It doesn’t matter which one I go to… the first job comes in, we agree an hourly rate… I accept and complete the assignment then I receive my pay packet the following week and my hourly rate is less than what is agreed.
As soon as I query it, it is rectified (to avoid me getting the ombudsman involved) but guess what… no more work.
It is absolutely disgusting that this is happening in 2016 Britain. May as well stay on the dole… I WILL NOT be exploited.
How many agencies have done that to you pal?
You could complain to the REC about the agencies concerned but…
Seeing as it’s a self regulatory body, you’re probably widdling into the wind. A letter to your local MP about the way you’re being treated might make you feel better but, probably won’t get read and won’t change one ■■■■ thing when it comes to agency laws.
In a nutshell, you’re between a rock and a hard place. They’re a law unto themselves and they do exactly as they please. Booking you for a weeks worth of work that then fails to materialise, paying you incorrect rates, hours or failing to pay at all. There is very little you can do.
Get any prices agreed in writing, you have nothing to take to the small claims court unless you have evidence. Having said that, any successful court action against them will instantly drop you off their books as will anything else they don’t like and arguing about rates is something they don’t like. However, if you do get your day in court, you’ll find most judges are very sympathetic towards peeps who haven’t been paid by nasty low life agencies and will award in your favour with costs. It’s not much of a victory but it’s a victory all the same.
If it’s as bad as you say it is where you are, you’re defo better off going full time with someone. Start asking where ever it is you’ve been working.
Now chill out, all that stress will only give you a heart attack.
I’ve been doing agency work since 1994 and never had that happen to me.
yourhavingalarf:
You could complain to the REC about the agencies concerned but…Seeing as it’s a self regulatory body, you’re probably widdling into the wind. A letter to your local MP about the way you’re being treated might make you feel better but, probably won’t get read and won’t change one ■■■■ thing when it comes to agency laws.
In a nutshell, you’re between a rock and a hard place. They’re a law unto themselves and they do exactly as they please. Booking you for a weeks worth of work that then fails to materialise, paying you incorrect rates, hours or failing to pay at all. There is very little you can do.
Get any prices agreed in writing, you have nothing to take to the small claims court unless you have evidence. Having said that, any successful court action against them will instantly drop you off their books as will anything else they don’t like and arguing about rates is something they don’t like. However, if you do get your day in court, you’ll find most judges are very sympathetic towards peeps who haven’t been paid by nasty low life agencies and will award in your favour with costs. It’s not much of a victory but it’s a victory all the same.
If it’s as bad as you say it is where you are, you’re defo better off going full time with someone. Start asking where ever it is you’ve been working.
Now chill out, all that stress will only give you a heart attack.
Top post this mate. You know exactly where I’m coming from. I always ask for written confirmation of rate usually through text communication.
I know about REC but also know that REC’s recommendation is first to seek contact with the agency over the dispute. The agencies know this and will always resolve the issue but hey-ho now they have found (in their eyes) an awkward driver (in my eyes, a driver who wants nothing more than what he was promised/agreed). No more work for me.
Letter to MP is something I’ve considered. WIll this change anything? I’m not sure. The status quo of holding workers over a barrel seems to fit quite nicely with them I would have thought.
Full time work is going to have to be the way to go. My circumstance at the moment means flexible agency work is the favourable option but as I’ve already said I will not be exploited in this way. The amounts of money are not huge but over time do add up. I worked out from one assignment I did (13 weeks to going on the books with the company) the agency fleeced me out of roughly £1000 if I had received the initial agreed rates. Time and a half turned into time and a third and I put some serious hours in.
Maybe a strike system needs to be looked at. More than 5-10 ‘clerical errors’ (as the agency will categorise it) a month would trigger an automatic REC investigation. Would rely on drivers routinely reporting these instances.
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.
SuperMultiBlue:
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.
They are not laughing mate, it’s just another race to the bottom.
You didn’t say how many agencies have done this to you though…
I’ve only even been shafted by one “Drivers Direct” 
SuperMultiBlue:
The status quo of holding workers over a barrel seems to fit quite nicely with them I would have thought.Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.
I would not trust any agency as far as I could spit mate.
A lot think they can just treat you like ■■■■ and mostly get away with it.
They do not like you standing up for yourself.
My experience with them is admittedly limited which was a few years ago but it did include a couple of run ins, so I can only speak from that experience.
My mate who works for another is continually ■■■■■■ about on a regular basis for the simple reason he just puts up with it.
Evil8Beezle:
SuperMultiBlue:
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.They are not laughing mate, it’s just another race to the bottom.
You didn’t say how many agencies have done this to you though…
I’ve only even been shafted by one “Drivers Direct”
Temp Station - Warrington
Extra Personnel - Warrington
Careermakers - Manchester
SuperMultiBlue:
Evil8Beezle:
SuperMultiBlue:
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.They are not laughing mate, it’s just another race to the bottom.
You didn’t say how many agencies have done this to you though…
I’ve only even been shafted by one “Drivers Direct”Temp Station - Warrington
Extra Personnel - Warrington
Careermakers - Manchester
Bugger! 
It might be time to lose the limp!
I’ve possibly been lucky then…
I did get the chance to get even with Drivers Direct Eastleigh, who I vowed I would never work for again, as they sent me a text a month or so back asking if I wanted a shift. I was tempted to reply and say yes and not turn up, just to give them a bit of a taste… But I thought better of it and not to stoop to their level! 
Evil8Beezle:
SuperMultiBlue:
Evil8Beezle:
SuperMultiBlue:
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.They are not laughing mate, it’s just another race to the bottom.
You didn’t say how many agencies have done this to you though…
I’ve only even been shafted by one “Drivers Direct”Temp Station - Warrington
Extra Personnel - Warrington
Careermakers - ManchesterBugger!
It might be time to lose the limp!
I’ve possibly been lucky then…
I did get the chance to get even with Drivers Direct Eastleigh, who I vowed I would never work for again, as they sent me a text a month or so back asking if I wanted a shift. I was tempted to reply and say yes and not turn up, just to give them a bit of a taste… But I thought better of it and not to stoop to their level!
Yep also considered this. A small victory but also feel the same about having to stoop to their level. Doesn’t help the wider issue for me or any other driver who want to do agency work though.
Conor:
I’ve been doing agency work since 1994 and never had that happen to me.
That might be because you just accept whatever rate they offer you. It’s well documented on here that you work nights for less than what most full time employed drivers get for working days. There’s no wonder the agencies have been “looking after you” cough cough for over two decades. You’re an agency’s ■■■■■■■■■ Conor.
The OP says he agrees an hourly rate. That suggests to me that there may be a bit of negotiation going on beforehand and it’s not just your typical agency says jump and driver says how high scenario like yours.
SuperMultiBlue:
Just feel helpless and to know these smug exploiters are sitting back laughing knowing they are untouchable makes it all the more worse.
They’re not untouchable but, they are hard to tackle. Not because they’re superhuman but because the system is loaded in their favour.
Do you have any written quotes from them regarding the job where you lost money? Anything, an email or a text message? Technically the verbal contract you made with them is law but the disputes in the small claims court over verbal contracts are long, arduous and frequently fail. If you do have evidence, take 'em to court. They’re never gonna use you again so that makes no difference to you. You could also threaten small claims court action and throw the words ‘I’ve taken legal advice on this matter’, that might make them cough up the balance.
There are few feelings in the world better than walking out of a small claims court with a victory to your name and the look of utter defeat and anger on an agency hyenas face when the judge awards in your favour.
Don,t sweat it … 
play them off against each other your wages will go up and up.
Most agencies will treat you like zb 
and promise you the world.
Keep taking the money day by day. 
I worked for Extra personnel in Warrington Super when I was on 7.5 tonners about 3or 4 years ago. Knobs always tried to make out that they were doing me a favour by getting me work with Breezemount delivering IKEA crap.
Bunch of knobs mate. Get yourself a full time gig and leave all that crap to the limpers.
Contraflow:
Conor:
I’ve been doing agency work since 1994 and never had that happen to me.That might be because you just accept whatever rate they offer you. It’s well documented on here that you work nights for less than what most full time employed drivers get for working days.
Might be the case for where you are but not for my area but you always seem to forget that different parts of the UK pay different wages.
The OP says he agrees an hourly rate. That suggests to me that there may be a bit of negotiation going on beforehand and it’s not just your typical agency says jump and driver says how high scenario like yours.
I negotiate which is why I’ve been on night rate for doing days for the past two months, am going to be on double bubble bank holiday Monday and we’re coming up to the time of year where I play “who will blink first”.
You may think I’m a mug but I’m the one working every day I want to, including the times of year when most agency are usually sat at home waiting for the phone to ring, for an hourly rate I’m happy with at a company of my choosing and saying no to stuff I don’t want to do there such as certain runs, Friday nights out…
Rapier did that to me. Managed to trick me into commuting to London for what ended up being near minimum wages too…
Thing is, the mentality among such agencies goes like this…
“If there are unlimited numbers of jobless drivers out there - we can fiddle each and every one ONCE and get away with it. We won’t get away with it twice, as the second time they insist on the hourly rate in writing before the assignment - that’s when we pull the plug. There never was any work at that rate you see… Who’s gonna sue us over “one fiddle each”? We can carry on doing this fiddle - as there is no contract for us to have breached. The downside of that from our point of view is that if a driver accepts a shift, and then does a no-show - we can’t sue him either.”
The solution to agencies trying it on - is to rubbish their reputations with the clients. BUT how many times does THAT get palmed off back to the driver… “Sorry sir, our driver let us down badly. We’ve sacked him on the spot of course… Now about that driver you wanted for the next six weeks - we can still deliver that from our small cliche of personal friends on our books - all six of us.”
regarding the o/p…instead of scratching around agencies,could you not just spend the time in getting a real job instead of limping? 
Conor:
I’ve been doing agency work since 1994 and never had that happen to me.
If you’re working for Billy and Adam at THAT agency, you’re the only driver they’ve never screwed over!
When I 1st read the OP I did wonder if there’s maybe an issue other than £/hr errors.
Surely nobody can go through that many agencies before settling down and having a working relationship with a couple of them ?
peirre:
When I 1st read the OP I did wonder if there’s maybe an issue other than £/hr errors.
Surely nobody can go through that many agencies before settling down and having a working relationship with a couple of them ?
If there were errors - there would be as many “overpayments” as “Underpayments” by the law of averages. Drivers who’d been overpaid - would complain bitterly about issues like “They docked my next pay” or “I thought they had to ask my permission to take money back!” and the like.
If the “Errors” are 100% “underpayments” then - I strongly suggest they are not errors at all - but conrtrived that way. 