I have not been driving for long but have been lucky enough to have been busy since I qualified. I am actively looking for full time work on either class one or two but am not sure if the money will be better or worse than agency rates.
I know it is not possible to quote exact figures as each area in the country is different etc but in general do full time drivers get better hourly rates than agency drivers? Obviously the pay is dependent on experience but if you took someone with 1 years full time experience and compered them to a one year experienced agency worker how would they compare?
Hope this has not been asked on a different forum and if it has I am happy to move it there.
Used to be agency drivers got paid more to make up for the time when there was no work, but not now there are that many agencies and driver’s all looking for work the rates have dropped.
Sadly, most rates are ■■■■ poor whatever route you take…There are always idiots who will do it cheaper so it forces the hourly rate down…
Full time is safer, but you can earn better in the long run if you’re S/E. Agencies are generally lying scum bags and will offer much but will almost never deliver. Get all agencies rates in writing before taking on a job or they will ‘forget’ what they promised.
truckist:
I am actively looking for full time work on either class one or two but am not sure if the money will be better or worse than agency rates.
Market forces my friend, market forces.
You are, I regret to say, a commodity and the agency is a retailer. The agency buys you at the lowest price they can and then sells you for the highest price they can. Their profit is the difference.
Like Tesco buying loaves of bread, they will shop around for the best buying price. (Hence so many agencies have ‘ficticious’ job adverts to get lots of desperate-for-work people on their books).
Again, like Tesco they will get the best price for you that the market will stand.
All unfortunate but true.
Some employers have a similar policy, often referred to as the ‘revolving door’. They aim to keep new drivers coming in one side as quickly as existing drivers exit by the other side. These companies tend to pay poor money and depend on the numbers, like the agency.
Other employers value their staff a bit more and will pay more to keep them.
When I went from agency to proper employment I had an increase of about 30% in wages.
I sort of guessed as much and will continue my quest to find a full time job. I have been lucky so far with work but imagine as the summer slips into winter the work may well dry up a bit. It seems like there are loads of temp jobs at the moment and very few permanent and I suppose that this will not change for some time.
I was looking at the class two milk work but am not sure what that involves or how the work will be spread over the working week. Anyone who is or has done milk work please feel free to drop me a line to tell me how good or bad it is.
Well the way I looked at it was that with agency work you could be working 15 hour shifts 6 days a week 1 week, and then nothing the next week. Whereas with a full time job, at least you know (roughly) that there’s gonna be enough at the end of the month to cover the bills…?
