
It’s just yours truly - that won’t be wearing a red shirt any time soon…
Look, (Connor in particular…) everyone who’s driven a truck for a living knows tehre are 2 ways to make big ££: work lots of hours (over 60 per week which already puts you at 50% more hours than the average worker and that excludes 6th day every other week) or work in a niche (car transport, ADR fuel etc.) where the £ per hour may be higher but the number of such jobs is small and only a tiny % of all drivers can/will occupy them. I don’t know why you keep comparing cucumbers to ■■■■■■. I know a guy who literally works 2 full time warehousing jobs each 40hours so 80 per week, he makes around 1000 pre tax (much more than me) but the only difference is because it’s 2 different jobs he doesn’t get the benefit of OT, he does get wekend bonus though.
Just for lulz I did a quick search on indeed for random jobs - dog walker/pet sitter £14 per hour
HGV driver (Nights) Aldi £12.63 p.h.
Quality Assurance Assistant Aldi -Salary: £32,075 rising to £37,455 in year 5 Working Hours: Monday - Friday, 08:00 - 16:30 which for your convenience is £15 ph. rising to 18.
Customer Service and Sales People Steven Eagell Toyota up to £45,000 a year - Full-time, Permanent (£24 000 guaranteed in 1ts year + company car and benefits)
dozy:
I worked apparently for buttons & peanuts for years , yet paid my house off 20 yrs ago , the lad next door who is a builder was hoping to finish his by 55 , 15 yrs after me , whilst we had 2 x2 week hol abroad the highlight for his wife was a week at Yarmouth , granted my car is only a 65 plate focus , his is a 09 civic
Maybe he will pop his clogs & we will find out he’s 1,000,s stashed away , but from my vantage point he doesn’t look that well paid
Nb his mrs was telling mine recently they only go for a meal mon - fri as they get the 2 meals for 0ne deals , not exactly trappings of wealth is it
I think your last job was peanuts break that down, £9.61ph. !!
English driver 1970:
Themoocher:
English driver 1970:
Construction workers have earned all the top money over the last 5 years, and continue to.
Bricklayers average 200 upto 250 per day.
Even ground workers and hod carriers average 150.
Normally 8am till 4.30pm 2x half hour breaks.Don’t need no qualifications to do any of those jobs. Just the ability to do the job.
Yeah none of them are on the books it’s all self employed.
Take your 6 weeks holiday off and any courses and benefit you get been employed.
If I was on 13 or 14 a hour driving a truck. I would rather drive a truck for 10 hours then be out shovelling for 150 a day for 8 hours.
I’m on about 15 a hour. time 1/4 during week and time half sat and double Sunday. a brickie or a chippy will average the same over the year maybe work few hours less. I would rather put few extra hours in myself and be warm and dry and spectate from my cab.The construction industry is unrecognisable to that of 20 years ago. Very rare to be self employed these days. Because of health and safety, shovels are only used these days to lean on. Hods have been replaced by buckets, which turned upside down are used to sit on. And of course construction workers don’t have to worry about rules, regulations, and laws that could involve heavy fines. Or members of the public thinking they know or can do a better job than them. Very good onsite facilities for workers, that was on a par with today’s drivers facilities not many years back.
what sites have you been on in the past 10 years? Maybe big civil sites like balfour beaty or BAM. Conditions on most work sites are shocking dirty and filthy make your RDC that you moaning about look like palaces
Run of the mill construction site, no one is on the books except the site agents. Everyone is on price work and self employed.
dozy:
I worked apparently for buttons & peanuts for years , yet paid my house off 20 yrs ago , the lad next door who is a builder was hoping to finish his by 55 , 15 yrs after me , whilst we had 2 x2 week hol abroad the highlight for his wife was a week at Yarmouth , granted my car is only a 65 plate focus , his is a 09 civic
Maybe he will pop his clogs & we will find out he’s 1,000,s stashed away , but from my vantage point he doesn’t look that well paid
Nb his mrs was telling mine recently they only go for a meal mon - fri as they get the 2 meals for 0ne deals , not exactly trappings of wealth is it
Meaningless. I live in an ex-council house, my jeans are £5 ones I bought from Primark over half a decade ago, only just recently replaced a 10 year old 155,000 mile Mondeo and wife runs around in an 08 plate van. Holidays for me are Lake District in my caravan or popping off to France for a week at Eurocamp when it’s on offer. When I go to Maccy D’s I take advantage of the Big Mac and Regular Fries for £1.99. My mortgage won’t be paid off until I’m 62 because with a mortgage interest rate of 1.49% why would I pay it off when I can invest my money I would’ve spent repaying it and getting returns of 10% or more? In fact I’m kicking myself that when I remortgaged a few months ago I didnt go interest only as it would’ve given me another £300 a month I could have invested. I can afford to work just 27hrs a week, pay all my bills even including the mortgage and still save money, you?
Most millionaires and people with money you don’t even know they have because they live fairly thrifty lifestyles. You don’t get rich blowing your money, showing off to the neighbours and having to be one up on the Joneses.
Themoocher:
English driver 1970:
Themoocher:
English driver 1970:
Construction workers have earned all the top money over the last 5 years, and continue to.
Bricklayers average 200 upto 250 per day.
Even ground workers and hod carriers average 150.
Normally 8am till 4.30pm 2x half hour breaks.Don’t need no qualifications to do any of those jobs. Just the ability to do the job.
Yeah none of them are on the books it’s all self employed.
Take your 6 weeks holiday off and any courses and benefit you get been employed.
If I was on 13 or 14 a hour driving a truck. I would rather drive a truck for 10 hours then be out shovelling for 150 a day for 8 hours.
I’m on about 15 a hour. time 1/4 during week and time half sat and double Sunday. a brickie or a chippy will average the same over the year maybe work few hours less. I would rather put few extra hours in myself and be warm and dry and spectate from my cab.The construction industry is unrecognisable to that of 20 years ago. Very rare to be self employed these days. Because of health and safety, shovels are only used these days to lean on. Hods have been replaced by buckets, which turned upside down are used to sit on. And of course construction workers don’t have to worry about rules, regulations, and laws that could involve heavy fines. Or members of the public thinking they know or can do a better job than them. Very good onsite facilities for workers, that was on a par with today’s drivers facilities not many years back.
what sites have you been on in the past 10 years? Maybe big civil sites like balfour beaty or BAM. Conditions on most work sites are shocking dirty and filthy make your RDC that you moaning about look like palaces
Run of the mill construction site, no one is on the books except the site agents. Everyone is on price work and self employed.
I’ve lost count to be honest. A Bricklayer by trade, I’ve worked on building sites, mainly new build housing developments since 1987.
MONEY MONEY MONEY
why do so many only look at the top line ?
Could I earn more in my area ? - yes
I’d also have to put in a lot more hours , drive older plant , rougher trailers be in and out of RDC’s and take a pile of bad manners from a traffic office - not even interested in any of that .
I’ve seen guys that worked with me leave for an extra £30 a week . They had a nice easy trunk from Cairnryan to Carlisle to Glasgow and back to Cairnryan. Took a job doing 3 loads a week from Cairnryan to heathrow (airfreight ) . The way I looked at it he was driving from about Manchester to Heathrow and back for a £10 - any takers ■■? You can’t educate pork as they say .
Our work is mostly Scotland and the northern end of England (never much below the M62 corridor ) very seldom in RDC’s new trucks every 3 years , fairly fresh curtainsiders and a few fridges . Never had bad manners from the office and the pay is in the bank every Friday morning with out fail . Why would I leave that ?
We have to start thinking about what we are doing compared to the wages we get, why take a few more pounds but almost double your workload and stress levels? And theres not much point in the " I earn £■■■ a week " Different areas have different costs - housing costs,council taxes etc all have an effect on how much is left for disposable income - someone on £1000 a week may be worse off than someone on £800 just because they live in a different area with different costs.
Work smarter not harder folks
beefy4605:
MONEY MONEY MONEY
why do so many only look at the top line ?
Because drivers who have their head screwed on right and aren’t just doing it to “live the dream”, they go to work to live, not the other way round. If I can earn more money in a shorter period of time to allow me more free time to do the stuff I want to do in my lifetime then that’s what I’ll do. Earning £500 a week sleeping in a tin box all week in some ■■■■-ridden layby Living The Dream is not my idea of a life. Clearly it is for a lot of drivers as that’s what they do while their missus is getting cucked by their neighbour/best mate.
DCPCFML:
beefy4605:
MONEY MONEY MONEY
why do so many only look at the top line ?
Because drivers who have their head screwed on right and aren’t just doing it to “live the dream”, they go to work to live, not the other way round. If I can earn more money in a shorter period of time to allow me more free time to do the stuff I want to do in my lifetime then that’s what I’ll do. Earning £500 a week sleeping in a tin box all week in some ■■■■-ridden layby Living The Dream is not my idea of a life. Clearly it is for a lot of drivers as that’s what they do while their missus is getting cucked by their neighbour/best mate.
Nothing stopping the day man’s wife being cucked by the neighbour while he’s out 12 hours a day.
