Had a call today from an agency I did a bit of work for (a weeks worth I think) about 10 years ago wondering what I was up to work wise and how I was keeping, I was very surprised by the call obviously but told him what I was doing for a job and he replied “well you know where we are if you need us” so are agencies desperate at the moment or what !!
Desperate to have as many phone numbers as possible to text the lowest possible rate and see who bites.
Proper drivers on holiday,Limpers needed to cover… 
Maybe drivers are finally getting wise to those ■■■■ s…at last, so they’e struggling to recruit.
No offense to Bald Bloke, but that noise is a barrel being scraped
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They stopped ringing me when i asked them to remove my number, like you its been about 8 years since i worked for them but they pestered me regularly.
Another agency kept ringing me at all hours of the night, i registered with them and did an assessment (on the pretext of a permanent job at the same site the drive contucted by the depot full timer, as you all probably guessed that was ■■■■■■■■ 
) but they only ever rang me when it was obvious they’d been let down at some unearthly hour, despite repeated requests to delete my details they continued to ring, so when i started where i am now on nights a few weeks later i took the opportunity of ringing their bod on call at all hours of the night and early hours most nights i worked to let him know i wasn’t available, after a while they twigged and finally agreed to remove my details 
I worked for three different agencies over a period of around 14 months before i got this job, one tricked me into working somewhere for a different rate one day.
One went out of business owing me back holiday pay they tried not to pay me yet promised before going bankrupt they were sorting out, fortunately i got hold of the receiver who made sure i was a priority creditor and i got my money in full.
The last one were snotty as hell and i wouldn’t recommend them to anyone, dragged their heels over my last weeks pay, so i witheld the tacho cards until they paid up, i’d given them a weeks notice of quitting and they never gave me a single shift on the notice week, which actually suited me because i wanted a week off before starting new job but wouldn’t have dropped them in the mire.
Generally i have found agencies to be dishonourable and untrustworthy and their word means nothing, i hope i never have to use one again.
Franglais:
No offense to Bald Bloke, but that noise is a barrel being scrapedSent from my SM-G361F using Tapatalk
No offence taken 
Giving notice to an agency no no no
Yes giving notice does seem laughable now, but some of us have an ingrained standard of behaviour, just because others are undeserving of those standards doesn’t necessarily mean we should lower ourselves to their gutter level.
Many years back, I worked for an agency as a stop gap between jobs.
I only needed a weeks work to keep some pennys coming in until the new job started.
I did 4 days working out of Tesco’s in Kiln Farm Milton Keynes, and an odd days somewhere I cant remember.
The following monday started the new job and all was well.
About 2 years later I answered a knock at the door by some bod in his suit, who wanted to interview my under caution, told him to bugger off initially, and then the mire he probed, the more inquisitive I became.
Anyway, invited him in, and found out he was from the tax office and was investigating my claims for train travel, overnight expenses, and non payment of correct taxes for the many many months of working for the agency.
Thankfully, I had kept the one payslip and tacho’s from my weeks work with them, I did later hear the guy who owned the agency got banged up for tax fraud, seems I was not the only one he did it to.
Agency will regularly call me during my first shift somewhere and ask what I think and how I’m getting on. I told them I fancied euro work and they are on the look out for me.
If I tell them it’s pants they say sorry and tell me they won’t book me there again. If i tell them I’m enjoying it they try and get me more bookings at that place.
I’d like to think they are a good agency. When I had my HIAB distater shift - they backed me up totally. They even said it was out of order I didn’t get an induction and said that’s not how their drivers should be treated. I was forwarded the emails so know they did this. And they have never not paid me on time or incorrectly. Especially when I first started and had a few accidents.
Saying all agencies are terrible is like saying all drivers are overweight and ignorant. Many are - but I feel well looked after with mine. I get paid a decent amount of my skill level. If I work a weekend I take £400 away with me. I think that’s okay and I’m happy. But yeah they are getting busy and they do try and push you to take more work on than you want. It’s a good thing really.
I quit driving 5 years ago but in the last 3 months I’ve had about 10 agencies ring me up offering work most of them I’ve never even heard of
xichrisxi:
Proper drivers on holiday,Limpers needed to cover…
A lot of our former communist country colleagues are taking their summer holidays in their homeland and given the pound has drastically shrunk in value against their home currency, I suspect many of them won’t be coming back anytime soon.
Apparently the German hauliers are recruiting drivers on far more attractive rates of pay and given what’s happening on the 29th March next year many of them are considering a move.
In the meantime agencies will take anyone with the minimum qualification, which from what I’ve seen is a face
bigdave789:
xichrisxi:
Proper drivers on holiday,Limpers needed to cover…A lot of our former communist country colleagues are taking their summer holidays in their homeland and given the pound has drastically shrunk in value against their home currency, I suspect many of them won’t be coming back anytime soon.
Apparently the German hauliers are recruiting drivers on far more attractive rates of pay and given what’s happening on the 29th March next year many of them are considering a move.
In the meantime agencies will take anyone with the minimum qualification, which from what I’ve seen is a face
I speak to a lot of good EE lads, many are planning to and going back and it’s not due to the exchange rate at all, its due to the UK no longer being a safe place to have and raise a family for various reasons it doesn’t take a genius to work out.
Yeah I still get regular emails from agencies…even though I hav’nt worked for any in 7 years.
Might give them a bash,in the autumn though.
sammym:
Agency will regularly call me during my first shift somewhere and ask what I think and how I’m getting on. I told them I fancied euro work and they are on the look out for me.If I tell them it’s pants they say sorry and tell me they won’t book me there again. If i tell them I’m enjoying it they try and get me more bookings at that place.
I’d like to think they are a good agency. When I had my HIAB distater shift - they backed me up totally. They even said it was out of order I didn’t get an induction and said that’s not how their drivers should be treated. I was forwarded the emails so know they did this. And they have never not paid me on time or incorrectly. Especially when I first started and had a few accidents.
Saying all agencies are terrible is like saying all drivers are overweight and ignorant. Many are - but I feel well looked after with mine. I get paid a decent amount of my skill level. If I work a weekend I take £400 away with me. I think that’s okay and I’m happy. But yeah they are getting busy and they do try and push you to take more work on than you want. It’s a good thing really.
Hello mr. Recruitment consultant
SuperMultiBlue:
Giving notice to an agency
I give notice to agencies because you never know when you’re going to need them again. Plus its just civil to do so.
Conor:
SuperMultiBlue:
Giving notice to an agencyI give notice to agencies because you never know when you’re going to need them again. Plus its just civil to do so.
‘Notice’ is the end of the shift. Just as they will do to you.
Conor:
SuperMultiBlue:
Giving notice to an agencyI give notice to agencies because you never know when you’re going to need them again. Plus its just civil to do so.
I too gave notice to the agency I was doing most of my work for it’s common decency and not only that they actually were really good to me because there were other things apart from driving I used to dabble in and when my dabbling went quiet I’d ring the agency up and they nearly always had work for me .
bald bloke:
Had a call today from an agency I did a bit of work for (a weeks worth I think) about 10 years ago wondering what I was up to work wise and how I was keeping, I was very surprised by the call obviously but told him what I was doing for a job and he replied “well you know where we are if you need us” so are agencies desperate at the moment or what !!
Glad it’s not just me. These last 3 months or so I’ve been bombarded with calls from numerous agencies. Some I worked for, most I’ve have had no dealings with, some I haven’t even heard of. I live in Nottingham and had one from Worcester ringing me about work.
The only other time I can recall this happening was the summer of 2014 just before the CPC came in when they all went in a mass panic there’d be no drivers (well that failed to materialise)