Do anyother Agency Workers have these kind of Problems

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

Last week I worked for an agency who put me in with a client who has high street shops a full week ,and on Friday the promise of work this week because the client had told the agy there would be work.

The very same Friday my Mrs fields a call from another agency who want me to do a weeks tramping,but alas she declines on my behalf due to the promise of work with existing agency.

Monday morning comes and I sit and wait for a start time for that night on the promised work

Yes you guessed it it did not materialise. So I phone the other two agys that I am registered with and by mid afternoon I am offered a tramping job for the rest of the week.

0600 Tuesday morning I arrive at the customers site(40 mile round trip) go to traffic office and the guy gives me the keys to a unit and tells me to throw my gear in.
When I climb in I see that there is sleeping bag personal stuff etc.Just like someone has just got out of it.

Off i trot to speak to the guy in traffic and tell him what the score is. Never mind he says just chuck it all out the guy who left it went sick yesterday.

Now this seemed very odd given that the guys big time clocks and a load of personal stuff was left,but hey I do has I am asked and put my gear in.

I Then go back to the office to pick up my load notes etc.

Guy in traffic office “Been a bit of a mistake mate you will have to get your gear out because the guy is back tommorow” :smiling_imp: :smiling_imp: :smiling_imp:

Now I am sure the most mild mannered amongst you can guess I was not a happy chappy.

0800 I get intouch with the agency who basically say that they are not paying and will not invoice the customer either because they do not want to fall out with them.

I take some advice and send them an email asking for compensation hoping that they will see sense and settle amicably.

The agency come back and say that the customer will not pay because they offered me a dayshift(not true) and that the customers requirements changed from requiring a tramper to wanting a day driver.

Now if the above was true why did they have me put my tramping gear in the truck.

Well here is my guess at what happend.

DRIVER Phones company and says he will not be able to complete his week tramping and goes home sick for whatever reason

TRAFFIC Office book a tramper through agency to cover.

In the meantime company driver phones in and says he is returning to work.

Some clown in traffic does not tell anyone he is coming in,hence my situation.

In summary the money in my opinion is an issue but there is a bigger one in the form of principals and with that in mind I will pursue this to a succsesful conclusion if it is the last thing I do.

Back to my original question is it just me or do others have these problems :question:

2

Do you expect ANYONE in a traffic office to communicate with their colleagues?, theres too many people in these offices with their heads so far up their own rectums they fail to see whats going on beside them.

Communication is the downfall of most companies in this country.

3

When jobs get cancelled before you get there, then that’s just one of those tough luck situations.

However where I’ve been sent to a job and turned up only to find it’s been cancelled I have always been guaranteed a minimum 8 hrs pay if I turn up to the company and the job has been cancelled without the client informing the agency. In fact I can’t recall working for an agency who hasn’t paid at least 4hrs in such a situation. What I do do in that situation though is to firstly ring the agency to tell them what has happened BEFORE I LEAVE, as sometimes the agency will ring the client and you end up with work, as well as get the company to sign a timesheet and put NOT REQUIRED. That way I have proof that I turned up.

As to the agency not wanting to invoice the customer because they don’t want to upset them then that is their business and doesn’t affect you. If they want to do that, it’s up to them but they foot the bill for your time.

4

I have had a few jobs where the agency has told me I would be there all week, which has not been the case - in fact I had one were I was told I would be there for 3 months and it lasted a day. Can be very annoying… … …

I have only had one job cancelled AFTER I arrived there - and that was due to an agency ■■■■-up, by the time I had found a butty van & had a cup of tea I had been phoned with another job, so all was well in the end !!

G

5

I think you already know the answer to this one cody. You are entitled to the money. Ring up Citizens Advice. But be patient. The whole of UK is calling them at he moment. ( Better to call in. But get there at 8 because that queue can get very long )

6

eventually the agency sorted me a driver, he arrived at the required time, his agency only told him it was for a days work. I managed to elicit a smile when I informed him it was 4 weeks work, and I believe he derived a little enjoyment from telling his agency

:smiley: :smiley: :smiley:

7

harry:
I think you already know the answer to this one cody. You are entitled to the money. Ring up Citizens Advice. But be patient. The whole of UK is calling them at he moment. ( Better to call in. But get there at 8 because that queue can get very long )

Gotcha H will call in tommorow :wink:

8

:unamused: :unamused: :unamused: Yes I have had similar a few times. As I said recently on another post, one of the most common sayings from an Agency is - they won’t pay it.
If you turned up for a job, the agency owes you 8 hrs min pay, regardless.
The agency has to pay you regardless of whether they get paid or not. The relevant info on that one is on the DTI website somehwere, but I can’t be arsed to find at the mo - might later.

9

:smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :stuck_out_tongue:

OK Here is some relevant info. :wink:

10

thecoder0:
Last week I worked for an agency who put me in with a client who has high street shops a full week ,and on Friday the promise of work this week because the client had told the agy there would be work… [snip]

Your story is not uncommon I’m afraid to say. With the exception of a couple of short term full time employed jobs, I’ve been doing agency work for the past 11 years and have once found myself in your exact situation. The job was for Next over at South Elmsall through Jaycrest in Wakefield and it was a 45 minute drive to get there from where I was in Mirfield. I arrived on site in time only to be told that it had been cancelled and I wasn’t required. I did try to phone the agency but as it was a Saturday there was no reply so I was left with no option but to go home and sort it out on Monday. After much discussion and arguing, the agency agreed to pay me 2hrs travelling time, but I never did see the money for it.

I learnt from it though, and now do the same as Conor and get someone on site to write ‘not required’ and sign for it because then you have a case if the agency refuse to pay. Of course, before it gets this far you must remain on site and phone your agency to put the ball in their court first.

Over the years I’ve fallen victim to most of the agency tricks but am now older and wiser and only deal with one agency now (actually a one-man band) who is a driver himself and looks after myself and the other handful of guys that work for him like his own family. I’ve yet to find an honest agency in West Yorks who would back you up over the client if you ever had any problems; they’re all in it for themselves and couldn’t give a toss about anyone else as long as their pockets are being lined.

On a final note, as I see you’re also in West Yorks, you may be aware of an agency in Leeds called Driverwise. Whatever you do, DO NOT have anything to do with them.

11

:smiley: Nice one Rob - too right.

BTW. Last week I was booked for a job and got a call when I was just about to leave the house to go to the job. My agency on the phone and wanted me to do a different job a bit later in the day, OK all agreed, they cancelled the original job and will call me back with thew new job details. When I got the call the new job had now been cancelled and of course I was left with nothing. My agency said they would pay me for for the normal average of 9 hours. :smiley: And I didn’t even leave the house. :stuck_out_tongue: :sunglasses: There are one or two good agencies about still, but must are :question: :smiling_imp: Only trouble with my main agency is they haven’t got much of my preferred shifts at the mo. :cry: .

12

Paid for not leaving the house ■■ That’s pretty good - thought I was lucky getting 8 hours for a 1 3/4 hour shift on a Sunday…

G

13

I got a call last Wednesday, booking me for Saturday, with a mid-morning start time TBC. I was rather surprised, since I don’t normally hear from them until Friday, so I guessed they must be busy.

Friday morning I get a call to say that they’re still waiting for the start time.

Friday afternoon I get another call saying that the client has confirmed that they want me, and will confirm the start time by about 7-8pm that evening.

0800 on Saturday, and I’m up and ready to go. I still don’t have a start time, so I call the agency, who call the client, who say that the job’s been cancelled. :imp:

[zb]s.

14

MrFlibble:
I got a call last Wednesday, booking me for Saturday, with a mid-morning start time TBC. I was rather surprised, since I don’t normally hear from them until Friday, so I guessed they must be busy.

Friday morning I get a call to say that they’re still waiting for the start time.

Friday afternoon I get another call saying that the client has confirmed that they want me, and will confirm the start time by about 7-8pm that evening.

0800 on Saturday, and I’m up and ready to go. I still don’t have a start time, so I call the agency, who call the client, who say that the job’s been cancelled. :imp:

[zb]s.

Welcome to the transport industry Dave :wink: :wink:

Hope your keeping well Mate :laughing: :laughing:

15

On the subject of phoning the agy from the workplace,this i did but all they could manage is txt messages for some strange reason could not speak.

I have an email today that states that the client offered me a day shift. This looks like the stance the agy will take even though the client did no such thing.

Even if the client had offered me a days work I still have the emails from the agency confirming 4 days tramping starting 0600 tuesday.

I make a point of using email; to let the agys that I use know when I am available. The agency were also good enogh to email me this morning apologising for the situation,chapter and verse.

I am advised the booking by email forms a contract and that the offer of one days work (although there wasn’t one) is still in breach of my original booking.

By the way many thanks for all the advice

16

Conor:
get the company to sign a timesheet and put NOT REQUIRED. That way I have proof that I turned up.

Ive done that before, usually the suit in the office doesnt realise the significance of it, I usually say "Sok mate, just sign here and put NOT REQUIRED its just to cover my back wi the agency" :wink: and off i go home knowing Im gonna get 8hrs out of it

thecoder0:
Last week I worked for an agency who put me in with a client who has high street shops a full week ,and on Friday the promise of work this week because the client had told the agy there would be work.

The very same Friday my Mrs fields a call from another agency who want me to do a weeks tramping,but alas she declines on my behalf due to the promise of work with existing agency.

Monday morning comes and I sit and wait for a start time for that night on the promised work

Yes you guessed it it did not materialise. So I phone the other two agys that I am registered with and by mid afternoon I am offered a tramping job for the rest of the week.

thats happened to me several times and it can be so frustrating

've yet to find an honest agency who would back you up over the client if you ever had any problems

using the words “honest” and “agency” in the same phrase does not compute

17

DAFMAD:
:roll: :unamused: :unamused: Yes I have had similar a few times. As I said recently on another post, one of the most common sayings from an Agency is - they won’t pay it.
If you turned up for a job, the agency owes you 8 hrs min pay, regardless.

I’m not disputing the ethical issue here - but there is nothing to support that claim in the legislation. There may be something in the Terms of Engagement that you have with your agency (although that’s unlikely)

DAFMAD:
The agency has to pay you regardless of whether they get paid or not. The relevant info on that one is on the DTI website somehwere, but I can’t be arsed to find at the mo - might later.

If the work has been done, that’s absolutely right. But - in the circumstances outlined there is an issue over whether or not a contract exists and thus whether payment is due at all.
Ethically I’d expect to pay something - whether it’s 8hrs pay or a lump of travel money is down to what is mutually agreeable with the driver as a fair compensation.
I make the distinction between what you’re due and what you might negotiate because If you can’t agree something with your agency you can save the hassle and grief of chasing a lost cause.
You have the ultimate sanction against the agency of refusing their work in future, and of telling others why you’re doing it. Keep the comments truthful though…

18

thecoder0 If you get an engaged tone from your local Citizens Advice, then call any C/A office in the UK. I think they are all 0845 numbers…& some parts of the county are more busy than others…Good luck.

19

coder0…i think u may be being a bit greedy here…i would agree that u r fully entitled to a days pay (8hrs)…cos u’ve turned up…as requested…and…cos it makes it difficult for u to find other work on that day…but ■■■■ happens…

I’m sure for the next four day’s other work could be found…for u…

From the agencies point of view…they’re running a cut throat business…If your in with a good client…and you can’t afford to lose them…it’s easier and better to upset a driver…than the client…otherwise the possible knock on effect for them as a business…could be a lot more upsetting…especially…if rival down the road sneaks in …

Business can be a brutal world…

…and yes i’ve had those moments…of the job that’s…on…then at the last minute it’s off…half hr later on again…then off again…it’s annoying…but if u deal with decent agencies only…they try and sort u out somewhere else…or try and get u a nice job to suit at a later date…

It’s all a matter of working together…and not working for idiot agencies…

Get your 8hrs…but don’t worry about the rest…

Did u actually work those other four day’s■■?

20

SuperSmiley:
From the agencies point of view…they’re running a cut throat business…If your in with a good client…and you can’t afford to lose them…it’s easier and better to upset a driver…than the client…otherwise the possible knock on effect for them as a business…could be a lot more upsetting…especially…if rival down the road sneaks in …
quote]

sound words Smiley - but from my perspective if it happens once with a client, that’s unfortunate and maybe I deal with it by sorting the driver out myself. If it happens too often I’d actually rather lose the client… there’s always another of them just round the corner, good drivers on the other hand are less common.