Any Takers?

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
1

Saw this one on DirectGov, the old Jobcentre plus website. Anyone fancy their chances?Company confidential

Class 1 HGV Driver

Job description

Our services have been retained to recruit 40+ highly motivated and experienced UK based Class 1 HGV drivers for various Long Haul/Logistics companies in Canada on a permanent basis. Candidates must be highly motivated to relocate to Canada, possess a Class 1 license with at least 2 years of long haul driving experience and have a clean record allowing them to drive across Canada and into the USA. Please note that Immigration fees will apply and that these positions are only available to British passport holders. This opportunity will allow candidates to live and work in Canada within 6 to 9 months. Apply Today
Apply

2

Good grief. The company being “confidential” says it all. I guarantee it’ll be a big firm with a huge driver turnover per year, who will offer all sorts of great benefits verbally and even on paper and then deliver on absolutely none of it, hence their turn over and hence why they even need to recruit 40+ drivers from outside the country to begin with.

3

Fools & their money are soon parted !

It pains me that the Jobcentre website could stoop so low that it could even entertain such crap.

4

It’s a scam. I stumbled across it on indeed.

You pay them to process your visa application… Quite like the HGV training broker that keeps folding and popping up another name.

5

Many of the actual trucking companies here are con artists, its even worse when a 3rd party bunch of con artists then represent the interests of the original con artist trucking company.

Canada is nothing like the UK, its incredibly easy to get a job here. I could jack my job in right now and have 5 job offers within the hour to start the next day because the over all standard of employment conditions here are insanely crap. Its a great place to live but you have to be so careful to get the job right, otherwise the whole thing easily turns in to a nightmare and that’s why so many drivers from the UK and elsewhere come out, splash out on establishing themselves, realise they’ve being led down the garden path and they’re only earning half of what they were told they would and are home two days a month and often go back to the UK broke. Its all mileage pay over here and there is a big over capacity in trucks compared to what work is available and many companies, especially fridge firms will sit a truck for a day or two down in the US to wait for a better paying load, while the driver waits there like a prize pear, earning sod all. Not all the jobs are crap like that, but a huge majority of them are and the ones that advertise constantly, and especially those who have to use a 3rd party are certainly worth staying well clear of.
Just taking any old job in Canada in desperation would be no different from a Canadian going across to Europe and taking a job with Willi Betz or Warberer, on Hungarian or Bulgarian wages, but then trying to make it pay while living in England or Germany. Unfortunately its really quite expensive to live in Canada and you certainly cannot afford to be sitting around for days on end earning sod all, unless you’re a single man with no wife, kids or life outside of work and enjoy sitting in truck stops, babysitting the truck for free.

6

robinhood_1984:
Many of the actual trucking companies here are con artists, its even worse when a 3rd party bunch of con artists then represent the interests of the original con artist trucking company.

In so many ways, it sounds just like Old Blighty, the mirror of the Mother country out there.

Fools & there money are soon parted & there’s nothing anyone can do about it. As soon as one con is shut down to protect them, another one springs up to take its place.

Until we rid the world of fools, we will never rid the world of cons.

7

It is 2013 and i can not understand how trucks in the Usa/Canada are so primitive that they have to run their engines all night to keep warm in the winter and all night in the summer to run the air con in the cab vents to keep cool.
If on nights then running all day.The cost of that.I am not a member of Greenpeace but you do not need to be a rocket scientist to multiply the number of trucks stopped overnight by the number of hours the engines are running for all the pollution being made.
I heard about plug in’s at pit stops.
Why don’t the cabs have air con pods on the roof and why no cab night heaters over there?
In the Jerez/Seville area of Andulucia Spain,it gets hotter than the Middle East.You can fry bacon and eggs on the tarmac or a car roof…A lot of Iberian Peninsula trucks have air con pods.The police were fining drivers for engine running at night.

8

Slackbladder:
Saw this one on DirectGov, the old Jobcentre plus website. Anyone fancy their chances?Company confidential

Class 1 HGV Driver

Job description

Our services have been retained to recruit 40+ highly motivated and experienced UK based Class 1 HGV drivers for various Long Haul/Logistics companies in Canada on a permanent basis. Candidates must be highly motivated to relocate to Canada, possess a Class 1 license with at least 2 years of long haul driving experience and have a clean record allowing them to drive across Canada and into the USA. Please note that Immigration fees will apply and that these positions are only available to British passport holders. This opportunity will allow candidates to live and work in Canada within 6 to 9 months. Apply Today
Apply

I got that far, before realising it’s all a crock that ain’t full of gold. :unamused:

A big crock of....jpg

The correct way to advertise and motivate people would be a as follows:-

We are Ryver, a large reputable blue chip company serving trucking across both the US and Canada.
We are looking right now to retain, sponsor, relocate, and handsomly reward those clean-lincenced widely experienced, and long serving UK drivers who are prepared to relocate to Canada on a permanent basis before their DCPC is due September 2014.
After attending a medical, which we will both pay the cost of, and the travel expenses to get there, you attend your local UK city for interviews, and those successful candidates will be provided a full relocation package over here in Canada. You will be paid by the hour, rather than by the mile as used by are inferior competitors, because we feel that a safe driver is one that takes their time, and wants to earn enough to fund family and home whilst they are at it. We pay handsome bonuses for nights out, but much of our work is domestic it should be said.
At no stage during the proceedings will you be asked to pay any money over - all expenses are provided by us, a reputable company who prides itself on being one of the few that are not crooks these days.
Interested?
Call toll-free blah blah…

9

I’m in, where do I sign?

10

I saw that advertised elsewhere. I assumed it was some type of scam where they take this fee you have to pay then simply don’t get back in contact. Sadly as with all scams there are plenty of people about who will look at this and think what a great opportunity it is for them :unamused:

11

toby1234abc:
It is 2013 and i can not understand how trucks in the Usa/Canada are so primitive that they have to run their engines all night to keep warm in the winter and all night in the summer to run the air con in the cab vents to keep cool.

Because in winter it gets a lot colder than the UK and its not a case of keeping the cab warm, its making sure that the engine doesn’t get cold enough that the oil turns to gloop and the engine is seized solid because the engine block has contracted to the point the pistons can’t move.

12

The words for “Crisis” and “Opportunity” are the same in Chinese I believe.

It’s only in mid-field celtic that the words “Scam” and “Opportunity” mean the same thing however. :frowning:

Think about it - No proper advert would dream of asking it’s candidates for any kind of “fee”, “commission”, or “Visa” ahead of you actually being given your start date, plane ticket, and relocation accommodation details (already paid for by the firm when genuine - right?)

If you send a “registration fee”, you’ll then get asked for “A visa fee” and “A medical fee” and “You’ll need to fund your own plane ticket cost”… You’ll also get put on a mug’s list, and be badgered by other scammers, some near you.

In a scam ad, there are no details of someone you can talk to directly connected with the company and who’s address you can turn up with, packing if necassary, for redress should you then be conned by someone who’s given out their actual name, address, and residence location. :wink:

You don’t want to see “We represent” or “Our client” or “competitive package” or anything else that does not clearly defined the most important things:

(1) I want to be paid for working for this firm, not pay them at any point.
(2) I want to be paid an amount that makes it worth my while shifting allegiance to this firm. Why is the renumeration not spoken of in the ad?
(3) Who will I be working for? - The real blue chip firm maintained, or some freeloading middleman at best?
(4) Who is this “contact”?, what’s their landline number, name, and address? - That data will be expected of me applying after all.
(5) “Competetive package with benefits” - What benefits? - Brag about it if they are worth having! Free BUPA cover? Company car? Staff discounts? Great! Then say so in the ad already!!

When you look at the derision I’ve shown something like “Jobs at Tesco Dagenham” for example, when they were in fact merely rolling contracts on umbrella via TRG, and at no time will you be a full time tescos employee with their benefits, it’s easy to conclude that the vast majority of even the best-worded and meaning ads out there just don’t tell the truth, and don’t deliver what you thought it said on the tin.

“Crooked” has become the “going rate” you might say. :frowning:

13

benbailey81:
I saw that advertised elsewhere. I assumed it was some type of scam where they take this fee you have to pay then simply don’t get back in contact. Sadly as with all scams there are plenty of people about who will look at this and think what a great opportunity it is for them :unamused:

I’d be surprised if it didn’t lead to a job, they’re desperate for “meat in the seat” here, anybody will do, so long as you don’t mind earning by the mile, waiting by the day and leaving your family who you dragged across the Atlantic at home for weeks on end while you’re down the road…erm…earning not very much.

14

Chas:
In so many ways, it sounds just like Old Blighty, the mirror of the Mother country out there.

Fools & there money are soon parted & there’s nothing anyone can do about it. As soon as one con is shut down to protect them, another one springs up to take its place.

Until we rid the world of fools, we will never rid the world of cons.

Working as a truck driver in Canada is absolutely nothing like the UK. This wont be a con that will see people ripped off and left with nothing, it will be worse than that, poor British drivers will actually get jobs, they will be lied to, most will do no research and blindly believe all that is being told to them, they’ll invest several thousand pounds in moving to Canada and then find out that they’re in a Willi Betz type firm of constantly being away, getting paid by the mile, sitting by the hour or day and earning much less for their time as a result than would ever be possible in the UK.
Imagine picking up a container from Felixstowe, driving to Birmingham, getting paid 45 pence per mile, then sitting on a bay for 5 hours, earning nothing, then getting told theres no reload so park up, again earning nothing, then you drive to Coventry and earn 45 pence per mile, sit and wait another 5 hours while they load you, again for no pay and then back to Felixstowe. Half of your time is unpaid truck babysitting and this is how a large percentage of Canadian (and American) firms operate, especially fridge companies and this is why there is a huge driver turnover and an endless recruitment drive for any willing victims. You can minimise this type of unpaid waiting time by very carefully choosing who you work for but by simply throwing your money to any company or immigration consultant that looks your way, will be a one way street to the sort of crap described above.

15

Conor:

toby1234abc:
It is 2013 and i can not understand how trucks in the Usa/Canada are so primitive that they have to run their engines all night to keep warm in the winter and all night in the summer to run the air con in the cab vents to keep cool.

Because in winter it gets a lot colder than the UK and its not a case of keeping the cab warm, its making sure that the engine doesn’t get cold enough that the oil turns to gloop and the engine is seized solid because the engine block has contracted to the point the pistons can’t move.

Although as I write this from Kenly, North Carolina in a pleasant 15’c, more than 80% of the trucks in this truckstop are idling. Its the ideal temp to turn the bloody thing off and let some fresh air in, but you can’t because every other idiot has their truck on high idle, meaning having your window open even a crack will result in deafening noise and fumes. Its simply a case of the drivers knowing no better, and not wanting to know any better and companies being so tight fisted that they’ll invest in buying or leasing a $120k truck and will not spec a $800-1200 night heater that will pay for itself in no time.
What you say about winter is correct but thats only a few months of the year, most of the fools in this continent idle their trucks 24/7 all year round.
Many trucks now, mine included have an APU (Auxiliary power unit) fitted, which is just a small diesel powered generator, this runs the a/c, heat, keep the batteries charged and warm water circulating the engine to prevent freezing during winter and powers my mains power plugs for the likes of my microwave, electrics etc. These are much more expensive but at the very least trucks should come as standard with a night heater, yet many do not, especially American trucks.

16

I’m sat in -18c right now, engine off, night heater roaring away in my Peterbilt.

In the summer though it’s different, those roof pods will not cope with the temperature and humidity, try using one to keep cool anywhere south of Chicago in August and you will need a big tin of Lynx!

17

newmercman:
I’m sat in -18c right now, engine off, night heater roaring away in my Peterbilt.

-18c?!?! Should be at least +18c by the time I get to Florida tonight :smiley:

18

It’s only -8c now, I’m catching up lol

19

newmercman:
It’s only -8c now, I’m catching up lol

+20c and I’m still in Georgia!

20

I 95 to Florida.Say hello to Cooper City.I used to live there.Fort Lauderdale.Worked on a tree farm/exporter.They hired Puerto Ricans and Haitians.
If you get up to Laingsburg MI say hi to the Kurtz family where i worked on their farm on Seib road.
The local shop was called Poorman’s Ponderosa.