Just in case you thought that the French cops had reserved a specially nasty place in their hearts for British truck drivers, you may want to think again as this is what’s happening over here.
Since Monday morning a group of around 80 truckers have embarked on Operation Escargot, a go slow drive up through France through to the capital city of Paris, aiming to arrive Wednesday morning. Until now it has all gone fairly smoothly, other than certain irate car drivers occasionally stuck behind them there has been a fair bit of public support for their calls of lowering diesel prices, and concerns about work disappearing into the backs of foreign trucks (the same things that British truckers get angry about).
France is undoubtedly the European capital for strikes and demonstrations, as whenever anyone on this forum or elsewhere talks about making some demonstration against the way our industry is treated we’re always told to look at the French example. However today the police have announced that any truck driver entering Paris with this convoy will be stopped and his drivers license will be taken from him indefinitely, preventing him from working thereafter. So now the drivers face a complex challenge: do they stop outside the capital, letting the authorities win and no doubt keep diesel prices where they are; or, do they continue and risk their jobs and their family’s livelihoods?
Obviously the grass isn’t much greener over here in France (particularly when you consider the lower rates of pay than their British counterparts), but what would you do in the same situation?
Considering the French workers track record I wouldn’t be surprised to see a national strike. Just wish some of their attitude would rub off in the UK… Don’t think I would risk my license though.
i agree with steve,it would be nice if we in britain stood our ground like the frogs do but loosing your licence would be a big re-think.!!
even though it is blackmail
Good luck to them…at least they`ve got backbone…and the guts to see it through and they normally get what they want…but it needs more organisation…so when they take the first licence away…every trucker should down tools…so when nothing moves…the worm Chirac will take notice and back down like he always does…for he is gutless…as i have been saying for years …what this industry needs is a one union membership…for drivers only…run by drivers …for drivers…not the gutless wonders we have in place now who only look after their own interests…when i started in transport over 40 years ago…you had no choice but to join the TGWU…and god help you if you turned up at the docks without your card…but Maggie saw problems ahead and almost disbanded the unions and made it a condition that no one had to join a union…but i always said that this industry needs one…which is why we have and always will be walked over ,
have a nice day
whilst on the subject of fuel prices,between 85ppl-91ppl,isnt it about time we did something to get ol’ gordy brown pants to lower/stop tax on our fuel,as an od im deffinatly feeling the pinch and im only putting £40 a day in my ■■■■■■ so how do truck o/ds feel ,its time to show our discontent …
truckyboy:
…what this industry needs is a one union membership…for drivers only…run by drivers …for drivers…not the gutless wonders we have in place now who only look after their own interests…when i started in transport over 40 years ago…you had no choice but to join the TGWU…and god help you if you turned up at the docks without your card…but Maggie saw problems ahead and almost disbanded the unions and made it a condition that no one had to join a union…
Which is why I left the T&G years ago.
Fed up with waiting for hours at Liverpool to tip one case one day and then forced to teeter on a 16 foot high load and tip myself the next. All by ‘brother’ T&G members.
Fed up with waiting at Marshall’s yard in Liverpool while one of their drivers took my trailer to be tipped in the days before I was in the union. It was this that prompted my boss to make his 6 vehicle fleet a ‘closed shop’ with him as the shop steward!! Accepted by the T&G!
Fed up with waiting in a cold damp holding area for hours at the Royal docks in London, denied use of the dockers’ canteen and forced to use the ‘Asian’ toilets, because our ‘brother’ T&G members were obviously afraid of being contaminated by lowly lorry drivers.
Whatever else you say about her, Maggie released us from this tyranny but the problem is with unions, they are only really effective when they are tyranical. You pays your money and you makes your choice.
To get back to France, where despite my 60 vehicle firm having two unions represented I was never made to feel I should join either and kept up, and still do, my URTU membership in case of personal problems, are you sure Craig that it is drivers or small hauliers instrumental in this action? In my experience it is usually the latter, my boss always told us to park up in times like these.
redvanman:
whilst on the subject of fuel prices,between 85ppl-91ppl,isnt it about time we did something to get ol’ gordy brown pants to lower/stop tax on our fuel,as an od im deffinatly feeling the pinch and im only putting £40 a day in my ■■■■■■ so how do truck o/ds feel ,its time to show our discontent …
Its not down to greedy old Brown this time its purely because the price of oil has gone up, as far as im aware the tax on fuel in this country hasnt changed.
However anyone organising a protest can count me in.
I’m sure the french government/gestapo/police etc hehe would not be able to revoke their license immediately on the spot like that. Surely there would be a legal battle if that happened? I don’t know what the french do about there licences etc and under what grounds they can be revoked either medical or other. I wouldn’t say that they were being dangerous they are simply making a very large statement. Sometimes it’s the only way people will listen.
tiggz:
I’m sure the french government/gestapo/police etc hehe would not be able to revoke their license immediately on the spot like that. Surely there would be a legal battle if that happened?
The French police can, and do, do whatever they like it seems - just ask certain members of this forum!
Anyway, the threat of license loss obviously had the desired effect here as no trucks made it to Paris, every truck that came off the periphèrique had its papers checked to ensure it had business in the city, and that was the end of that … well almost.
