sort of. same company but different department. Im currently doing General haulage tramping monday to friday. wage is good for my area and i run to top hours semi regularly. Not necasarily by choice but Im happy with it.
Ive been offered a job on the “Staging” side of the business. Events festivals tours ect. These range from business conventions to 1/2 night music gigs to full 16 week european tours.
The pay will be the same hourly but i stand to earn about 4 grand a year more because of the tours… getting paid for weekly rest when away and more weekend work at a higher rate p/h ect. plus there is bonus money as well plus perks as in catering ect.
Im a relativley new driver less than 18 months. so the opportunity is a good one to have the chance to break into european work so early. its also something ive wanted to do since i was a kid. getting paid to tour the world(ish) seems like a pretty cushi number.
my question is this… for those of you in the events line of work. how does it affect your home life? As in is there a reasonable balance between home and work. i stand to be away for up to 3-4 months but the guy offering me the job reckons ill actually get more time at home. albeit not predicatble days. or a predictable pattern to it.
obviously though its in this guys interest to sell it to me because he needs a driver. so i thought id ask people that actually do it.
if it changes peoples opinions of it i have 2 young kids at home 18months and 6 months. which are the only reason im umming and ahhing about it
You will have no home life and you’re likely to have no family. You definitely do not want to be doing it with two little kids if you actually want to see them grow up. Not sure how you can be at home more when you are spending 4 months away at a time. If you miss them when you’re tramping and getting home on a weekend now how do you think it’ll feel if you weren’t getting home for the next 14-16 weekends, only managing to see them through Skyping? Would your youngest even recognise you as daddy when you got home?
xichrisxi:
16 weeks away from my kids…not a chance,that’s as far as my thought process would go.
yeah it is a huge downside to it. theres only been 1 tour weve done that long and that was rihannas most recent one. 12 is quite common though. my thought was book holidays for when i got back to make up for it. but i dunno…
xichrisxi:
16 weeks away from my kids…not a chance,that’s as far as my thought process would go.
yeah it is a huge downside to it. theres only been 1 tour weve done that long and that was rihannas most recent one. 12 is quite common though. my thought was book holidays for when i got back to make up for it. but i dunno…
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No offence fella but you can’t make up for lost time,once it’s gone it’s gone!
If it’s the money that’s attracting you couldn’t you do an extra shift ect to make up the 4 grand a year?,I’ve spoken to many people in various jobs who feel they missed seeing their kids grow up…it’s the one thing you’ll never get to see again.
which is it, you kind of have a job offer, or you have a job offer, if you have to come on here and ask what you have after saying you always wanted to do it and then say, if it makes a difference I have two young kids, your not very good at making decisions for yourself.
Stick to what your doing because for sure they will ask you to change routes at short notice and you wont have time to come on here and ask people life changing question’s,
As long as im doing this job I have never met anyone who had to ask if they where doing the right thing when they were offered a start on the continent.
If the money is very good then you kill two birds with one stone, provide a good life for your family and doing a job you always wanted to do.
If it don’t work or you don’t like it or you miss you family to much, just go back to what your doing now.
Simple, other wise you will never know and that’s hard to live with.
xichrisxi:
16 weeks away from my kids…not a chance,that’s as far as my thought process would go.
yeah it is a huge downside to it. theres only been 1 tour weve done that long and that was rihannas most recent one. 12 is quite common though. my thought was book holidays for when i got back to make up for it. but i dunno…
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No offence fella but you can’t make up for lost time,once it’s gone it’s gone!
If it’s the money that’s attracting you couldn’t you do an extra shift ect to make up the 4 grand a year?,I’ve spoken to many people in various jobs who feel they missed seeing their kids grow up…it’s the one thing you’ll never get to see again.
I have met people who work local work with 12 to 14 hours a day and they say the same thing bed to work, work to bed
I did euro work and tramping in the UK,and had done from the day I was married up to when the kids left school. You will never realise how much of their young lives you will miss. Your other half will have to be a very tolerant and understanding human being to want you to do this. I suggest you talk to her before listening to anything on here that will make your mind up. If she is happy for you and truly understands how she will bear the brunt of raising a young family almost on her own then all well and good.
None of us here give a flying fig if you take the job or not, Your partner and kids are the only ones you should listen to. Sorry to be blunt but thats how you must look at it in my book.
TBH mate thats a job for a single person, or an older one whose children have flown the nest and whom the spouse and yourself can’t stand the sight of one another.
I agree with the thrust of the above posts, well apart from one who often antagonises, if you decide to do this do not be surprised if it changes your life for ever in ways you would rather it hadn’t.
However, only you live your life and only you know your own particular home circs, so the choice is only yours.
Its not impossible, i daresay the time away is no different to the military in the grand scheme of things, but in the military there will be a support network at home of other young women and young mothers to look after each other, how does your wife feel about it?
what some are telling you here is acceptable, but if you asked most of them how did they start they would have not even have asked there wife is it ok never mind the kids, and the ones who say I would never do that are the type that say the thought of doing a day on the continent would kill them, and that’s not from being away from home what happens to people like that is they freeze they cant cope with all that goes with it I call them A to B and back to A drivers
nightline:
what some are telling you here is acceptable, but if you asked most of them how did they start they would have not even have asked there wife is it ok never mind the kids, and the ones who say I would never do that are the type that say the thought of doing a day on the continent would kill them, and that’s not from being away from home what happens to people like that is they freeze they cant cope with all that goes with it I call them A to B and back to A drivers
What a load of B8llocks…you crack on being a “proper old school driver” pal,but don’t expect anyone to remember how great you were for more than 24hrs after you retire,let’s just hope you don’t regret wasting your life being “a proper driver”
Juddian:
TBH mate thats a job for a single person, or an older one whose children have flown the nest and whom the spouse and yourself can’t stand the sight of one another.
I agree with the thrust of the above posts, well apart from one who often antagonises, if you decide to do this do not be surprised if it changes your life for ever in ways you would rather it hadn’t.
However, only you live your life and only you know your own particular home circs, so the choice is only yours.
Its not impossible, i daresay the time away is no different to the military in the grand scheme of things, but in the military there will be a support network at home of other young women and young mothers to look after each other, how does your wife feel about it?
What Coco says!
I foresee you not seeing your kids at all mate if you take this job, and if you do see them, it will be via a visitation arrangement with your ex. So your choice mate…
However as a single bloke I’d take the job without needing to ask on here , but I only have to answer to and consider myself, not my ballsache (sorry partner! ) and be constantly apologising to my kids for not being there, as they won’t be babies for long.
The post should have said, tell how you started on Continental work did you ask you wife was it ok, or did you do it because you wanted too, or for the money or because it was something you always wanted to do.
And that would have weeded out the pretenders that never had the nerve to do it the A to B and Back to A drivers
I have five kids and ran my own company for four of them it’s only since having a normal day job with our fifth I have realised quite how much I missed with the others and I m not one of these soppy kind of blokes but it does gut me to realise the things I missed. 10000000% with Juddian this job is for a bachelor mate not a family man especially a new family man being away 5/6 days a week I m sure is enough. I m with you though it’s a dream job mate but there will always be another time later in life you ll never get the chance to re live your children’s childhood though.
Mixed feelings mate, you will miss your kids on one hand, which is bad news.
I have never been away for that length of time in one stint myself, but some do and it works for them…forces lads for eg
On other hand if it is something you, as you said, ‘‘always wanted to do’’ bite the bullet, discuss it with your Mrs, and do one season only, then cross it off your list put it to bed, and then back on your own job.
My mate done the same, although his kids are a bit older.
His firm occasionally flew him home for a couple of days as a sweetner,… ask if your lot do that.
I had the chance of doing one Middle East trip in the early 80s, I turned it down and regretted it ever since, just for the experience, and to say ‘‘I did that’’
Like I said I have never done that length of time away, but not being funny mate, but if you listen to advice off one or two on here,… bear in mind they get stroke symptoms if they are asked to have a night out just off the M25 ffs,… so make up your own mind bud.
Edit…for the benefit of the easily offended and a couple of guys I am in contact with now and again.
I was not referring to anybody specifically .
You have to work, there is trampers working uk who only see there kids a few hours a week, there is also traveling salesmen who see there kids only a few hours a week and lots of other jobs that people don’t get home enough.
No matter what you do we all say I wish I was there more when the kids was growing up, its part of life and it hits you most when you have your first grandkids but that’s life and its better if you are doing something you like and want to do and at the same time providing well for your family and if your doing that good the wife will support you to no ends
Don’t forget the ones who don’t have the nerve, there still in there no hope job with there minimum wage wishing they had, dreamers.
So your choice mate…
, but I only have to answer to and consider myself, not my ballsache (sorry partner! 
) and be constantly apologising to my kids for not being there, as they won’t be babies for long. 
