enoughs enough, I’m going to (if i get the courage 2 walk out of a job) quit tomorrow!
I don’t mind long hours, but I do mind finishing at 7pm one night to start at 4am the next day 3 times a week every week, and use the 2 x 10 hours every week. I don’t mind being salaried £320 take home a week, but I do mind when the hours make that equate to less than £5ph (what I earned delivering catalogue goods in a LDV Pilot van) as 15hour days are too common
I don’t mind it if a trailer or truck breaks something en route (not withstanding driver error, but I haven’t damaged a mudguard or whatever for weeks), but I do mind ringing in to report the airbags as faulty on the trailer so it tops out to be told ‘just set it manually it’ll be ok’ as I know it will be the same in a week’s time. I do also mind the risk of points on my licence due to mal-functioning equipment, I reported a truck as having non-functioning washers and I drove it again 3 weeks later, and it still hadn’t been fixed!
I think what has tipped the scales is that I have just had a weeks holiday, come back started 6am (a lie in, latest start for a while) got a lift to Grimsby to collect a truck from the garage, then had to drive to base in Scunthorpe to go back to Immingham to get a load, then over to Liverpool to unload, back to Immingham to get a nightman’s container - then as I drove into the yard both bosses were leaving, and one shouted ‘tomorrows details are in the box (attached to office wall for dropping paperwork into), call me at 6 for directions I’m in early tomorrow!’ to discover I have to be in Belper for 8, so a 4am start AND they didn’t even leave a diesel pump key … and this was at 7pm!
Before I went on holiday, I did a little scouting round and it seems that £8ph or so is more the norm wth o/t after 8 hours, so hopefully I’ll find something else quite quickly
Donno if you will find anything at £8 + ot @time and half quickly!
I do know you need to get out
I also know you will find something quickly thats much better than the shower of ■■■■ you will be leaving behind!!
A local window company runs a salery scheme for the new & newer drivers & untill you realise that the longer serving drivers are on unsocial hours payments ie do not get asked to do the night runs, weekend work etc & that for the salery you have to do 65+ hours of thier choice, it all looks very good.
Everyone else gets a 40 hour salery & then either time in leiu or overtime for hours over that, others get unsocial hours payments for nights & weekends, every other working adult would concider £5 per hour (or less) to be a poor wage.
I once fell out with a bus company for reminding them they set the wages & the running times & then gave me that 65k vehicle.
Sounds like they were taking you for a ride rather than you taking the boxes for rides…
I agree mate, bosses like that aint worth working for, you’ll find something else soon mate… Good Luck!!
£320 is not bad for a 50 hour week, but any more hours than that and you’re being shafted mate. And that’s on Scottish wages - which are a bit lower than England. Even agencies pay a better hourly equivalent than that!
I don’t think I would take a salaried driving job, unless it’s the local delivery type where they never expect you to do overtime.
well with a bit of circumspect, I decided that it would be best not to just walk out and burn a bridge and more importantly a reference.
After a chat with the boss, I told him that although I love the driving there are things, like the hours for the pay. We came to the conclusion that when I do find something else, then I can leave with a week’s notice. Also, he agreed that if I do any weekend work for them (which he virtually begged me to do as they have ‘more than plenty’ weekend work - as an aside they do take on brand new newbies if anyone in Scunthorpe needs just a c+e job to get some experience!) that it would be on an hourly rate, subject to negotiation.
So really, its a positive outcome in so much that I’ve told him I’m going, but on good terms and kept an avenue for cash open too.
si what a shame especially after such a good start
my first c+e job was on agri bulk tip, on basic and bonus for the first 6 weeks, but my gaffer never let me see what my wagon was earning, so i think i was fleeced big time, i left after 3 months went back to stansted airport on the re-fueiling wagons, and did agy on my days off.
i sighned a contract for the training for my c+e to say if i left with in 3 years i would pay the whole lot back, told him to stuff the contract too, but did pay him£200 as i reckoned he owed me more than the cost of the training
so it looks you are doing the right thing, just becareful of the weekend thing…
chris
i know Caveman, I did have a great start there; and to be honest I have learned a huge amount of practical things; such as putting the suspension up a bit before winding the legs down, then put the suspension down to pull from under the trailer so the 5th wheel doesn’t pop up and into the susies on the skellies - no training school would tell you that! I now know to not take a salaried driving job; I spoke to another driver this evening who did 71 hours last week which equated to less than £5 per hour!
Anyway, Uniloads called me today and offered me the job! Start on the 22nd with a few days training in Warrington, so hopefully it’ll work out well
Never fear, I’ll keep you updated as to what that job is like in reality!
CBR_SI:
…and to be honest I have learned a huge amount of practical things; such as putting the suspension up a bit before winding the legs down, then put the suspension down to pull from under the trailer so the 5th wheel doesn’t pop up and into the susies on the skellies…
Why do you put suspension up before dropping the legs ? Don’t see any useful point to that and all it achieves is making yourself extra effort to wind the legs down further.
The idea is to wind the legs down until they hit the ground, then wind them back up one full turn, disconnect suzies, then pull the pin, drop the unit drive axle suspension on its arse so that you don’t pull out leaving all your fifth wheel grease on the trailer and also so you don’t scuff your trailer ramps.
When connecting up, same idea applies in reverse, but once the fifth wheel pin engages and you’ve given it a tug to make sure, THEN lift your unit drive axle suspension up a couple of inches so that it lifts the legs off the ground hence making life a whole lot easier winding the legs up. Also, the other reason for dropping the suspension when connecting up is so that the grease under the trailer and on your fifth wheel doesn’t get shoved up onto the leading edge of the trailer in a big clump when WILL clog your suzies up and you’ll end up with grease on your hands, arms, gloves, clothes and inevitably, steering wheel, seats etc.
Rob K:
Why do you put suspension up before dropping the legs ? Don’t see any useful point to that and all it achieves is making yourself extra effort to wind the legs down further.
I do it when parked on an uneven surface so theres less chance of scraping or ripping off the tops of the mudgraurds of the rear axles of the unit on the front of the trailer when pulling out from under the trailer.
A lot of modern trailers are light-weight, which means that when you drop a fully freighted trailer the front droops. If you don’t lift the front of the trailer before dropping it, you can’t drop your unit suspension far enough to pull out from under the fifth wheel plate without scrapeing grease everywhere.
Si, a mate of mine works for Uniloads, he goes abroad quite a lot, mainly Italy. Will you be doing any of that? I hope it works out for you this time. Enjoy yourself mate.
Why do you put suspension up before dropping the legs ? Don’t see any useful point to that and all it achieves is making yourself extra effort to wind the legs down further.
I was told to do it that way, by the boss; and the same day I saw a driver just wind down the legs and he pulled the pin/susies and lowered the axle suspension (his is an iveco) and drove out and as the 5th wheel popped up it only missed the row of connection points by millimetres. Also, that yard is very very uneven, as it is only designed for a few wagons but theres usually 15 or so trucks in there, so maybe what lostpup said has something to do with it? I do see your point though
Simon; they said on the phone that some mainland europe work ‘may be involved’, so tbh I don’t know as yet…best get looking for some phrasebooks! On the app. form it does ask if you speak any other languages, so I suppose my Norwegian/Swedish might help, though i doubt it!
Off to Warrington tomorrow, then back home on Thurs or Fri - how will I cope without Trucknet in the meantime?!?!
Last THursday I handed in my notice and finished this Thursday just gone without a job to go to. I didn’t even start looking until Friday. Was I worried? Nope.
On Friday I walked into one of the leading agencies in the area and said “I’ve a Class 1 licence with 10 years experience. What can you offer me?”. I was signed up on the spot and start my first job with them on Tuesday on £7.50 days and £8.50 nights with time and a half after 8hrs and paid Class 1 rates even if I’m in a 7.5 tonner.
Si, it sounds like the same company then. A phrase-book would be useful, I use one of those small electronic translaters for when I’me stuck. About 10,000 words in each of 7 or 8 different languages. Its a lot smaller than 1 phrase-book, let alone 2 or 3 (depending on where you might end up) and probably cheaper than 2 books. Mainly though, if you pay attention, you will pick up more of what you need as you go, rather than relying on a phrase-book all the time. They obviously are aimed at tourists rather than working people.
My mates name is Barry, he’s an x-Murfitts driver as well. Look him up for me please. I’ll text him n tell him to keep an eye out for you. All the best with the new job.
I take it you won’t need reminding, there’s a Euro-Driving forum on here, so any questions you might have before you disappear over the horizon, plus all the ones you’ll have when you get back, you know where to get reliable info.
Don’t forget to tell us about your adventures over the water. Things are a bit different over there and trips tend to be a bit longer. You’ll make some mistakes, we all do , but that just makes the stories more interesting.
Good luck to you for following your covictions.
It’s only because of driver’s being able to walk away from bad jobs
that conditions will improve.
Unfortunately,potential drivers aren’t informed enough as to what is expected
of them,when they gain an LGV licence. You are not just signing up for a job,but a complete dedication of your life. For what is being offered in terms
of pay, you can’t blame people for opting for ’ normal ’ jobs.
My advice to anyone wanting to be a truck driver is, ’ if you have any sense, don’t do it
CBR_SI. Just for the record. Good luck with your search. If you do find something that needs defecting, fill a sheet out or write it on a piece of A4 paper. Sign it, date it, put defect sheet at the top at to who’s attention it’s destined and make a photocopy. Keep the photocopy in your cab with you (if the defect is not dangerous/illegal ie scrubbed tyres. If it is then obviousley don’t let the vehicle go out). If you get pulled then please ask the ministry to do you for this, this, this and this, show them the photocopied sheets, sequentially numbered and dated if need be (proves you havn’t just written them out). I may be wrong (please tell me if I am) but that should help you a great deal. You’d also be amazed at how quick defects are sorted . (Worked with my ex gaffer anyway). Me a right handful, nahhhhhh. Never .
And that’s on Scottish wages - which are a bit lower than England. Even agencies pay a better hourly equivalent than that!
