Polish imported drivers.
Why? Aren’t they shiny enough?
Seriously though, is there evidence that they are paid less than others in the UK?
I don’t think I was paid less than my French mates but in anycase they showed not the slightest bit of animosity towards me. Quite the reverse in fact. And this in a nation supposed to be the most chauvenistic in the world.
Dream on, I know where the chauvenists are.
Salut, David.
Spardo:
Polish imported drivers.Why? Aren’t they shiny enough?
Seriously though, is there evidence that they are paid less than others in the UK?
I don’t think I was paid less than my French mates but in anycase they showed not the slightest bit of animosity towards me. Quite the reverse in fact. And this in a nation supposed to be the most chauvenistic in the world.
Dream on, I know where the chauvenists are.Salut, David.
Spardo,
Thats just it, we dont know anything in detail. I know for a fact that when a British company employs a non-British seaman they do not have to pay a single penny in National Insurance contribution so they make one hell of a saving there, despite giving that non-British seamen the same take home wage as the British seamen got before they were all layed off. Maybe thats only because being a seaman is an offshore job, who knows, we certainly dont and we flaming well should.
Its also worth mentioning that cost isn’t the only incentive to employing an E.European, as with E.European seamen, they’re much more inclinded to bend the law and do as they’re told with no fuss because they’re petrified of losing their job, what more could a transport manager ask for than a Pole who says “yes sir, thankyou sir, anything sir” to being told he has to be at destination X at all costs? and if he can get someone who will do that, and do it for less than the native drivers, well, he’s won the jackpot hasn’t he?
Vince:
Poland is in the eu, so Polish drivers have the right to work in any eu country, same as English drivers do.Why don’t you start a thread entitled “English Imported Drivers”, concerning the British drivers who work in Belgium, Germany or the USA?
Or is that somehow different?
Vince
I tell you why I think it is disgusting -
I am currently out of a proper job and have to do agency and casual work. I also have a family to feed and bills to pay, so I expect a decent pay - importing drivers that are willing to work for very little doesn’t help my case here, neiter does it help all the other drivers that have to work on minimum wage or just above driving a class 1 down here in Cornwall/Devon!
Another point to bear in mind is that the wages and conditions for truck drivers in the US are from what I have heard much better than in the UK, So why aren’t we all jetting off over there? I’ll tell you why because home is where the heart is. The wages in the states are probably double here (US contributors can set me right here) the standard of living is higher and cheaper (petrol, cars, housing). Same language/similar culture. The process of emigrating to the states is more complex but for a better life… The difference in standards of living between here and the US/Poland is different but not greatly so.
Somebody said Polish drivers will do this, that and the other for their employer but if they are driving english trucks they and their licence are subject to the same checks and restrictions that the rest of us have to abide by. There is a shortage of HGV drivers in this country and as long as they pay their Tax, National Insurance and contribute to the economy while they are here, I’d swap some hard working Polish drivers for a lot of the layabout no-marks on the dole any day of the week. Perhaps we could set up a swap system, you take one of ours and we’ll take one of yours. 
P.S. Atra, Gregory Distribution are always after HGV drivers in your neck of the woods. www.gdl.uk.com Good firm decent tackle.
well…
Dunno about the whole deal here being better…
Drivers here have to know a lot more about their trucks than back home. It’s like the “good old days” where if you had a flat, 9 times out of 10, you end up changing it. Especially out in the wilds.
You get paid by the mile, and many companies don’t pay you for dock time or nights out. The cabs are prehistoric compared to back home. Sure the sleepers are big, but that’s it. But since some runs take up to 2 or 3 weeks out, you need it. A few drivers have apparantly never left their trucks for over a year.
Things are improving tho, and life is getting easier. New drivers need more to keep them in the job.
Silver_Surfer:
Somebody said Polish drivers will do this, that and the other for their employer but if they are driving english trucks they and their licence are subject to the same checks and restrictions that the rest of us have to abide by.
Actually thats not quite true. If they’re agency employed and just come over for a set period and then go back, they can drive on their Polish licence, and as such, cannot get penalty points of any sort, where as the equivilent British driver would. A Pole could go though a hundred speed cameras and not get a single point, he might get fined to the end of the earth, but his licence, as it stands now is out of bounds to our authorities. So, if they’re not at risk of losing their licence and the company picks up the fines for working over hours etc, they can do as they please, and they will do because they’re affraid not to. If any of you lot try and do that you’ll get 12 points in no time, lose your job and be on the scrap heap.
Jut see how quickly the english company who let’s a foreign driver do this gets it’s ‘O’ licence revoked.
I don’t know a great deal about the influx of imported or foreign drivers working here, only what is discussed in the trade papers. However my own observation is that the majority of them have brand new fully equipped lorries, and appear to drive faster than we do without regard for the regulations here.
I understand that it is also cheaper to register and run vehicles from other european states including fuel. My opinion " IT DOESN’T BODE WELL FOR THE DRIVERS’ BASED HERE" 
twopack:
I don’t know a great deal about the influx of imported or foreign drivers working here, only what is discussed in the trade papers. However my own observation is that the majority of them have brand new fully equipped lorries, and appear to drive faster than we do without regard for the regulations here.
I understand that it is also cheaper to register and run vehicles from other european states including fuel. My opinion " IT DOESN’T BODE WELL FOR THE DRIVERS’ BASED HERE"
think you’re confusing foreign hauliers with foreign drivers? anyway either way let’s hang em all high eh? before they take over the country, ■■■■, pilage, burn etc - by the way why has no-one mentioned they are all mafia, cos they are you know, they are i tell you honest 
People coming to work here from the 10 new EU states have to register within a month of starting work. If they don’t then they are working here illegally and any employer who employs them is using illegal labour, Once they have registered they are given a NH number and therefore must pay NH and tax. I have met alot of East European workers in the last few months working on Building sites and many of them are on more per day than me and they are hod carriers etc. Without them these building sites round London wouldn’t have enough workers to get the job done and I’d have nowhere to do deliveries, but that wouldn’t matter as every haulage yard I’ve delivered to in the last few weeks has had a notice wanting drivers.
Also I reckon in 10 years we might be looking for work in the Chech rep and Poland to work as their economies go into orbit and our goes through another reccession like the 80’s.
muckles:
People coming to work here from the 10 new EU states have to register within a month of starting work. If they don’t then they are working here illegally and any employer who employs them is using illegal labour, Once they have registered they are given a NH number and therefore must pay NH and tax. I have met alot of East European workers in the last few months working on Building sites and many of them are on more per day than me and they are hod carriers etc. Without them these building sites round London wouldn’t have enough workers to get the job done and I’d have nowhere to do deliveries, but that wouldn’t matter as every haulage yard I’ve delivered to in the last few weeks has had a notice wanting drivers.
Also I reckon in 10 years we might be looking for work in the Chech rep and Poland to work as their economies go into orbit and our goes through another reccession like the 80’s.
Very valid points. But you cant just open the doors and let anyone in who wants to come. OK fine, we import Polish drivers, we fill every job for drivers with Poles, every one is happy? No, I think not. I’m not happy when I gain my Class 1 and cant get a job because all the places are taken by Poles and all new jobs are also likely to be taken by Poles. Do you see what I’m getting at? It has to be managed in a grown up way so that the people of this country dont come second in the queue. Bring in Poles, but only where the job cant be filled with a native. Is that such an unreasonable request?
robinhood_1984:
but only where the job cant be filled with a native.
The jobs aren’t being filled by the natives at the moment which is why there is a shortage of drivers, a shortage that is going to get worse when the WTD comes in. The relatively small amount of foreign drivers coming in, and it is a small amount despite all the scare stories, isn’t going to make much of a dent in that shortage.
This thread is spreading through the site again with scaremongers and “somebody told me stories”
There are many hundreds of job vacancies available, every transport company has signs outside advertising for drivers. Anyone who cannot find a job is either not looking very hard or being too choosy in my opinion.
If a company have trucks standing, they will do anything to fill vacancies, they are not going to leave them in the yard costing money on insurance and excise duty. nor are they going to let some East European loose in them if they havent got the proper qualifications
Another complaint often quoted is that these “immigrants” cannot drive and have probably never been taught to drive!
In my experience, the Polish drivers who spent several years learning the trade, in the warehouse & vehicle workshops before being allowed out on the roads have a lot more experience by working for the state transport companies before privatisation.
PEKAES in Poland
Hungarocamion in Hungary and CSAD in the Czech Republik along with the old Yugoslavian road haulage companies. These are the drivers who will pull up alongside you and offer assistance if you are in difficulty
Coffeeholic:
robinhood_1984:
but only where the job cant be filled with a native.The jobs aren’t being filled by the natives at the moment which is why there is a shortage of drivers, a shortage that is going to get worse when the WTD comes in. The relatively small amount of foreign drivers coming in, and it is a small amount despite all the scare stories, isn’t going to make much of a dent in that shortage.
The driver shortage would be best dealt with by giving our own people a chance to get on the ladder in the first place. Its no wonder there aren’t many young drivers coming in when it can cost up to £3000 to get to Class 1 today.
There is only one reason for the driver shortage and that is poor wages. I understand peoples concerns regarding the influx of foreigners but as has already been said there are not that many at the moment and I don’t think there ever will. I know if a polish driver started at my old firm they would be forced to quit just by the attitude some people have towards them and I don’t just mean other drivers. The sheer number of drivers required in this country means there would always be a job for anyone who wants one. If you look at the average hours we work and the amount of hours we are probably going to be working after the WTD comes into force then the country will need a lot more drivers to cover the hours lost. I think our jobs are relatively safe for now.
If a mate or a relative says to you ‘I’ve got some money saved and I’m thinking of getting my license, what do you reckon?’ or one of your kids says ‘Dad can I be a trucker when I grow up?’ Ask yourself what would be your honest answer? I know I would try to point them in another direction. I love driving, I really do, anything else wouldn’t suit me but lets be honest given your time over what would you want to do when you left school? If the money was better then I might change my opinion but as Tony says ‘Mop ‘n’ Bucket’
The driver shortage would be best dealt with by giving our own people a chance to get on the ladder in the first place. Its no wonder there aren’t many young drivers coming in when it can cost up to £3000 to get to Class 1 today
but look at it from another point of view,if your paying out as you say £3000 in the first place then you would expect a decent wage for it,but as far as i can see i could earn more per hour working in a aldi supermarket then i do driving,theres not much incentive for new blood to come in to the industry when were about to be told (sorry dictated) how many hours we can work…
bowmurs in cannock have never taken down there hgv vacancie board off there gates for as long as i can remember because the pay is [zb] and the tackle is [zb]. of course companies are going to look for cheaper labour because you and i are to choosey who we work for
jon
pay em the same rates as advertised for uk drivers, end of problem. anyone who says they should come here and be allowed to work for less is in my opinion racist
robinhood_1984:
The driver shortage would be best dealt with by giving our own people a chance to get on the ladder in the first place. Its no wonder there aren’t many young drivers coming in when it can cost up to £3000 to get to Class 1 today.
Even if it cost a lot less than that to get the licence you still wouldn’t get people coming into the industry to be drivers, it’s just not a career choice the vast majority of young people want to do, our job is sadly viewed with the same sort of disdain as Traffic Wardens, Tax Inspectors and Estate Agents.
Another thing I believe is that if it was relatively cheap to obtain a licence the standard of driving would drop even further. With the cost of obtaining a licence being what it is I feel that most people who get it would want to make sure they hang onto it and not waste the investment they have made and are therefore are more likely to drive in a manner that means they won’t lose it.
Another problem is that even those who do want to join the industry then add a load of conditions to what they will and won’t do. They don’t want to do nights away, they don’t want to start before X o’clock, they don’t want to finish after X o’clock, they don’t want to work more than X hours a day, they don’t ever want to do any Saturdays and Sundays, etc, etc, etc. Now like it or not, rightly or wrongly, those things don’t fit in with the running of most transport operations especially now we live in a 24/7 culture where people want shops and services open for longer and longer.
Simple fact is there aren’t enough people in Britain who want to come into the industry as drivers to make up the shortage and that would be the same whatever it cost to get the licence. I don’t think vast improvements to the wages will change that either, there are companies who are paying wages a lot higher than the average who still can’t recruit enough drivers.
robinhood_1984:
Very valid points. But you cant just open the doors and let anyone in who wants to come. OK fine, we import Polish drivers, we fill every job for drivers with Poles, every one is happy? No, I think not. I’m not happy when I gain my Class 1 and cant get a job because all the places are taken by Poles and all new jobs are also likely to be taken by Poles. Do you see what I’m getting at? It has to be managed in a grown up way so that the people of this country dont come second in the queue. Bring in Poles, but only where the job cant be filled with a native. Is that such an unreasonable request?
You will have difficulty in getting a job because of lack of experience and maybe age. It has always been the same and is not just because of foreign drivers taking jobs. The industry has problems recruitling arn’t just to do with money, to many younger people without families and responsibilities the money is not the driving factor. It has more to do with image, conditions and status. We as a profession are less welcome than travellers when we want to park somewhere and it crazy that we have to wash in MSA toilets or kip in a layby and have a quick wipe round and ■■■■ in the hedge like a bunch of tramps. Hardly an image to ecourage your average youth, used to the comforts of home, to want to become a truck driver.