I was class 1 for reed boardall! During the interview it was if we ask you to do a 9hour turn round we’ll give you a unit to sleep in or put you up in a hotel!! Er well that never happened!! The units were never still long enough! I know the planners have it tough but all they had to do was ask! Do you mind if we reduce your rest break? So unfortunatley £7 an hour don’t come near to the £12 an hour I left for, got my job back and now look forward for earning the same in 37 hours to what I had to work double that for!
Coastlinertoddy:
I was class 1 for reed boardall! During the interview it was if we ask you to do a 9hour turn round we’ll give you a unit to sleep in or put you up in a hotel!! Er well that never happened!! The units were never still long enough! I know the planners have it tough but all they had to do was ask! Do you mind if we reduce your rest break? So unfortunatley £7 an hour don’t come near to the £12 an hour I left for, got my job back and now look forward for earning the same in 37 hours to what I had to work double that for!
what did you do Toddy, before driving I mean, because giving up £12 to earn 7 must be a long hard decision. Even boredom must be worth £5 per hour
The Sarge:
Tell that to the kids of today, and they won’t believe you!
Pah!! 
I did all of the above, got evicted from my hole in the ground and I had to pay the boss for the privilege of working for him.
dieseldave:
The Sarge:
Tell that to the kids of today, and they won’t believe you!Pah!!
I did all of the above, got evicted from my hole in the ground and I had to pay the boss for the privilege of working for him.
I had to live in shoe box in middle of the road
Report this postReply with quoteRe: Hats off to you guys!
by Sam Millar » Fri Apr 06, 2012 3:04 pm
dar1976 wrote:
Only 15hrs? Some of us worked 24h straight
Some of you got it easy… we worked 24h flat to the mat with no brake pedal…
I worked for a guy who when I complained the brakes needed adjusting he told me to take short sharp steps because he did’nt pay me for stopping, and if I asked him again he would disable reverse gear as I was’nt paid for going backward only forward. Thats a hard boss!
dieseldave:
Pah!!… got evicted from my hole in the ground
You had a HOLE 
- think yourself lucky 
dieseldave:
Pah!!… got evicted from my hole in the ground
You had a HOLE - think yourself lucky
We all have to start somewhere 
One of the first 7.5t runs I had was doing electrical deliveries about a decade ago. They wrote whatever name they wanted on the tacho disc, didn’t care about breaks or speed limits and the only reason I got to drive back was the driver was so tired he was struggling to stay awake let alone on his side of the road.
Managed at that company for a week before having to change jobs. The company got rid of all their agency drivers the day the ministry came to visit.
Some people are cut out for this job and some aren’t. I guess it is quite depressing for the initial poster despite all the light heartedness you make out of it because he spent a couple grand or more to get his class 1 and was then taken in by someone who ran him ragged for peanuts…
I’m off to a job interview tomorrow, £10 a day round trip in fuel and the option of only getting the pay of the OP for class 2 work on days only… 
Swings and roundabouts. Clearly there are a few ‘old hands’ on this thread taking the [zb]. You know who you are So don’t you try that guilty/butter wouldn’t melt look either! 
I’m not taking any credit for winding the OP up.
If 60 hour + weeks are not for them then so be it. At least they gave it a go.
Not convinced that 9 days was really long enough to test the water considering the cost of license acquisition, but only they know what is reasonable for them.
Nah, 9 days isn’t enough but the driver was repeatedly doing 15h days with 9 hours off for all of that period and not just as the rules state then that is the reason he’s knackered!
Now, if he was on Class 2 with HIAB and doing his 16 drops a day in the 10 hour window, that is something to get knackered over!!!
From the little I’ve seen from RB I have no idea how you could work for them without tramping. I’m fine on casual but they do love thier god awful early starts!!
Yeah, but it’s what you make of those early starts, how you plan your duties and your times, and all the other stuff that goes with it.
If you’ve come out of a job, such as an office and gone straight into class 1 and tramping too then it is going to be a bit of a culture shock isn’t it!!!
Saratoga:
Yeah, but it’s what you make of those early starts, how you plan your duties and your times, and all the other stuff that goes with it.If you’ve come out of a job, such as an office and gone straight into class 1 and tramping too then it is going to be a bit of a culture shock isn’t it!!!
Yes 
Well if they’d of asked I could of said look I’m shattered I need 11 off but they never asked, I guess I should of given it a longer try but I was exhausted! It was 9 hour turn arounds the 3 times a week allowed! The job was as easy as. Think I’ll leave it a little then try elsewhere later in life
No one can force you to take reduced rests.
On the flip side, if you are tramping your bed is feet away from you. So draw the curtains, set your alarm and crash out for 8 hours after a bite to eat.
Maybe easier said than done, but I loved tramping because I was left to my own devices so long as work was done.
Maybe I am in the minority?
Maybe look for a day or night run and work up to tramping hours. It would be a shame to waste the money you have laid out.
of course we ad it tough!
Coastlinertoddy:
Well if they’d of asked I could of said look I’m shattered I need 11 off but they never asked
As stated elsewhere on this forum; they never notice or care if you’re tired. It is a self-certification thingy. YOU are the only one who can tell them. I can look tired and dopey at work, but it doesn’t mean I am Don’t even speak Dean!!! 
You could have said such things to them in the office like ‘I’m new to this and I’m having problems with these hours and everything’. OK, there is the possibility they’ll sack you but at least you know you’ve tried and driven safely…
Still, choices choices