Winseer:
There’s nothing wrong with taking on a job for “Experience” rather than decent pay. They tend to be mutually exclusive in any case.
“On the job training” is becoming as rare as rocking horse [zb] after all. To get the better-paying jobs - you are expected to be highly trained and experienced from day one on that new job.
If you’re NOT though - Storbarts, like Swains or Nobbies - isn’t a bad place to train up and get your experience, leaving you free to then move up to a better-paid job elsewhere, as I don’t think they have tie-ins.
Drivers knocking Stobarts on here is like a Stockbroker who is always moaning about how crap his old grammar school was.
as you can tell winseer by my messages its clear i never went to a grammar school so i beg to differ with you on that point.
however like i said there is nothing wrong in starting at the BOTTOM and hoping that there is a better firm out there that pays and looks after there drivers once you gain that experience
so for experience wise i say the lad is making a good move even though i would never recommend stobarts to anyone but for new drivers it would be a good move, just make sure you do as much damage to there trucks as you can before you move on my friend
seriously i will give a bit of my expereince here and its this, if i was on the road today and i seen a stobart truck anywhere i would be so wary of them as most of them now are new at the job so i would park miles away from them so they dont hit the truck, i would give them far more road then they could ever need again so they they dont run into me this is the sort of experience one day you will understand dont take risks and let the new guys learn but if there going to do damage as they will then let it be to someone elses truck : )
desypete:
seriously i will give a bit of my expereince here and its this, if i was on the road today and i seen a stobart truck anywhere i would be so wary of them as most of them now are new at the job so i would park miles away from them so they dont hit the truck, i would give them far more road then they could ever need again so they they dont run into me this is the sort of experience one day you will understand dont take risks and let the new guys learn but if there going to do damage as they will then let it be to someone elses truck : )
Winseer:
There’s nothing wrong with taking on a job for “Experience” rather than decent pay. They tend to be mutually exclusive in any case.
“On the job training” is becoming as rare as rocking horse [zb] after all. To get the better-paying jobs - you are expected to be highly trained and experienced from day one on that new job.
If you’re NOT though - Storbarts, like Swains or Nobbies - isn’t a bad place to train up and get your experience, leaving you free to then move up to a better-paid job elsewhere, as I don’t think they have tie-ins.
Drivers knocking Stobarts on here is like a Stockbroker who is always moaning about how crap his old grammar school was.
as you can tell winseer by my messages its clear i never went to a grammar school so i beg to differ with you on that point.
however like i said there is nothing wrong in starting at the BOTTOM and hoping that there is a better firm out there that pays and looks after there drivers once you gain that experience
so for experience wise i say the lad is making a good move even though i would never recommend stobarts to anyone but for new drivers it would be a good move, just make sure you do as much damage to there trucks as you can before you move on my friend
seriously i will give a bit of my expereince here and its this, if i was on the road today and i seen a stobart truck anywhere i would be so wary of them as most of them now are new at the job so i would park miles away from them so they dont hit the truck, i would give them far more road then they could ever need again so they they dont run into me this is the sort of experience one day you will understand dont take risks and let the new guys learn but if there going to do damage as they will then let it be to someone elses truck : )
But don’t forget, they’ve got their dcpc cards, so they’re more qualified than you
Berty:
So I start my new job in a weeks time with Eddie stobart que the stobart bashers lol but hear me out first. I passed my class 1 about 2 months ago and with already being in a full time job driving a rigid I was struggling to find a company in my area to take on a new pass yes I could of joined an agency but as we all know I’m not likely to get a full weeks work and iv had bad experiences with them in the past so I waited for the right opportunity. The way I see it they are willing to give me a chance and it gets me some experience and if I don’t like it I’ll stick it out and move on… I ■■■■■■ the assessment but struggled on the reversing so they put me on a 2 day reverse course at Appleton starting next week where I’ll also have an induction and get given my uniform etc. So ye all in all I feel it’s a good move for me
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk
Strange choice of words" I ■■■■■■ the assessment but messed up the reversing so they’re putting me on a two day course for reversing" So did you ■■■■ it or not ? Lol
Out of interest a mate of mine is looking at applying for them but lives about 45 mins drive from the nearest depot. How far is your commute?
Winseer:
Drivers knocking Stobarts on here is like a Stockbroker who is always moaning about how crap his old grammar school was.
How the ■■■■ do you work that one out exactly?
That analogy would only apply if the drivers who knock Stobarts started off there …, or have I missed something here?
Anyway for the record, and speaking as a full time Stobartknocker , I definitely did NOT start there.(…boasting not complaining btw)
Berty:
So I start my new job in a weeks time with Eddie stobart que the stobart bashers lol but hear me out first. I passed my class 1 about 2 months ago and with already being in a full time job driving a rigid I was struggling to find a company in my area to take on a new pass yes I could of joined an agency but as we all know I’m not likely to get a full weeks work and iv had bad experiences with them in the past so I waited for the right opportunity. The way I see it they are willing to give me a chance and it gets me some experience and if I don’t like it I’ll stick it out and move on… I ■■■■■■ the assessment but struggled on the reversing so they put me on a 2 day reverse course at Appleton starting next week where I’ll also have an induction and get given my uniform etc. So ye all in all I feel it’s a good move for me
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk
Strange choice of words" I ■■■■■■ the assessment but messed up the reversing so they’re putting me on a two day course for reversing" So did you ■■■■ it or not ? Lol
Out of interest a mate of mine is looking at applying for them but lives about 45 mins drive from the nearest depot. How far is your commute?
I never said I messed up I said I struggled but I was always going too after driving rigids for 9 years…
Fair play Berty nice to see a permanent job 1st off instead of agency mess about,
At least stobarts are willing to give new passes a chance and give you training which by the look of some posts “here’s the keys off you go” companies makes a change (poundland are the same haven’t you gone yet lol".
Unilever are always busy used to Drivers Connect in Cannock used to do the agency in there,looks decent trailers and clean work
Winseer:
There’s nothing wrong with taking on a job for “Experience” rather than decent pay. They tend to be mutually exclusive in any case.
“On the job training” is becoming as rare as rocking horse [zb] after all. To get the better-paying jobs - you are expected to be highly trained and experienced from day one on that new job.
If you’re NOT though - Storbarts, like Swains or Nobbies - isn’t a bad place to train up and get your experience, leaving you free to then move up to a better-paid job elsewhere, as I don’t think they have tie-ins.
Drivers knocking Stobarts on here is like a Stockbroker who is always moaning about how crap his old grammar school was.
as you can tell winseer by my messages its clear i never went to a grammar school so i beg to differ with you on that point.
however like i said there is nothing wrong in starting at the BOTTOM and hoping that there is a better firm out there that pays and looks after there drivers once you gain that experience
so for experience wise i say the lad is making a good move even though i would never recommend stobarts to anyone but for new drivers it would be a good move, just make sure you do as much damage to there trucks as you can before you move on my friend
seriously i will give a bit of my expereince here and its this, if i was on the road today and i seen a stobart truck anywhere i would be so wary of them as most of them now are new at the job so i would park miles away from them so they dont hit the truck, i would give them far more road then they could ever need again so they they dont run into me this is the sort of experience one day you will understand dont take risks and let the new guys learn but if there going to do damage as they will then let it be to someone elses truck : )
I was actually thinking that those who moan about Stobarts are actually those who never worked there, and think it’s funny that other drivers actually work there when the pay is so low. People who become stockbrokers (NOT me) tend to moan about how bad their old school was - despite it being a good school then. If you went to a good school and didn’t get a plum job - you might refer to your old school as a “good, but underfunded one”.
It’s all relative. I had a good experience of working at Swains for example, when I was sent in there on agency (which I’m told is a rare thing, as Swains barely use agencies)
I got the impression that they train up their own people in their own way - and many of the drivers stay on, despite there being no tie-in, as the family-run firm is honest and forthright in their dealings with both customers and staff. The pay would keep the “average age driver of 54” away, but I’d recommend Swains highly for a “new to the business” driver just starting out.
The danger in the wider jobs market is that there are too many employers who EXPECT to be able to get away with lower pay, despite the fact that they didn’t really train up their drivers to start with. We’ve all come across those mickey mouse yards that think they can “have it all” of a driver - for as close to minimum wage as possible.
I’m not sure about “paying you more at the same firm as you gain experience” though, as other than the “when passing one’s probationary period” - to my knowledge, LGV driving has this tendency to be a “dead end job” when all’s said and done. This of course is the reason why a more experienced driver ‘won’t even get out of bed for the wrong pay rate’ - because they know it WON’T get better after a “while in the job”… That’s the industry’s fault though - not yours or mine.
I’m not sure Stobarts should be congratulated that they train drivers, as doesn’t the fact they need to say something?
Clearly they are struggling to attract drivers…
Good on you mate, and you are lucky to get a couple of days as a Newbie on reversing, probably a lot better than jumping in the agency deep end. Best of luck pal!
Winseer:
Drivers knocking Stobarts on here is like a Stockbroker who is always moaning about how crap his old grammar school was.
How the [zb] do you work that one out exactly?
That analogy would only apply if the drivers who knock Stobarts started off there …, or have I missed something here?
Anyway for the record, and speaking as a full time Stobartknocker , I definitely did NOT start there.(…boasting not complaining btw)
Um… Yes. Everyone I know who IS a stockbroker - did crap at school. Those who went to the good schools only did well in some other field - because of parental cash if you like.
There is a point in our school life when we grammar school kids all think we’re gonna earn a mint… Then you get the qualifications and realize that the “better education” means nowt - if you alienated all your friends and contacts along the way.
“Who you know” is more important than “what you know”.
I’ve known unemployed graduates right upto the level of Doctor - but strangely everyone I knew who went to a crap school - seems to have done alright for themselves, with even the basest guy ending up a £50ph mechanic, owning a scrapyard, or - yes - becoming a Stockbroker (or rather “Market Maker”)
When I first started out in trucking - there wasn’t a stobarts place - let alone a job - to be had for miles and miles around Kent and the Southeast. This goes back before Stanstead, Southend, and even Sittingbourne of course. I ended up doing my 5 years of “experience” (if you like) driving rigids around London stations with RM.
If you didn’t work at stobarts - how can you knock it? I’ve not even worked there on agency, so all I’ve got to go by - is the poor level of renumeration available at said establishment.
There are “Tossers and Trailers” to be had at every depot in the country - when it comes down to it…
Well done Berty and apart from desypete who is still the only driver to ever fail the dCPC via the medium of pick a foot aim fire etc we won’t knock a fellow driver for giving em a go. Stobbies is a good fit for some and I’m sure the massive variety of contracts make them a great starting point and dare I say a secure employer for those who want to stay with them.
My employer is also a large corporate entity and the best advice I can give is cover your arse, if in doubt ask and double check everything.
Reversing will come with time, learn your pivot point, watch the wheels, get your starting position as good as possible and it will click. Not everyone is a natural back to front bottom like me…
Congrats Berty, you have a new job and also the approval of your trucknet heroes !
Do keep us informed at every stage. That includes wages ! By the way what have they given you as start rate ?
Just asking like.
Don’t have to answer.
Jim
Wow this thread really kicked off!! It’s been an intrested read but I think the majority agree with me. I’d like to thank you all for comments and well wishes and ill keep you informed through this post how I get on but for now I gotta put up with my ■■■■■ boss for a few days who isn’t happy I’m moving on haha at well you can’t please them all can you
Berty:
now I gotta put up with my ■■■■■ boss for a few days who isn’t happy I’m moving on
Or maybe he values you (more than Stobarts EVER will ) so he would rather you stay.
Have you thought about using this to your advantage and trying to negotiate a decent pay raise to stay…better the devil etc etc.
I know you want to go Class 1 mate, but believe me driving a ■■■■ artic aint the be all and end all it maybe is cracked up to be.
Given the choice of working a rigid for a good co I know, and one who values me with all the benefits that situation brings
OR working a top of range ( or whatever) unit for ■■■■ Stobarts, or anybody else for that matter, it’s a no brainer I reckon.
How the ■■■■ do you work that one out exactly? 
…, or have I missed something here?
not mine but someone who works from same depot. I must apologise but i dunt know his hours etc…
