So, in short you earn good money if you do two weeks work every week. If a driver doesnt like it the boss can put another bum on the seat easily enough. It all comes down to market forces.
remy:
Back in the 60’s another motorway was opened (forget where) and a reporter interviewed a lorry driver about it on telly. I think the reporter was expecting the driver to jump up and down with joy but when asked what he thought about it opening the driver just said “jobs gone”. Short interview.
Reminds me of one valentines day…when mansfields local radio station had a roving reporter,in the town centre…asking what people’s plans were for the coming romantic evening.
Said reporter,cheerfully asked a girl if her fella would be romancing her,later.
"No…coz he’s a smackhead"was the reply.
Another short interview 
alamcculloch:
So, in short you earn good money if you do two weeks work every week. If a driver doesnt like it the boss can put another bum on the seat easily enough. It all comes down to market forces.
It’s not market forces if bosses are wanting to open the flood gates to immigrant labour on the basis of claiming a fake driver ‘shortage’.That’s no different to insider trading on the stock market if not worse.
robroy:
AndieHyde:
robroy:
That this job is crap.I usually do a 4 day week with a 3 day weekend, but the other week I was asked if I fancied a full week seeing as they were busy.
The Mrs was working all week, mates were all working, drinking partner was abroad, so thought …Aye why not.
Did 2 runs down to Devon and surrounding counties and back, varied number of drops on each with a back load up Scotch in between, 6 days/5nts out…all done legal.
But everything that could go wrong did, so ended up virtually maxing out, (or near enough so), got up to about 73 ish hours I think it was?.. including a long day Saturday as I only got back as far as Yeovil on Friday night.Anyhoo …was sat last night talking to my 2 lads, who commented I’d been away all week, and that is how it always was when they were kids
so we got talking about how much a driver can make in comparison to the motor trade they are both in.
I worked my pay out roughly, and it came to about 810 or so quid top line…(not including the 5 nights out obviously btw, as I never count my subsistence/exs as actual ‘pay’ as such.
(Also it incidentally dawned on me I earned relatively more 12 yrs ago doing Euro tramping)
Asked both my lads how much their pay would be in comparison doing same hours.
One was in excess of £1100 other one was in excess £1400…both flat rates excluding bonuses and sundries btw.Ok they both have skilled jobs, one is a garage service manager, the other a spray painter, and in their trades they would not work so [zb] ridiculous hours, …but you get my drift.
Stupid hours, the top line figure Is ok to have, but ceases to be when you work out what you have done to earn it.Bring on the ‘Do something else if you don’t like it’…I get that, but I am just making a point as to how things are in road transport in comparison to other trades, that probably cost the employee much less to actually go in to, so don’t give me the patronising lectures…pleeease.
More so… please dont the deluded clowns come on who tell us they are on ‘good money’ and who automatically spew out the old ‘Nature of the job/the way it’s ALWAYS been’ chestnut, cos you’re wrong.
When I started (in the dark ages) when drivers had backbone and fought for half decent t.s and c.s, I was doing max 12.5 hour spreadover, and on time plus a half after 40 hours.
So my point is, if those t.s and c.s had not been handed back by cabbage drivers in favour of same rate right through, and we were all on time and a half after 40 hours…on my 73 hours, it would be (once again) a half decent job to do.
So verdict from me…job is crap/should be a lot better/but never will be unfortunately.
I feel much better after that belly aching moan.Sorry to bear you bad news.
Truck driving is for chumpsDont get me wrong. After serving an engineering apprenticeship in.my teenager years, driving a heavy truck all over Europe was an absolute blast.
But the reality struck me that it, driving, is a fools paradise (If the persona “dozy” is to be believed, A man who served an apprenticeship with “Rolls-Royce” cannot get a job better than a maxed out layby with a pie and can of lilt has to be a [zb] wind up or the person with the least amount of ambition just short of topping himself)I loved driving trucks, the places I went, the people I met.
But I considered it to be a sort of extended holiday.
When it has the same 8-4 hours for £25/hour. I might be tempted back.In the mean time. Take encouragement from the fact you have raised your lads the right way. They seem to have their lives on the right track.
Not just dozy mate, although Blue estates convinced himself I am dozy, (and if he says it again I’ll hit him with a pot noodle and chuck a can of Lilt and my Friday night steak dinner over him
Had mates who were truckers,.and after going away with them it was all I wanted to do, (so I blame them
I’ve had great times and experiences here and abroad, in this job, and as I keep saying if I had to do it the way some of the clowns do, …lay bys, teararsing to last minute etc, I’d have lasted a week.
Maybe you’re right, it is only for chumps, and I should have knocked it on the head when it first started to turn to crap about…15 yrs ago?..so meet Chump number 1
Thing is if money, hours, t.s and c.s were better and in line with Century 21, the actual work I do, muti drop tramping (ok only UK now) still suits me down to the ground tbh, so not ALL bad at least.
Dont misunderstand me, I wasn’t accusing you of being Grantham’s finest.
I was mearly using that as an example that raised more questions than answers in that if someone had a ticket signed off by Rolls-Royce, there would not be an engineering company in the world that wouldn’t want to talk to you…
Why would you work towards such an opportunity only to squander it on being a steering wheel attendant??
We all want different things out of life I suppose.
For myself it was a bit of adventure as a young un and a handy thing to hold as a fall back in hard times but after reading what goes on in the industry upon this very forum.
Not bloody likely.
robroy:
Asked both my lads how much their pay would be in comparison doing same hours.
One was in excess of £1100 other one was in excess £1400…both flat rates excluding bonuses and sundries btw.
Just worked out what I’d get where I am if I did 73hrs and it comes to just over £1150 not including night out money.
Jobs that pay what your lads are earning are out there in haulage, just generally not at companies who run their lorries for profit.
As an aside a few years ago when I took time out to go back to electronics engineering I ended up actually taking a pay cut of almost £2/hr.
I am going to say something very controversial now!
Get the RHA to create a drivers union, appoint Bob Crow to lead it, and every UK driver register, in a few year’s time you will all be on >65K a year!
Caerleon:
I am going to say something very controversial now!Get the RHA to create a drivers union, appoint Bob Crow to lead it, and every UK driver register, in a few year’s time you will all be on >65K a year!
Have you read some of the past opinions on here about Unions from the brainwashed? 
…not a ■■■■ chance mate…Unions are the devil incarnate you know.
Even though it’s as plain as the nose on your face that firms with recognised Unions are on much better t.s and c.s…fact, but that interferes with what they have been led to believe.
I once rang a mate we were both working a bank hol Monday, think he earned about 150 quid more than me on his double time + extras, as opposed to my paltry 12 quid an hour …yep I know, I was daft to do it before anybody jumps in. 
Caerleon:
I am going to say something very controversial now!Get the RHA to create a drivers union, appoint Bob Crow to lead it, and every UK driver register, in a few year’s time you will all be on >65K a year!
Did Bob Crow not pass away a good few years ago ?
Regards John.
Another nail in the coffin mate is this business of getting rid of your in house fleet & getting the big logistika mobs to do your transport for you. The likes of Iceland, Walkers crisps etc don’t do it themselves anymore and as the drivers get older & retire or get sacked/leave/die, they just get replaced with more XPO/Stobartski/Wincan’t etc.
These great jobs are simply dying out. The days of Mon-Fri 40 hr contracts for £30k are in their final furlong
I’ve heard that Howden’s pay well though. Again and again and…
AndieHyde:
robroy:
AndieHyde:
robroy:
That this job is crap.I usually do a 4 day week with a 3 day weekend, but the other week I was asked if I fancied a full week seeing as they were busy.
The Mrs was working all week, mates were all working, drinking partner was abroad, so thought …Aye why not.
Did 2 runs down to Devon and surrounding counties and back, varied number of drops on each with a back load up Scotch in between, 6 days/5nts out…all done legal.
But everything that could go wrong did, so ended up virtually maxing out, (or near enough so), got up to about 73 ish hours I think it was?.. including a long day Saturday as I only got back as far as Yeovil on Friday night.Anyhoo …was sat last night talking to my 2 lads, who commented I’d been away all week, and that is how it always was when they were kids
I worked my pay out roughly, and it came to about 810 or so quid top line…(not including the 5 nights out obviously btw, as I never count my subsistence/exs as actual ‘pay’ as such.
(Also it incidentally dawned on me I earned relatively more 12 yrs ago doing Euro tramping
Asked both my lads how much their pay would be in comparison doing same hours.
One was in excess of £1100 other one was in excess £1400…both flat rates excluding bonuses and sundries btw.Ok they both have skilled jobs, one is a garage service manager, the other a spray painter, and in their trades they would not work so [zb] ridiculous hours, …but you get my drift.
Stupid hours, the top line figure Is ok to have, but ceases to be when you work out what you have done to earn it.Bring on the ‘Do something else if you don’t like it’…I get that, but I am just making a point as to how things are in road transport in comparison to other trades, that probably cost the employee much less to actually go in to, so don’t give me the patronising lectures…pleeease.
More so… please dont the deluded clowns come on who tell us they are on ‘good money’ and who automatically spew out the old ‘Nature of the job/the way it’s ALWAYS been’ chestnut, cos you’re wrong.
When I started (in the dark ages
So my point is, if those t.s and c.s had not been handed back by cabbage drivers in favour of same rate right through, and we were all on time and a half after 40 hours…on my 73 hours, it would be (once again) a half decent job to do.
So verdict from me…job is crap/should be a lot better/but never will be unfortunately.
I feel much better after that belly aching moan.Sorry to bear you bad news.
Truck driving is for chumpsDont get me wrong. After serving an engineering apprenticeship in.my teenager years, driving a heavy truck all over Europe was an absolute blast.
But the reality struck me that it, driving, is a fools paradise (If the persona “dozy” is to be believed, A man who served an apprenticeship with “Rolls-Royce” cannot get a job better than a maxed out layby with a pie and can of lilt has to be a [zb] wind up or the person with the least amount of ambition just short of topping himself)I loved driving trucks, the places I went, the people I met.
But I considered it to be a sort of extended holiday.
When it has the same 8-4 hours for £25/hour. I might be tempted back.In the mean time. Take encouragement from the fact you have raised your lads the right way. They seem to have their lives on the right track.
Not just dozy mate, although Blue estates convinced himself I am dozy, (and if he says it again I’ll hit him with a pot noodle and chuck a can of Lilt and my Friday night steak dinner over him
Had mates who were truckers,.and after going away with them it was all I wanted to do, (so I blame them
I’ve had great times and experiences here and abroad, in this job, and as I keep saying if I had to do it the way some of the clowns do, …lay bys, teararsing to last minute etc, I’d have lasted a week.
Maybe you’re right, it is only for chumps, and I should have knocked it on the head when it first started to turn to crap about…15 yrs ago?..so meet Chump number 1
Thing is if money, hours, t.s and c.s were better and in line with Century 21, the actual work I do, muti drop tramping (ok only UK now) still suits me down to the ground tbh, so not ALL bad at least.Dont misunderstand me, I wasn’t accusing you of being Grantham’s finest.
I was mearly using that as an example that raised more questions than answers in that if someone had a ticket signed off by Rolls-Royce, there would not be an engineering company in the world that wouldn’t want to talk to you…
Why would you work towards such an opportunity only to squander it on being a steering wheel attendant??We all want different things out of life I suppose.
For myself it was a bit of adventure as a young un and a handy thing to hold as a fall back in hard times but after reading what goes on in the industry upon this very forum.Not bloody likely.
Because I never enjoyed engineering , is that so hard to understand , I did my work experience at a haulage company in Bristol , I was all set to start with them but my dad who was a manager at rolls Royce said your not doing a dead end job like that , so I ended up doing a apprenticeship at rolls Royce , passed & worked in the development machine shop , then met the mrs so left rolls Royce & went and worked at aveling bar ford , kontacks , south east links engineering etc , but that pull was always there to go driving , at first I just did some agency & continued in engineering, but it go to much & I went full time driving , salvoes , Irlams, treasures , Corby chilled etc & I was happy as pig in ■■■■ ,but it’s gong down hill now
Could I go back , I was trained as a universal grinder , external , internal , surface etc , there’s not the requirement for those skills these days , even when I was doing the job it was becoming more cnc by the day, I did some Cnc milling , but that was 25 yrs ago , who is going to train a 59 yr old on a cnc lathe , miller etc
I understood my dads thoughts , he was right in a way , but how ever a good a job was at rolls Royce , Avel ing barford it no good if you want to do something else , I should of never done a apprentiship , it did someone else out of it , indentures gather dust in cupboard , but you can’t turn the clock back especially at 59 , and how ever bad this job is ( tramping being my main gripe ) I’m not sure I’d want to
Maybe if I’d not met the mrs & stayed in Bristol maybe I’d still be at rolls Royce or more likely retired on a good pension ,
My grandad played for Bristol city , he did everything to get me to support them , no chance I loved rovers & support them much to my grandads dismay , I live 150 miles from Bristol , moved away 35 yrs ago , it would make sense to go & wTch Forest , just down the road , or change to city , but I still travel 150 miles for a home game & all over away because I love rovers , it makes no sense to anyone else but me , and I doubt giving up a job at rolls Royce to drive a lorry would make sense to anyone but me , but it’s a choice I made , and at 59 I think it’s to late to turn the clock back & you can stuff you Bristol city as well
Sometimes it is worth “using up all your over 13 hour shifts” at the beginning of the week, so you don’t become the 15 hour/night out muggins at the weekend… 
old 67:
Caerleon:
I am going to say something very controversial now!Get the RHA to create a drivers union, appoint Bob Crow to lead it, and every UK driver register, in a few year’s time you will all be on >65K a year!
Did Bob Crow not pass away a good few years ago?
Regards John.
I wasn’t aware, but plenty of people like him out there to take up the challenge, maybe we should petition Boris to appoint Luke Vernon and Bertie to be joint Transport Ministers? Porkchop and Bacon sales increase = buying British = Happy and Wealthy nation!
It’s good to love the job you have, but an insult not to pay you for what you are worth!
I passed my Class 2 test in September 2019, been full-time with a company since November and been fortunate enough to have worked through the lock down, but before this I was a welder/plater, for 15 years, straight out of school.
Without a doubt, I have been happier in the past 7-8 months than I was those 15 years. If you’re not happy… make a change.
I walked through my door at 18.00 Friday night ( after refusing to drive from Andover - Cannock to pick a load up ) , straight back or I wouldn’t of got back , you arrive home at gods knows what time on a Saturday ,yet your always telling me to grow a backbone !!!
My week was 59 hrs , 3 nights out , 5 days ( 59 hrs is a one off though as back on track for 70 this week ) & again I’m told to stand up for myself , you did 73
I think there’s a saying for this , don’t do as I do , do as I say !!!
I left the motortrade to drive trucks, because the money was better, in six months I’d saved enough for a deposit on a house, mortgage etc, I’ve been asked by friends and garage owners who I still know, to come back, show them my payslip, Can’t afford to pay you that, even main dealers, but they are robbing bastids would never go there. What did I do, the job every car nut would love, it’s longer hours than driving a truck, lots of weekends away, and alot of 24hr rebuilds, The social side was brilliant tho.
This is why I follow Truck Driver Hayley.
I have had many jobs over the years, never a career which were short during the 90’s downturn, so I joined the Military, left that after a few years due to cutbacks and injury.
My income has changed only because I didn’t stay at any one place of work for more than 3 years and while working studied my backside off.
Like Hayley, I went to Uni and I have Two Engineering Degrees, loved the job I had, and after 20 years working on the same things, I got bored! I took a 50% pay cut 5 yrs ago to move into a role that has the variety I needed to keep me sane. I’m often out on foot in all weather, plenty of people saying pay and conditions are crap in my industry - sometimes it’s a job I love and love to hate, but I feel somewhat better, suppose I needed the hardship to focus on.
I did my HGV license as I had an interest in transport (I actually have a pilot’s license also) worked on trucks for a few years in my youth. During COVID just waiting for the time where I can go and complete my Class 1, have the money sat in my account. I will never match the income I have now to work in the Industry unless I move to Newcastle or into a caravan, as London ■■■■■ for the cost of living and I don’t live with my parents.
This might sound stupid but having had a 5 year hiatus from truck driving through driving coaches and having been back on artics for 3 months I’m enjoying it more than I ever did before 
In the real world of general hire and reward transport there’s some drivers out there who would have been paid a lot less for those 73 hours, which incidentally they might well have covered in 5 days (loading etc off card, we all know it goes on), paid a daily rate of £120 or summat and grossed £620 for the week, you can be doubly sure such outfits ain’t paying a full day’s rate just to run in on day 6.
dozy:
I walked through my door at 18.00 Friday night ( after refusing to drive from Andover - Cannock to pick a load up ) , straight back or I wouldn’t of got back , you arrive home at gods knows what time on a Saturday ,yet your always telling me to grow a backbone !!!
My week was 59 hrs , 3 nights out , 5 days ( 59 hrs is a one off though as back on track for 70 this week ) & again I’m told to stand up for myself , you did 73
I think there’s a saying for this , don’t do as I do , do as I say !!!
Wow dozy …Calm yourself down man, you’ll do yourself a mischief.
Where do I start with that?
Ok, here goes.
…
Firstly nobody forced me to do a full week instead of my normal Wed to Sat shift (the type of pattern you would lurrrve from what you say doze…home early Saturdays, mostly before dinner…just in time to watch the football at home in Sky,.(or in the pub before this ■■■■ virus ■■■■■■■■) and off to Wed 6 30 am 
) like I said I was asked, so as the Mrs was working and I had nowt else on …I thought to myself…‘why not’?
My backbone is fine thanks mate, I just happened to get home at 6pm because every ■■■■ thing went wrong that week, and I was held up on most drops…with me so far buddy?
Nice to see you’re standing up for yourself for a change, I’m arrogant enough to take the credit for that …so you’re welcome mate… 
Aye my weekly shift is normally 50 hours, got an inheritance last year, managed to buy my house off the council outright, so that amount of hours is all I need now, life’s good at the moment, own house, beautiful blonde wife, 2 cars, easy job…but cheers for your concern about me anyhoo doze me old mate.
Had my long weekend spent in the garden in the sun up to yesterday, after a meal out with my daughter, so tbh …living the dream bud.
Wife works week after next for another full week, so who knows?.. if they ask me I may do another full week…but rest assured doze, I’ll check with you first mate.
See ya bud.
Oh yeh forgot to say doze, the 5 nights out I had all parked in various places with facilities, 2 nights pub meals, one truckstop, the fri night was worst, that picnic area at Yeovil off the A303 … but no need to pull my mirrors in on lay bys any busy roads whatsoever,… so I’ve got you standing up for yourself, so we’ll work on your choice of parking places next.
Keep in touch with yourself :
eagerbeaver:
Another nail in the coffin mate is this business of getting rid of your in house fleet & getting the big logistika mobs to do your transport for you. The likes of Iceland, Walkers crisps etc don’t do it themselves anymore and as the drivers get older & retire or get sacked/leave/die, they just get replaced with more XPO/Stobartski/Wincan’t etc.These great jobs are simply dying out. The days of Mon-Fri 40 hr contracts for £30k are in their final furlong
I’ve heard that Howden’s pay well though. Again and again and…
That’s every trade though mate. There isn’t a brickie, plasterer, plumber, computer coder, supermarket worker and an awful lot of mid- rank white collar workers who are not earning as much as they were 10years ago. And it’s very subjective; I had 1k bank holiday weekends working in the print, but you always feel like you missed out on the big time, as you think that everyone was earning more a generation ago. Maybe they were, the reality is lads in a generation time will look back in astonishment at current overtime rates. That’s the way it is.
Every industry is going through the same cycle of: merge, pump up the books, skim a bit off the workers, pull a big turn-over related salary for the top tier - sell and repeat…