I have not posted for a few weeks since starting on my voyage of being a LGV2 driver, what started of as a good career change working through an agency doing some real nice work driving a nice lorry, i was offered a job on a haulage company whom i had not done any work for before, what a mistake, i have been there 5 weeks and generally my week goes something like this,
Monday to Friday start at 06:00 - have to take tacho breaks whilst unloading just so i make sure i can get finished- finish about 18:00, if anyone complains they are told “there is the gate”. But they have a habit of booking some work to be picked up at 11:00 but have you start at 07:00, have you unload or load other vehicles / trailers in the yard, then have you go pick up stuff at 11:00 and go deliver it and finish bout 18:30 but when questioned about how to book the mornings work he has said not to, your day started at 11:00 ■■? Mine and most of the other 40 drivers average day is 12 hours and i am shattered most days.
Any advice would be appreciated…
your day starts as soon as you start getting paid for any work you do, so if your not driving but loading trailers etc then that counts as other work and counts towards a 15 hour day if that happens, not sure if you have to compenstae for ti or not im sure you do though.
wellcome to haulage its good isnt it
And the advice you want is 
to be honest the only thing i would question there is the tipping while on rest. shouldnt be done if you are helping unload.
as for starting work at 0700 and getting your first job at 1100, enjoy the break, as long as you are getting paid for the hours you do then personally i would put up or shut up. you have a job and it isnt the best in the world but its a job. some folks dont even get the chance to row with the boss cos they aint got one.
welcome to transport, bend forward drop your pants and open up its time to get shafted!!!
keep smiling mate, it could be worse
I’m a little confused.
You start at 0600 and you finish about 1800.
You book breaks when doing other work - naughty 
Why not simply take a proper break and finish about 1900
Thanks for replying, i assume from the responses what i am experiencing is the norm !!! As for taking a proper break and finishing at 19:00 Rog, nice thought but when you are salaried and NOT hourly paid getting finished is priority as the more hours you do, your doing them for free, this guy pays for a 9.5HR day so why should i give him any of my own time ? most other drivers are doing up to14 15 hrs daily and unloading why booking a break cause its the only way, i have even seen drivers dispose of tachos and fill one out manually frigging there hours to fit. I think i will be leaving and going back to the Agencies for an hourly rate, on the whole at least i would be getting paid for the hours i do unlike now.
Sorry but I’m not sure what advise you want.
If you’re working whilst the tacho is on break and also not booking work that you’ve done in the morning as other work then you already know you’re not complying with the regulations and there will be consequences if you get court.
It’s you’re responsibility to comply with the regulations as well as your employers responsibility to see that you do.
Frankly to say that you’re not complying with the regulations because you’re salaried is a cop out.
As for your boss telling you to not book work that you’ve done in the morning, all I can say is that if you’re old enough to drive HGVs then you’re old enough to say no.
Sorry but that’s the way I see it, if you don’t like the way thing are then get out, weather or not you should report your employer is another question.
Well its pretty much if you dont like the working arrangements then leave, and i guess, the industry is like this because HGV drivers who have gone before over the previous years have not stood up to there boss’s and said no, thats why people coming into the industry now have all this crap to deal with, it sure is an industry where its everyone for them selves.
Is it still the same attitude in the Arctic arena or are those guys treated any better ?
Rocketman:
As for taking a proper break and finishing at 19:00 Rog, nice thought but when you are salaried and NOT hourly paid getting finished is priority as the more hours you do, your doing them for free, this guy pays for a 9.5HR day so why should i give him any of my own time ?
tachograph:
Frankly to say that you’re not complying with the regulations because you’re salaried is a cop out…
A lot of drivers, hourly, salary or however paid, are not paid for the first 45 mins of their daily breaks so your job is no different to lots out there.
It is not the company that are refusing or making it impossible for you to have the legal breaks but yourself as it is you that has decided to fiddle the hours to finish early.
If I am reading your original post wrong then I aplogise for the last statement.
If your boss is saying to fiddle your tacho thats up to you
If something goes wrong its down to you.
and if it goes wrong BIG TIME its gonna land on your door not his
He’ll just look up and say "never told em to do that "
It looks like he only wants you to book on at 11:00 so that
A. your 48hr working time directive is kept down
B. you can work longer hours
C. you cant look up if something goes wrong and you go to tribunal and say well we start at 06:00 and then get told to do x y Z
Start clocking on at your legal start time and do your self a favour photo copy your tachos so when the ministry turn up he cant look up and say so and so havent handed in his tachos etc and try and drop you in the
BROWN STUFF BIG TIME
COVER YOUR ■■■ AND BOOK EVERYTHING BY THE BOOK when he gets narky with you about it just put him right then when he gets really uptight with you you can clearly go to vosa and report him knowing your legal
Rocketman:
…when you are salaried and NOT hourly paid getting finished is priority
I would have thought keeping your hard earned LGV licence would be the priority, especially as you have only had it 3 or 4 months
Rocketman:
as the more hours you do, your doing them for free, this guy pays for a 9.5HR day so why should i give him any of my own time
He pays for 9.5 and you say you are doing 12. One question, why?
Rocketman:
most other drivers are doing up to14 15 hrs daily and unloading why booking a break cause its the only way
Just because they appear to be stupid why do you have to follow suit?
Rocketman:
Well its pretty much if you dont like the working arrangements then leave
Is that not teh situation in any job?
Rocketman:
and i guess, the industry is like this because HGV drivers who have gone before over the previous years have not stood up to there boss’s and said no
You mean in the way you are standing up to your boss and saying no? Oh hang on, you aren’t.
Rocketman:
it sure is an industry where its everyone for them selves.
Well there you go, stand up for yourself then instead of bending over and taking it.
Rocketman:
Is it still the same attitude in the Arctic arena or are those guys treated any better ?
Depends if the individual has big enough ■■■■■■■■ to stand up for themselves and not allow anyone to shaft them.
You should change your username to DOORMAT 
The solution is easy, cover your arse & change jobs, then shop the ■■■■■■, there are plenty of legal haulage firms who would be glad totake on his work if he’s shut down.
Go with the flow or stand up for yourself? Your decision,you have to live with it and take the consequences .
Your a grown up, its up to you what you do.
But you have the facts clearly in front of you from other posters, what your doing is illegal working off the card, tipping truck when supposed to be on a break.
If your worried about it, which it seems you are my only advise would be to start doing things legally, if you start work a 0600 either put your card in at 0600 and put it on other work, or POA if your hanging about not doing anything. Or if your not near the truck till 1100 then put a manual entry on your card, stating you started work at 0600 and mark other work, POA, break etc… up until the point you put in the card.
To me its basically you thats running bent, from the hours it seems you do, you can run legit and still do your job if your doing 12 hour shifts, even if your a bit late one night prob not gonna hit 15 hours anyway.
Seems a bit stupid to me to run bent when you don’t have to, why take a risk for no reason at all.
Just so you all know i have quit from this company, apart from being asked to work against the Working Directive and shown ways how to " maximize my working time " his words not mine, for a salary, i have since found out that some of the other guys are working two jobs with the governors knowledge.
So what to do know ? Have registered with some agencies but am seriously considering going and doing the Artic, C+E license as i here because things are tough some of the Training Schools around my area have reduced their rates for the LGV Cat. C+E license.
What do you think ?
i think you have made the right choice
The only difference between companies operating rigids and companies operating artics, is the size of the vehicles.
There are good companies and bad companies in both sectors.