CHAINSAW:
Hi War 1974 no I was not happy doing the work at that pay to start with but was lured with the chance of a full time position on the higher pay, a job which I was offered time and time again when I could not accept through circumstances. When the job and circumstances became available the agency put forward somebody else, I later found out because" I AM TOO VALUABLE TO THE AGENCY" … and when I confronted the employing company their reason was that I had asked if 2 weeks unpaid leave to care for my daughter was possible was their reason for going with the other guy, I bet they would not have said that to a woman!!!
And as for do I consider myself a better driver, I don’t have to the guy they took on can’t even put the trailer on the bay properly, has had at least three accidental damages in the last couple of months, and all the staff at the hub tell me they can’t believe I was not given the job as the new guy is an arse!! So yes I consider myself a better driver, also my mate who works there and has 40 years experience will tell you I have more experience in a month than he has had in his career (!) because on the agency I do lots of different work.
As for the original argument, parity of pay should be a given if you are doing the same job surely■■?
sorry Chainsaw I wasn’t having a pop mate, just wanted to check. agree if the other guy is having accidents etc then fair play. I would suggest if you are that much of an asset to the agency they pay a rate that reflects this (I work for an agency and I have a couple of ‘lead’ drivers who do a fair bit extra to help me out but are paid a bit extra in return) this way we both work together and achieve our aim of keeping the customer happy.
best of luck.
chicane:
Depends on the agency/company, my son will be starting class 2 on around £1.50 more than company A’s drivers, I’m on parity with another company B’s drivers which is higher still. Wouldn’t have thought the difference would ever be that big TBH. For us going agency is about being able to work when it suits.
What if they don’t have any work available for you, when you want it?
What if; they take a disliking to you, because you’re not compatible with them?
It’s all very well, saying “I’ll go and sign on at another agency”, but they all work the same way.
CHAINSAW:
Hi War 1974 no I was not happy doing the work at that pay to start with but was lured with the chance of a full time position on the higher pay, a job which I was offered time and time again when I could not accept through circumstances. When the job and circumstances became available the agency put forward somebody else, I later found out because" I AM TOO VALUABLE TO THE AGENCY" … and when I confronted the employing company their reason was that I had asked if 2 weeks unpaid leave to care for my daughter was possible was their reason for going with the other guy, I bet they would not have said that to a woman!!!
And as for do I consider myself a better driver, I don’t have to the guy they took on can’t even put the trailer on the bay properly, has had at least three accidental damages in the last couple of months, and all the staff at the hub tell me they can’t believe I was not given the job as the new guy is an arse!! So yes I consider myself a better driver, also my mate who works there and has 40 years experience will tell you I have more experience in a month than he has had in his career (!) because on the agency I do lots of different work.
As for the original argument, parity of pay should be a given if you are doing the same job surely■■?
sorry Chainsaw I wasn’t having a pop mate, just wanted to check. agree if the other guy is having accidents etc then fair play. I would suggest if you are that much of an asset to the agency they pay a rate that reflects this (I work for an agency and I have a couple of ‘lead’ drivers who do a fair bit extra to help me out but are paid a bit extra in return) this way we both work together and achieve our aim of keeping the customer happy.
best of luck.
Hi War 1974
No I did not think you were taking a pop, just a bit ■■■■■■ off stuck in a position/industry where I am constantly ■■■■■■ over for trying to be a good Dad and be there for my little one, while the amount of idiots that seem to be getting more money etc. seems to be getting longer, must be the only job where you hardly progress wage wise with years of experience
chicane:
Depends on the agency/company, my son will be starting class 2 on around £1.50 more than company A’s drivers, I’m on parity with another company B’s drivers which is higher still. Wouldn’t have thought the difference would ever be that big TBH. For us going agency is about being able to work when it suits.
What if they don’t have any work available for you, when you want it?
What if; they take a disliking to you, because you’re not compatible with them?
It’s all very well, saying “I’ll go and sign on at another agency”, but they all work the same way.
Hi Bogeyman
That is the problem I am in a position where I have to take every hour I can, and then cannot work/earn when I have care for my little one, and do you think a single Dad gets any help off this government if I was a secretary in an office do you think companies would get away with such discriminatory behaviour■■?
I work every where and they normally put me in as first driver on new contracts because they know they will have no problems, then I get shafted for other drivers and given what they have available, usually last minute .
As for working for another agency, I have always been loyal to one agency at a time, when they take the ■■■■ I go elsewhere, I hate been taken the ■■■■ out of lied to or cheated on wages… but like you say they all work the same way.
The reality is though there is a huge shortage of decent drivers available to agencies at the moment so I think asking for parity of pay with crap drivers at cowboy outfits is fair comment!!
So from now on I am looking after number one, agency is already expecting a lack of drivers for the Christmas run up, I think we might see empty shelves this year…
chicane:
Depends on the agency/company, my son will be starting class 2 on around £1.50 more than company A’s drivers, I’m on parity with another company B’s drivers which is higher still. Wouldn’t have thought the difference would ever be that big TBH. For us going agency is about being able to work when it suits.
What if they don’t have any work available for you, when you want it? hasn’t happened in the 5yrs I’ve been with this agency
What if; they take a disliking to you, because you’re not compatible with them? Lot of mutual respect both ways and I’ll try my hand at most things, first driver in at a new customer &etc.,
It’s all very well, saying “I’ll go and sign on at another agency”, but they all work the same way.True but there’s good and bad agencies and some in between, if I got really stuck I’d just take the company’s shilling as a zero hours driver, they’ve just won a new contract to be run out of the local depot
The above only applies to me and my situation, everyone is different. Son just has to find his own path but I expect in time most of the above will apply. I’ve put him through his class 2 and got him a start, the rest is up to him though I’ll help him with the cost of his C+E.
chicane:
Depends on the agency/company, my son will be starting class 2 on around £1.50 more than company A’s drivers, I’m on parity with another company B’s drivers which is higher still. Wouldn’t have thought the difference would ever be that big TBH. For us going agency is about being able to work when it suits.
What if they don’t have any work available for you, when you want it? hasn’t happened in the 5yrs I’ve been with this agency
What if; they take a disliking to you, because you’re not compatible with them? Lot of mutual respect both ways and I’ll try my hand at most things, first driver in at a new customer &etc.,
It’s all very well, saying “I’ll go and sign on at another agency”, but they all work the same way.True but there’s good and bad agencies and some in between, if I got really stuck I’d just take the company’s shilling as a zero hours driver, they’ve just won a new contract to be run out of the local depot
The above only applies to me and my situation, everyone is different. Son just has to find his own path but I expect in time most of the above will apply. I’ve put him through his class 2 and got him a start, the rest is up to him though I’ll help him with the cost of his C+E.
Why on earth would you encourage your son to become an HGV driver■■?
You should be telling him to take up any occupation, but that!
CHAINSAW:
Hi War 1974 no I was not happy doing the work at that pay to start with but was lured with the chance of a full time position on the higher pay, a job which I was offered time and time again when I could not accept through circumstances. When the job and circumstances became available the agency put forward somebody else, I later found out because" I AM TOO VALUABLE TO THE AGENCY" … and when I confronted the employing company their reason was that I had asked if 2 weeks unpaid leave to care for my daughter was possible was their reason for going with the other guy, I bet they would not have said that to a woman!!!
And as for do I consider myself a better driver, I don’t have to the guy they took on can’t even put the trailer on the bay properly, has had at least three accidental damages in the last couple of months, and all the staff at the hub tell me they can’t believe I was not given the job as the new guy is an arse!! So yes I consider myself a better driver, also my mate who works there and has 40 years experience will tell you I have more experience in a month than he has had in his career (!) because on the agency I do lots of different work.
As for the original argument, parity of pay should be a given if you are doing the same job surely■■?
sorry Chainsaw I wasn’t having a pop mate, just wanted to check. agree if the other guy is having accidents etc then fair play. I would suggest if you are that much of an asset to the agency they pay a rate that reflects this (I work for an agency and I have a couple of ‘lead’ drivers who do a fair bit extra to help me out but are paid a bit extra in return) this way we both work together and achieve our aim of keeping the customer happy.
best of luck.
Hi War 1974
No I did not think you were taking a pop, just a bit [zb] off stuck in a position/industry where I am constantly [zb] over for trying to be a good Dad and be there for my little one, while the amount of idiots that seem to be getting more money etc. seems to be getting longer, must be the only job where you hardly progress wage wise with years of experience
shame mate as most smaller firms you would think a good driver would be noticed, bigger firms yes its normally the arse kissers who move on and up.
war1974:
i have drivers regular guy I mean who will invoice over £800 for most of the year which aint too bad.
the only point I would ask is were you happy doing the job until you found out there own guy was on more? I know I may not get paid as much as my colleagues but I enjoy the job and I have a wage I am happy with - if they get a bit more fair enough, I am not going to cut my nose off for an extra grand or so (£50/60 a month after tax?).
my point being you have obviously decided the rates were fine right up until you now feel hard done by as you perceive you are a better worker /driver (not saying your not before that can of worms opens up), but now you know he gets more your unhappy, I would speak to the agency and ask for a raise see what they say, let them know what you know (if its true) they may also be getting screwed ( I have had firms fill in AWR forms and thought ■■■■■■■■ when I have seen the rate they put down ) questioned it and boom its all of a sudden gone up.
CHAINSAW:
Hi War 1974 no I was not happy doing the work at that pay to start with but was lured with the chance of a full time position on the higher pay, a job which I was offered time and time again when I could not accept through circumstances. When the job and circumstances became available the agency put forward somebody else, I later found out because" I AM TOO VALUABLE TO THE AGENCY" … and when I confronted the employing company their reason was that I had asked if 2 weeks unpaid leave to care for my daughter was possible was their reason for going with the other guy, I bet they would not have said that to a woman!!!
And as for do I consider myself a better driver, I don’t have to the guy they took on can’t even put the trailer on the bay properly, has had at least three accidental damages in the last couple of months, and all the staff at the hub tell me they can’t believe I was not given the job as the new guy is an arse!! So yes I consider myself a better driver, also my mate who works there and has 40 years experience will tell you I have more experience in a month than he has had in his career (!) because on the agency I do lots of different work.
As for the original argument, parity of pay should be a given if you are doing the same job surely■■?
sorry Chainsaw I wasn’t having a pop mate, just wanted to check. agree if the other guy is having accidents etc then fair play. I would suggest if you are that much of an asset to the agency they pay a rate that reflects this (I work for an agency and I have a couple of ‘lead’ drivers who do a fair bit extra to help me out but are paid a bit extra in return) this way we both work together and achieve our aim of keeping the customer happy.
best of luck.
Hi War 1974
No I did not think you were taking a pop, just a bit [zb] off stuck in a position/industry where I am constantly [zb] over for trying to be a good Dad and be there for my little one, while the amount of idiots that seem to be getting more money etc. seems to be getting longer, must be the only job where you hardly progress wage wise with years of experience
shame mate as most smaller firms you would think a good driver would be noticed, bigger firms yes its normally the arse kissers who move on and up.
Do the arse kickers move up better in the small firms then?
dozy:
Well you’ve well and truly
Blown the myth out the water
Pedaled by the agency drivers on here that they earn bucket loads of money ore than company drivers,30 per shift less, what that &3
Ph less
Truth was bound to come
Out sooner
Or
Later
Out of all the companies I’ve ever driven at on agency only one has paid more than the agency does. Everywhere else its varied from my basic being their overtime rate to being a couple of quid an hour more.
dozy:
Well you’ve well and truly
Blown the myth out the water
Pedaled by the agency drivers on here that they earn bucket loads of money ore than company drivers,30 per shift less, what that &3
Ph less
Truth was bound to come
Out sooner
Or
Later
Out of all the companies I’ve ever driven at on agency only one has paid more than the agency does. Everywhere else its varied from my basic being their overtime rate to being a couple of quid an hour more.
True Conor but the gap is steadily getting to the point of closeness, reality is all wages need to rise, but I personally think that with the flood of migrants,the living wage proposals, sat navs and auto gearboxes the job will be close to minimum wage sooner rather than later
war1974:
i have drivers regular guy I mean who will invoice over £800 for most of the year which aint too bad.
the only point I would ask is were you happy doing the job until you found out there own guy was on more? I know I may not get paid as much as my colleagues but I enjoy the job and I have a wage I am happy with - if they get a bit more fair enough, I am not going to cut my nose off for an extra grand or so (£50/60 a month after tax?).
my point being you have obviously decided the rates were fine right up until you now feel hard done by as you perceive you are a better worker /driver (not saying your not before that can of worms opens up), but now you know he gets more your unhappy, I would speak to the agency and ask for a raise see what they say, let them know what you know (if its true) they may also be getting screwed ( I have had firms fill in AWR forms and thought ■■■■■■■■ when I have seen the rate they put down ) questioned it and boom its all of a sudden gone up.
CHAINSAW:
I personally think that with the flood of migrants,the living wage proposals, sat navs and auto gearboxes the job will be close to minimum wage sooner rather than later
Seems to me that drivers could do with taking some of the power back into their own hands. What about if there was a way for drivers to be contacted by employers directly – i.e. instead of going through agencies / de poel?
I’m thinking out loud here, any suggestions welcome. I’m a transport manager at a small firm (we run one artic, one 7.5t and a couple of vans – European work) with an IT background. This has been a problem for drivers for a while, and is getting worse. I’m interested in figuring out if there is a way to help fix it by building a new platform that works better for everyone.
Drivers are reliant at the moment on agencies who don’t represent them very well (i.e. all drivers are the same to them – they don’t fight to get higher wages for better drivers, they’re just filling vacancies), and they have de Poel and other trends forcing down wages across the board.
Would some kind of profile / site for drivers and other skilled workers be useful? You would have your own profile, kind of like a Linked In but more for drivers, and employers could contact you directly and employ you directly? Recent employers (not agencies) would rate you, and you could rate them. Possibly with a booking function so they could literally hire you through the site, or maybe just a messaging function where employers could contact you and then you sort it out directly with them.
Herbert1561:
Would some kind of profile / site for drivers and other skilled workers be useful? You would have your own profile, kind of like a Linked In but more for drivers, and employers could contact you directly and employ you directly?
I did put a brief CV up on a couple of sites similar to CV Library. Needless to say it was agencies that contacted me out the blue, via phone rather than email as requested. This included some that thought a 50 mile commute to their area was ok.
Only decent thing that came from Sweden was Abba. Personally I’d like to see the law changed where the client themselves have to take you on their books after a certain timescale. Too many want long term commitment from agency workers, without giving anything back in return.
Herbert1561:
Seems to me that drivers could do with taking some of the power back into their own hands. What about if there was a way for drivers to be contacted by employers directly – i.e. instead of going through agencies / de poel?
I’m thinking out loud here, any suggestions welcome. I’m a transport manager at a small firm (we run one artic, one 7.5t and a couple of vans – European work) with an IT background. This has been a problem for drivers for a while, and is getting worse. I’m interested in figuring out if there is a way to help fix it by building a new platform that works better for everyone.
Drivers are reliant at the moment on agencies who don’t represent them very well (i.e. all drivers are the same to them – they don’t fight to get higher wages for better drivers, they’re just filling vacancies), and they have de Poel and other trends forcing down wages across the board.
Would some kind of profile / site for drivers and other skilled workers be useful? You would have your own profile, kind of like a Linked In but more for drivers, and employers could contact you directly and employ you directly? Recent employers (not agencies) would rate you, and you could rate them. Possibly with a booking function so they could literally hire you through the site, or maybe just a messaging function where employers could contact you and then you sort it out directly with them.
Like the idea and we have to come up with something that works for driver and client but such a platform still has overheads which have to be covered and driver would have to be SE rather than PAYE.
To my thinking you’d be better creating a list of decent SE drivers that you can call on directly. OK so you’ll have to ■■■■ some lemons to get the oranges but going through agency doesn’t always guarantee driving gods either.
Our core business is Agricultural contracting but we all now have LGV licences 1xC+E, 2xC. and I’ve been thinking down the lines of working directly for clients but don’t have the contacts or time to go chasing round to find them AND do all the paperwork.
Personally I don’t care what I drive as long as it’s legal, got an engine and we get paid as agreed, the other two have the same outlook.
dozy:
Well you’ve well and truly
Blown the myth out the water
Pedaled by the agency drivers on here that they earn bucket loads of money ore than company drivers,30 per shift less, what that &3
Ph less
Truth was bound to come
Out sooner
Or
Later
Out of all the companies I’ve ever driven at on agency only one has paid more than the agency does. Everywhere else its varied from my basic being their overtime rate to being a couple of quid an hour more.
True Conor but the gap is steadily getting to the point of closeness, reality is all wages need to rise, but I personally think that with the flood of migrants,the living wage
proposals, sat navs and auto gearboxes the job will be close to minimum wage sooner rather than later
I think if that happens il be packing driving in and finding a new job.
Only problem I see with increasing the minimum wage to nearly £8 a lot of companies not haulage but just normal workforce will maybe struggle to pay the new minimum wage. I believe there going for over £10ph over the next 5 years.
Resulting in less full time jobs.
Herbert1561:
Seems to me that drivers could do with taking some of the power back into their own hands. What about if there was a way for drivers to be contacted by employers directly – i.e. instead of going through agencies / de poel?
I’m thinking out loud here, any suggestions welcome. I’m a transport manager at a small firm (we run one artic, one 7.5t and a couple of vans – European work) with an IT background. This has been a problem for drivers for a while, and is getting worse. I’m interested in figuring out if there is a way to help fix it by building a new platform that works better for everyone.
Drivers are reliant at the moment on agencies who don’t represent them very well (i.e. all drivers are the same to them – they don’t fight to get higher wages for better drivers, they’re just filling vacancies), and they have de Poel and other trends forcing down wages across the board.
Would some kind of profile / site for drivers and other skilled workers be useful? You would have your own profile, kind of like a Linked In but more for drivers, and employers could contact you directly and employ you directly? Recent employers (not agencies) would rate you, and you could rate them. Possibly with a booking function so they could literally hire you through the site, or maybe just a messaging function where employers could contact you and then you sort it out directly with them.
True words and common sense there Herbert, a rare quality in todays Britain and an even rarer quality in the transport industry.
Unfortunately the problem as always will be the actual Drivers, they don’t stick together and will stab each other in the back every time… and then complain about it on here
I have been toying with the idea myself but all the local drivers I know would not have the balls or the brains to see it is the way forward …
if I was a secretary in an office do you think companies would get away with such discriminatory behaviour■■?
