Silver_Surfer:
ADR are a good agency
Only someone that hasn’t done agency work would come out with that belter.
ADR offer contracts/guaranteed hours don’t they…?
Pimpdaddy:
ADR offer contracts/guaranteed hours don’t they…?
12 hour contracts - hours which THEY get to pick and choose - not you.
I gave my examples of what would be expected of yours truly, - 6am starts and shifts only 6 hours long on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, because that’s the lowest paid day of the week at places like Morrisons.
The weekend work @ £13-14ph I never got a sniff of. Still haven’t, as I never officially left.
NEVER sign a contract that isn’t clearly DEFINED what is expected of you, what hours, WHAT DAYS and WHAT START TIMES. I don’t give a ■■■■ about the finish times beyond a full shift, because anything 10-15 hours does me. Just pay the Man driving the Man and stop treating him like an also-ran. 
They offer more for co op than Iceland up here but the job doesn’t compare. I don’t offer exclusivity any more but i still get the start times i want. I know the runs and when to start to get decent shifts. I wont touch the co op no matter how much they are offering though. It just isn’t worth it
rob22888:
trubster:
ZB me… 500 bonus for a shift…But
There is no shortage
Again, only a shortage of people agencies can get away with messing around. If these co-op depots that are clearly struggling created some good well paying permanent driving jobs to relieve their agency reliance, i would go out on a limb and say such vacancies will get filled pretty sharp.
The problem at Newhouse IS that they have “created some good well paying permanent jobs”.
They have recruited from the agency so much(I think there are now nearly 250 perm drivers) that a lot of the people who were doing agency are now employed and taking holidays,which need agency to cover… but the agency dont have them cos they are now employed. Vicious circle eh …
The agencies seem to be getting it all their own way just lately and I think drivers should start telling the agency what they want and not let the agency tell the driver what he will get.
Nights to me has always been any time with a “pm” at the end of it and you are paid at night rate until you get in your car the next day. The opposite applies for day rates, start at any time with “am” at the end of it and that is considered days although a decent agency will pay a little more for any start time before 4am.
We seem to be moving away from time and a half after 8 hours and double bubble for Sundays and this is just agency greed. They will all blame the client but that is just another lie to try and pass the buck as per usual agency practice. Anybody paying less than £18 per hour for Sunday work is shafting you and as much as you might like to deny it, that is the fact of the matter. Saturdays should be paid at time and a half of your normal weekly hourly rate, anything else is just putting more into the agency coffers.
I have seen what agencies are charging companies and the profits are in some cases phenomenal for the effort they put in to answering he telephone and then calling you.
I know it is difficult to have morals and rules to live by in this tight age but it is the only way you will beat the agencies. You need to tell them what you would like paying and what you will and wont do. They talk down to us as if we know noting about our profession and expect the driver to accept their bull ■■■■ contracts and one sided terms.
You need to decide if you are doing the agency game to make some money or just to find your next full time job and if it is the former then there are ways to make it work in your favour, the latter…good luck.
Oh, I thought ADR were meant to be decent, they have most of the good jobs, NFT & Tesco for example, unless TRG have had T off them of late.
I’ve only worked for one agency, Driven in Brum & they were alright.
It’s tough making good money on agency unless you’re in with the gaffer if you ask me & are number 1 son as it were!
Pimpdaddy:
ADR offer contracts/guaranteed hours don’t they…?
Most agencies now offer contracts, it’s there way to avoid the AWR but you need to check what job it says you will do if nothing is put down you could be cleaning toilets or shovelling snow
TRG are no good either. More umbrella, long hours @ low hourly rates, and a push towards not being PAYE all the time. Yes, it is about “avoiding AWD responsibilities.” 
Too many kids working for buttons.
time from time agency sent me to different Coop(COventry,Alfreton,Castlewood).was Friday at Coventry see post who Coop at Thurrock looking for 20 drivers for full time job.i not work for ADR but agency where i work ,work for ADR.ADR very often pay 50 pound if drivers agree travel to another site.for me they pay 50 pound if i travel from Leicester to Alfreton.ADR pay googd wages.realy i think to go work from Adr but i can t ,because i need 3 month gap.
re ADR ,COOP,adr mainly employ poles they have got cheaply thru their test in poland,from january 2014 they will be joined by romanians ,they intend to pay them 8ph flat rate,use them for 3months minus one day,fly them home for a week,then renew a 3 month contract,very few jobs with adr for brits in the future,do yourselves a favour,get a full time job,that way we keep them out
ADR have lost a lot of drivers recently because the are sick of getting shafted every week… they were offering £100 on top to travel from Penrith to Newhouse to do a shift… 100 miles each way , so thats about 3 hrs on top of your shift and £30 worth of fuel and wear and tear … its not as good as it sounds , is it ?
stoolpigeon:
do yourselves a favour,get a full time job,that way we keep them out
+1(or zero hours direct with a company)…
Maybe if they offered proper contracts rather than the crap I was offered in November last year they would not have the staffing problem! And for once I don’t blame the agency! The co op could easily staff Thurrock full time but are being tight as they know it means offering some commitment to the drivers. I would go for it if you got the whole package of pension etc. Agency are just doing their best to get drivers in.
rgt1973:
Maybe if they offered proper contracts rather than the crap I was offered in November last year they would not have the staffing problem! And for once I don’t blame the agency! The co op could easily staff Thurrock full time but are being tight as they know it means offering some commitment to the drivers. I would go for it if you got the whole package of pension etc. Agency are just doing their best to get drivers in.
Upward market force:
It’s the south of England.
You can’t walk out your front door for £8ph without losing money down here.
Retention is lousy, because the job is lousy. Treatment is lousy. Pay is lousy. Three out of three IS bad alas.
Less youngsters getting licences, Youngsters with no experience not allowed to work agency, Oldsters leaving the business in droves ahead of the DCPC reqiurements.
How many are going to fall for the TRG con where drivers think they are applying for full time driver vacancies with tesco @ Dagenham?
You won’t even get the 10% staff discount if you’re nothing but a self-employed via umbrella bod who happens to be on a rolling sub-year contract. 
Been doing deliveries for a bit, but I’ve yet to see an actual tescos full time driver (ie wearing the uniform!) 