My (EX) 7.5 ton job, Is this normal practice?

NEW AND WANNABE DRIVERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

I got the 7.5 ton job, and after 3 days walked off the job, here’s the story…

The first 2 days were great, I had a driver showing me the ropes and he was ok enough…even though after 6 years of working there had no idea about tacho breaks, and other drivers appeared NOT to be having any breaks at all…Hmm, big time alarm bells!

Yesterday I turned up for work for the normal 6am start only to be told I really should have started at 5am as I had been put on the Primark contract and had to travel to Lutterworth, Junc 20 M1 to be loaded, nobody told me so how the hell did I know! Anyway I didn’t argue jumped into the wagon allocated and set off at 6.20am arriving at Magna Park at 7.40am.

I was allocated a loading bay at 9.00am and then told they didn’t have enough boxes for me there so I had to go to the other depot about 1.5miles away, no problems thinks I and off we go again. Arrived about 5 minutes later and went straight onto the bay…I finally departed there at 12.30pm!!! Then travelled back the original depot to collect the paperwork which took another 15 minutes, a right carry on.

My run was to Manchester, straight up the M6 to the M62, after 2 accident hold ups and roadworks I finally arrived at Primark in Manchester at 3.40pm. THEN I had to help unload 534 boxes because the staff said they are not allowed to stand on the lorry■■? By this time I was well Peed off I can tell you, and I still had to drive back to Barnsley. I finally left Manchester about 5.40pm arriving back at the yard at 7.20pm, making for a 13 hour shift and I was well fed up. I finally arrived home at 7.40pm, I left home for work at 5.20am…the missus wasn’t pleased, and neither were the kids.

Gets into work today, the TM says, you’re on the same today…so I says where might I end up today then, I got the reply “anywhere mate”. I pointed out the day before’s carry on and the hours I had done and all I got was shrugged shoulders from the TM and the reply “you’re on the same today”. So that’s me done in that firm, I walked.

II should have realised when I was told at interview the ministry had been sniffing round, I really don’t want to be there when the solids hit the aircon, had a clean licence for far too long. I have registered with driver hire in Sheffield today and waiting to hear from them.

Don’t know what others will think of all this, or is it just me being picky about the hours, even so, I’d rather work for a firm that doesn’t expect me to flout tacho laws, drive like a lunatic, and will at least have the decency to let me know the day before what time to start!!

2

basically you should contact VOSA and express your concerns.

If they’re as bad as you say they need knocking on the head.
Chances are they undercut legit firms by running bent.

3

I think maybe your expectations were different to the reality of some jobs in this industry.

“other drivers appeared NOT to be having any breaks at all…”

Have they been told they can’t? The TM should be aware of this, however, it doesn’t sound like they gave you any hassle about the amount of time it took you and I assume you took your proper breaks? As long as they aren’t trying to get you to run bent - let the others worry about themselves.

They should tell you what time you’re expected in, but as for not knowing where you’re going to be driving to, lots of drivers have this every day - they could be going up the road, or to the other end of the country. If you read on here where people are going during the week, there’s a lot of ‘don’t know yet’ !

Hours can be long, but in your original post you did say it was 40 - 55 hrs - so 13 hours on one day can still average out to that over the week. There are some jobs where you know where you’re going every day, and know roughly what time you’ll be back, but on the whole, this is not a 9 - 5 industry, it can’t be, no-one knows what’s going to happen on the roads.

You’re actual driving time was well within your daily limit, my only concern would be if you were expected to stretch the rules.

It’s not the sort of job I would enjoy, but I don’t think it sounds particularly unusual. At least you’ll have a better idea of what you do, and don’t want from a job next time, so you will have learnt from it.

I hope you manage to find something else soon.

grumps

4

I’m afraid I’m with Grumpybum on this one. It’s normal, and so far as the other drivers and their breaks are concerned, so long as you’re having yours, it’s not your problem.

Knowing where you’re going is a luxury - I only ever know on a Monday, and quite often have no idea whether there’ll be a reload, where it’ll be, or whether I’ll be home that night. Or any night. Thirteen hours is an easy day.

Yes, the advert says 40-55 hours, but that’s not allowing for hold-ups, roadworks etc. etc. etc. That’s normal too, it’s the nature of the job.

The handballing is again, normal, especially at the smaller end of the scale. If you want a job without that, you need to be very specific about what any offered job involves. You will limit yourself a great deal by doing that, however…

…Which brings me onto my last point, which is that you have next to no experience and need to just grit your teeth and do whatever you can get in order to gain it. This is a career ladder, like any other industry, and the “good” jobs will have many experienced drivers applying for them. A newbie won’t get a look in, and rightly so, to my mind. At the moment, you are the equivalent of the office junior/tea boy. We’ve all been there, we all had to do it, but it pays off in the end.

I hope you find something better, but be aware that the only way to make good money in this job is to work long hours. It’s simply the way it is, and if that’s not what you expected, then start altering those illusions. Good luck, wherever you end up - let us know how you get on.

Sorry if this seems a little harsh, but lying to you wouldn’t do you any favours. :wink:

5

Some very wise words from some very experienced guys (and girls) there. I know myself it is not easy and some would say its harder down here. The only jobs a newbie can get (unless the luck is with them) is with the “cowboys”

At least there is more work in you’re area!!!

As for me, despite the advice and my efforts for the past couple of years, I’ve gone back to the dark side…

BUSES!!!

6

Semtex:
Some very wise words from some very experienced guys (and girls) there. I know myself it is not easy and some would say its harder down here. The only jobs a newbie can get (unless the luck is with them) is with the “cowboys”

At least there is more work in you’re area!!!

As for me, despite the advice and my efforts for the past couple of years, I’ve gone back to the dark side…BUSES!!!

YOU LOVE IT ON THE BUSES…all the cornish hotties in next to nothing. :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :sunglasses: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley:

7

Plenty of hotties for you Rookie (if you like “grab a granny” :wink: :laughing: )

And they have vacancies, so get yersen down there!!! :smiley:

8

Ahhh the lovely buses!

I start on Tuesday morning back on the buses too…for a small family run local firm. It will do me until I get my C and C+E then (Maybe) I’ll be in a lot better position…we’ll see.

Thanks for all the comments btw, I have noted all the contents and suggestions. However I won’t be working myself to death for £6.30 an hour, no way. And I am well aware that you never know where you’re going, but, I forgot to mention that 2 other drivers had gone on the same run as me, but theirs were local? Leaving me I presume with all the crap!

I know I’ll have start at the bottom and I have no problems with that, we’ll see what the next job holds…

9

However I won’t be working myself to death for £6.30 an hour, no way

Leaving me I presume with all the crap!

And yet…

I know I’ll have start at the bottom and I have no problems with that,

It’s a steep learning curve. :wink:

10

£6.30/hr on puddle jumpers? :open_mouth: There’s a good number of companies round here/there that don’t even pay that for driving artics!

Lucy has already said pretty much what I was going to say, but I can add that it’s not just companies that run small wagons that don’t bother with the rules and regs. I’ve worked for a few companies driving artics and also on heavy haulage that are just as bad, if not worse. I remember one day particularly well - they expected me to take a Caterpillar D9 earth mover (around 50 tonnes if my memory serves me right) on the low loader from here (W Yorks) to Pembroke Dock and back in a shift. :open_mouth: Bearing in mind that it was a roasting hot day so my top speed on the motorway was limited to 40-45mph tops to stop the tyres going pop from the heat build up, I said to the gaffer he’d be lucky if it got to Pembroke in the day, never mind back again! :open_mouth: :unamused: He soon found someone else to take it, who did indeed do it there and back in one hit, taking some 22hrs :open_mouth: .

There’s a lot of cowboys still out there mate. :unamused:

11

£6.30/hr on puddle jumpers? There’s a good number of companies round here/there that don’t even pay that for driving artics!

And a good number who’ll pay more than that for Driving vans. Sainsbury’s2you and Ocado, pay £7.50 for example.

12

Yeah, but look at where you are Dennis. Wages are always higher in the South East - but then so is the cost of living. I’d say that taking those factors into account (and having lived at both end of the country to be able to compare) the rates are comparable.

13

That’s why I’ve taken the bus driving job at £7 p/h. It’ll do me till I pass the C then I can hopefully get some decent work with Driver Hire in Sheffield.

I don’t mind putting the hours in as long as the money is there, god knows I’ve done enough hours on the buses over the years, but always for half decent pay and not too long hours, except when I did the coaching when the hours could be very long (But double crewed) But then, the money was always there too…

I will definetely get a lorry driving job, and I know I’ll start at the bottom, but at 38, with a mortgage to pay, kids/dog/fish/wife to feed and clothe I can’t spend all my life at work for crappy pay.

Maybe I’m being picky here? But I’ll achieve my goal of a good work/life balance even if it means doing the supermarket runs…

14

As far as i’m aware the Super markets pay the same rates nationally at store level.
Obviously they add London weighting etc, but that doesnt apply down here.

15

Wow. Best I get my backside down to Sainsburys then!!! :open_mouth:

16

I think this thread very neatly describes the conditions of work in the transport industry. You see on the surface I dont see anything particularly wrong in the day you have described , as long as you take your breaks but then I have grown up with these sort of hours and it seems normal. To describe this more fully I always used to feel good about getting an early finish at say 3-4pm as it felt like a half day to me and I could actually think of doing something in the evening rather than just eating and going to bed in order to get up early and do it all again, completely forgetting that I had probrbly got out my bed at 4 - 4.30 and it was in fact a 12hour day.
Its all a matter of what your brain gets desensatised to, which in most cases is any sort of a life during the week and sleeping lots on the weekend to get over it all.
Once you have about 20 odd years of this you suddenly catch on that your kids have grown up and you missed it and the missus has had enough.
I’m not being negative, just realistic but no-one told me this all those years ago.
Just do what feels right for you and your life, you only get one

17

Agree, as a complete newbie this thread is an eye opener.

Excuse the dumb questions, but is it normal to get paid (at overtime rates?) for the long hours that you end up doing due to all the unforseen circumstances? Or is it common for bosses to say, “…shouldn’t have [****] taken you that long, what were you doing?”

18

Very well said daneinter! And I totally agree, after all I missed most of the magic moments with my young son through working long hours on the buses. he was still in bed when I left for work, I maybe got an hour or so with him when I finally got home.

I too have got well used to working the hours and it was normal to be at work for 12 hours.

I want to be a LGV driver, its been a lifelong ambition of mine but I will do my very best to try and have a work/life balance, thats why I’d probably do night shifts as opposed to days, if I can manage to.

19

Lucy:
Wow. Best I get my backside down to Sainsburys then!!! :open_mouth:

Why not? :laughing:
Tesco is only £6.20 for .com driving.

■■■■ job though i wouldnt do it again unless i was desparate. Most of the customers are lazy sods and virtually want you to put the stuff in their cupboards for them. Lots of heavy lugging of shopping up stairs (tower blocks for example) even if you take the trolley it’s still dragging it up stairs.
Only plus point is that it keeps you fit. I’ve put on weight since going to DHL. :open_mouth: