Yes I know it’s a company press release but it does touch on some interesting subjects. The guy talks about getting new blood into the industry but also makes a mention that wages have been suppressed for too long and that’s is part of the reason why it’s so hard to get new, young drivers.
It seems that somewhere, deep down the haulage industry knows this problem won’t go away unless they start up wages to attract new talent amongst other things and its high time they faced up to it.
The industry can face that fact all they like, the truth is, not many operators can afford to pay more, and the price they get is increasingly dictated to them by the customer. You can thank free market economics for that!
Doubt it. The bean stealers will say if it ups the bottom line then yes but if it doesn’t (by enough) then obviously no. Don’t care what they say it’s what they do that matters and has this chap or company broken ranks and upped the wages yet?
Didn’t think so!;);)
“I fully expect to see salaries continue to increase in order to attract talent.” Hmmm…not sure where Mr Tapper is sourcing his figures from, but im guessing its not from the drivers in the yard.
If he wants to “boldly go”, and lead by example, i might not dismiss him as just another lip service merchant…
I am not optimistic that he will disprove my gut instinct.
Your opening a can of worms , if you pay us all ? £10 p.h , then who would want to be a nurse for a £1 p. H more ,
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
Trukkertone:
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
From what I understand the drop in fuel prices has lead to a drop in rates, at least in some sectors, so there isn’t extra money there. The only way drivers will get a pay rise is a rise in rates to cover it and that will only happen when struggle to move goods because they can’t get drivers.
Or to unite, then down tools until someone does some serious talking about the problems in the industry…but i suspect drivers will always be their own enemy and let others do it for them, or at least think they will. You will get nothing unless you fight for it, like us oldens did years ago, but the majority will say I cant afford to stop, got a mortgage, got ten kids, got bills to pay and cant take time off but if the majority came out, not only will bosses take notice, so will the people who have goods to move, for its also a reason to put up the rates…united we stand…divided we fall.
When overheads drop, the first thing any business/accountant thinks about is increased profit. Yippee!!! 
I’d definitely not, lets increase our overhead and reduce our profits by paying the drivers more! 
truckyboy:
united we stand…divided we fall.
The various governments have spent many years of brain washing us to stop us standing together, “Unions are Bad”, “You must own your own house” (a workforce in permanent debt can’t afford to rise up), “Migrant Workforce”, “split up industry”, “Anti terror laws” (used more to control us than the terrorists) they’ll try everything to stop us joining forces, because a divided population can’t rise up against them, so they and their friends can keep robbing us blind.
Trukkertone:
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
Interesting theory but would you take a pay cut if fuel went up to £2 per litre?
Evil8Beezle:
When overheads drop, the first thing any business/accountant thinks about is increased profit. Yippee!!!
I’d definitely not, lets increase our overhead and reduce our profits by paying the drivers more!
The firm won’t be making “extra profits” if driver turnover increases to the point of losing all quality staff to rival firms though - will it? 
Winseer:
Evil8Beezle:
When overheads drop, the first thing any business/accountant thinks about is increased profit. Yippee!!!
I’d definitely not, lets increase our overhead and reduce our profits by paying the drivers more!The firm won’t be making “extra profits” if driver turnover increases to the point of losing all quality staff to rival firms though - will it?
I quite agree, but accountants know the price of everything and the value of nothing! 
I wish the world did work as you say, it just doesn’t… 
Evil8Beezle:
Winseer:
Evil8Beezle:
When overheads drop, the first thing any business/accountant thinks about is increased profit. Yippee!!!
I’d definitely not, lets increase our overhead and reduce our profits by paying the drivers more!The firm won’t be making “extra profits” if driver turnover increases to the point of losing all quality staff to rival firms though - will it?
I quite agree, but accountants know the price of everything and the value of nothing!
I wish the world did work as you say, it just doesn’t…
As long as the goods are delivered, nobody gives a [zb] if the quality drivers go somewhere else. It only becomes a problem when the goods aren’t delivered.
muckles:
As long as the goods are delivered, nobody gives a [zb] if the quality drivers go somewhere else. It only becomes a problem when the goods aren’t delivered.
Yep!
cracker-bar:
The industry can face that fact all they like, the truth is, not many operators can afford to pay more, and the price they get is increasingly dictated to them by the customer. You can thank free market economics for that!
And free market economics tells us that when prices are dictated by customers, that reflects an over-supply of operators in the market. When drivers do become scarce, which hasn’t happened yet, that will force operators to charge more to customers. If customers will not immediately bear higher charges, then there will be a period of heavy losses for operators which will force the excess of operators out of the market (through mergers or bankruptcies) and allow the remainder to bargain with customers on more balanced terms.
That is the theory anyway. In practice, unregulated competition simply disorganises and degrades production to the point of grotesque abnormalities which the market cannot overcome, either then settling into backwardness or, often, eventually leading the market itself to collapse (i.e. the whole market ‘leaves the marketplace’ in neoclassical jargon). The latter could be a catastrophe, but in milder form it could also include a return to in-house provision, where logistics is not bought and sold on the open market.
The only real answer is to re-regulate the market for example with unions, or with training levies (to stop poaching and free-riding) and wage councils (to stop plain undercutting and uphold the rates and conditions necessary to attract and retain drivers).
Trukkertone:
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
Most hauliers have a diesel surcharge rate, it means if diesel goes up, rates go up, but if diesel goes down, rates go down with it as well.
Trukkertone:
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
I suspect that most hauliers with contracts, certainly all the big contracts, will have a fuel escalator. That works both ways, so actually no, same profit margin.
Albion beat me to it… Many contracts have a fuel escalator written in, to protect the haulier from fluctuations in fuel price.
The only way I see pay rising significantly is when drivers are in such short supply, higher wages are the only way to attract more to the industry.
Trukkertone:
SO, if an artic uses 400 litres of fuel over a 24 hour period, and not taking fuel duty and vat into account … before the price came down it would cost about £532 to fill up… at the moment it is costing about £388… that’s a saving of £144 per day per vehicle… and they cant afford to give drivers a pay rise ■■? seems to me there’s a bit of wool pulling going on…
Fuel costs are more a case of having risen to a level on the edge of making a business financially unviable to having reduced to a level of making it slightly less so.If anyone thinks that the present price of fuel is low enough to allow any significant impact on wage levels in the industry and employers are stalling in regards to wages then working as an owner driver is the obvious answer.At which point the reality of fuel costs v wages would probably be clear. 