Tesco "Report" on Meeting

[removed_at_users_request]

Its A long Post

Report on the meeting with Tesco, I will keep it as brief as possible then you can always ask any questions later.
Tesco Reply at the bottom

During the meeting on the 30th September, I aimed to highlight 4 key issues. As each issue was talked about I handed Mr Laffey (Alex) various documentation to express the visiting drivers comments suggestions and ideas, which were put over by you on the respective forums.

Facilities
Alex was presented with your photographs and many comments about the lack of respectable facilities at many Tesco RDCs. As of the meeting Alex would contact all RDC Managers and open all canteen and restaurant facilities to drivers and have an ongoing improvement of the waiting rooms, with more comfortable surroundings and drinks machines that will also provide hot water.
In the short term drivers can now relax in the canteen areas and use their facilities while improvements are made to the waiting rooms.
Please respect any facilities that are offered to you, (It only takes one bad driver to give us all a bad name)

Turnaround Times
This has always been one of the main problems at Tesco and other RDC operators and is the cause of many problems. If drivers were to be turned round within 1 hour the need for facilities would not be so important, and drivers and Companies would be able to plan ahead without the problem of not knowing how long they are to be held up. I presented Alex with a list of waiting times and RDCs that were holding drivers up over 2 hours to show that it is not a one off, but an ongoing problem.
It is not something that can be solved overnight and Tesco will continue to work on ways of improving the unloading procedure.

Handing in Keys
This was the main reason for the meeting and took a lot of discussion, I gave Alex a list of proposals that drivers had posted on the forums and also a list of quotes from H&S regulations concerning visiting drivers. Alex had already taken quotes on the cost of implementing Trailer locks on loading bays and this exceeded £5000 per bay.
There is not an immediate solution to the problem and obvious to us all that H&S is paramount to us all. I did express that a vehicle with 26 pallets on should only take 20-30 minutes to unload and drivers would “possibly” be happy (Feedback please) to allow keys handed in for this short time, but why are keys needed for the whole process while checking goods.
Alex now needs time to consult with Tesco H&S executive, and the suggestions and proposals put forward, and will come back to me in approx 4 weeks.

Communication
I proposed to Alex that all Tesco staff should communicate with visiting drivers with the respect they deserve. A “thank you” and “please” can go a long way to alleviate a problem, if a delay is explained to the driver instead of “Tough” can also help keep tempers down and make the process more acceptable.
Alex will contact all RDCs Managers outlining Tesco policy of courtesy and respect to all visiting drivers.

No overnight miracles were expected from this meeting as some of the problems need to be looked into by Tesco H&S, but the lines of communication are now open and driver feed back over the coming months is paramount for me to keep on top of the problems you face. I now have Mr Laffey e/mail and phone No to keep in contact and inform him of any problems and Alex will be keeping me up to date of the way forward to improve things for visiting drivers.

I am also creating a “RDC Categories” on my forum, which will have all RDC operators on. If you are delayed for an “unreasonable” time, or refused canteen facilities, or treated with “attitude” then Tell me. Discussion, debate, idea’s etc can continue on all the forums but by keeping the actual problems in one area I can then direct the respective RDC operators to have a look.
Your feed back brought about the meeting so it is important to keep the momentum going and get what we all rightly deserve.

I will look back here as often as possible and answer any queries. Or bits I have missed out, it was a long meeting and many other things were talked about, I am not a journalist, so read it as a brief.

Thank you all for allowing me to talk on your behalf, it is only by your support and postings on relative topic’s that gives me the ammunition to approach the various companies.

Tesco Reply

Barrie,

Following our meeting on 30th September I would like firstly to thank you for taking the time to come along and meet me. As promised I have reviewed the issues you highlighted (listed below).

• Adherence to key control process
• Poor driver facilities (rest rooms)
• Vehicle turnaround delays
• Staff attitude

At Tesco we genuinely value all feedback and I’d like to take you through the ways in which I am intending to explore the issues you raised:

Key Control Process
I have asked our Regional Transport Manager to look at the key control process. As I stated to you we have this process for Health and Safety reasons, so the team concerned will look at how best we can resolve the concerns of drivers highlighted to you, whilst maintaining safe systems of work for both our employees and visiting drivers. I’ve asked the team to come back to me in four weeks and I’ll be happy to feed back my thoughts to you then.

Driver facilities
As discussed when we met, it is our intention to formally review all the facilities we provide for visiting drivers across our network. It would be at this stage, when we have an agreed simple design standard, that we could then implement across all sites to ensure we offer the same level of facilities for all visiting drivers. In the mean time I have instructed all sites that visiting drivers should be allowed to use the staff canteen facilities, providing it is within normal operating hours and providing they are able to access these facilities without breaching either security or Health and Safety rules.

Vehicle turnaround
It is my view that we have made significant improvements in this area, however, I do acknowledge that there is more work to do and assure you that it has the required focus within Tesco to keep progressing and developing.
I will keep you updated on progress.

Staff attitude
Clearly it is difficult for me to respond to anecdotal feedback, however, we will re-state the rules with all staff at our sites in relation to maintaining a professional and courteous approach to all visitors to Tesco depots.

I hope the above gives you a clear indication of how we take feedback and where appropriate use it to develop the business. We will continue to work to resolve the current concerns you’ve raised and update you on progress as it is made.

Regards
Alex

[kalm2kaos]

Well done Bazman…Its a good start

[blue222]

With regard to Driver Facilities, what are “normal operating hours” in the canteen?

[dafman]

Although i do not go near RDCs anymore i know all about the problems involved, well done on getting so far

[removed_at_users_request]

Blue222:
With regard to Driver Facilities, what are “normal operating hours” in the canteen?

This is regards to the actual food sevice at the counters, Drivers can get meals at normal operating times but will need to pay the going rate and not subsidised prices.

[super_dan]

Bazman,

Just to say thanks for all your effort so far!

Keep it up! Whos next Morrisons, asda or sainsburys!?!

[removed_at_users_request]

Super Dan:
Bazman,
Keep it up! Whos next Morrisons, asda or sainsburys!?!

That is up to the visiting drivers
Hopefully Tesco will lead the way

If drivers offer the feed back about the problems, I “will” follow it up.
Between this forum and my own there were over 460 postings about Tesco, all of which gave me the ammunition to confront them with, plus of course other letters sent by “Rikki”

The Internet is becoming the drivers power and by all working together “things can only get better”
Not taking any member away from here, but I have set up an actual area to get that feed back. It will keep it all in one place, at the same time talking about it on here. This forum is No1 but pop over add your feed back, then come back, only take a minute or two.

[truckyboy]

Having now joined the food chain operation…i can now see what it is all about.
My job involves a delivery to Morrisons on behalf of Grampion Foods (thorne) down in maidstone. The problem there is the fact the staff are very un-happy because of the whisper of the depot being closed and transferred to kettering.
So as the drivers are stuck in the middle, we are the ones that suffer. On Fri and Sunday i was told that it would take 2 hours to check the two pallets they had taken off, containing only 64 boxes between them. The reason i was given was this. When it was controlled by Safeway, the checkers had a hand held scanner device. Since the Morrison take over, these scanners have been withdrawn, and the checkers now have to do everything by the old manual way,
ie pen and paper. I am fortunate in the fact that i can do what they call drop and run which means once the goods are off loaded…i can pull out without any paperwork…this being collected next day. This is because our companies deliver there everyday. I think that this is a short term problem because of the intended re-location. There were rumours of a strike by the staff at Aylesford but this is yet to materialise. This industrial action is over the closure of the depot and the relocation to kettering with the subsequent redundancies.The attitude of staff there isnt very pleasant at times…with the casual mention that everything was ok till Morrisons stuck their nose in. The canteen facilities are ok for the drivers as are the toilets…although i found that most drivers prefer to sit in their cabs. i had a good breakfast for less than £2. we are told to use the sattelite canteen, unless it is closed, then we can use the main one.

[jessicas_dad]

ive found the problem at tesco’s and the like now the canteens you have to pay witha card and the drivers dont have one. i was at purfleet tesco and everyone pointed me in the right direction of the canteen all the way to the other side of the site but when i got there all the coffee machines you had to use a card

[blue222]

Went to New Tesco at Peterborough the other day.

Metal slatted benches, extremely uncomfortable.

Not allowed to use canteen.

Are they doing this on purpose?

[dennisw1]

jessicas dad:
ive found the problem at tesco’s and the like now the canteens you have to pay witha card and the drivers dont have one. i was at purfleet tesco and everyone pointed me in the right direction of the canteen all the way to the other side of the site but when i got there all the coffee machines you had to use a card

At the stores canteen staff often hold a card which you can borrow, or if there’s a member of Tesco staff nearby they ‘might’ let you borrow theirs if you ask nicely. I know i’ve lent my card to people when i worked in stores.

Also i think the cards are the same between firms too, just a standard vending machine card.

[quinny]

At the Somerfield/Exel site at Sherburn,it was a card system,but if a contractor,wanted something to eat,all he had to do was pay the member of staff,and the member of staff used his/her card.

This was for the stuff out of the machines,however the canteen,when open, used both cash and card

Ken.

[nightflyer]

Well done bazer nihgtflyer here have read all the replys to your meeting and i must say that as a trade union offical i must congrateulate you on losing site of the goal so quickly ALL yes ALL the the replys are about drivers being able to use the canteen facillites at tesco sites well done on that but have;nt you lost site of the original issue DRIVERS BEING LOCKED OUT OF THERE CABS ( HOMES ) . Well just to keep you updated on the work i have been doing on be half of my fellow drivers i have contacted congelton council about this matter and a young lady by the name of juile has rang me back to say that she has had a metting with tesco at middlewich and drivers there are not locked out of there cabs but she is looking into the rest of tescos rdc;s as it does seem that tesco are in breach of human rights i can only state my own case so here we go i suffered a heart attack in january of this year it it has left me with bad coronary desease for which i take 6 different tablets a day at various times now if i am locked out of my cab and cannot get to this medication because some git at tesco has got my keys and if i ask for them won;t be able to find them then i can;t get to my medication which means i could not will but could die who will be responsible for that they can have the keys but i need to be in my cab with mt medication ask Mr LAFFEY about that one because if i am keep away from my medication then my solicitor won’t be shouting health and safety he will, be shouting corporate manslaughter as they say they have a due to health and safety for visiting drivers look forward to hearing your reply on that one bazz regards the nightflyer

[coffeeholic]

What do you do when you go out for the day, leave your medication at home or take it with you?

Surely if you know you will be away from your medication you would take it with you, seems the only sensible option. I really don’t think you would win a law suit against Tescos because you didn’t keep life saving medication on your person.

I’m sure we can blame Tesco for many things but not for someone forgetting to keep vital medication to hand. Drivers who smoke remember to take their ■■■■ with them why can’t you remember your meds?

[darren23]

why cant tescos adopt what morris do, you park up a banks man comes and gives you a loading bay , back on give your keys to fld who then tips you… 15 mins for 26 plts hands keys back pull your motor off park up and wait for your paper work where you can sit in your motor watching phil & fern…

[removed_at_users_request]

NIGHTFLYER:
but have;nt you lost site of the original issue DRIVERS BEING LOCKED OUT OF THERE CABS ( HOMES )

As a Union Representative, you should read all the facts correctly before speaking out of line.

Tesco PLC reply to me as stated at the top of this post.

Key Control Process
I have asked our Regional Transport Manager to look at the key control process. As I stated to you we have this process for Health and Safety reasons, so the team concerned will look at how best we can resolve the concerns of drivers highlighted to you, whilst maintaining safe systems of work for both our employees and visiting drivers. I’ve asked the team to come back to me in four weeks and I’ll be happy to feed back my thoughts to you then

.
Also read in the Commercial Motor where I have stated it is unacceptable.

Anybody that expects an overnight result on such an important matter, does not live in the real world.
Something like the canteens were promised on the spot, but anything to do with the safety of drivers and Tesco staff needs correctly investigating.

So please continue your actions as all helps, but get your facts right before posting on this thread. and basically insulting what I am trying to do.
Now I know why the unions are struggling to gain members, why at this late point in time have you suddenly decided to get involved, where?? was the union support while I was arranging the meeting, and dozens of drivers were posting on the Tesco ruling.

[Lucy]

Er…not wishing to be a total killjoy…but if you’re going to get into this sort of discussion, Barrie has his own site on which to do it.

[krankee]

Personally speaking. With reps like that, is it any wonder that Union membership is at an all time decline.

Nowhere have I, or to my recollection, has anyone else referred to being ‘Locked out of their cabs’. Persons may have spoken of the security of valuables that may be in their vehicles and the desireability of locking the vehicle. Something which, to me, is a matter of personal preference. These locations are well monitored by CCTV and frankly, for what I carry, I wouldn’t get tuppence at a car boot sale. Indeed, since the introduction of this policy, on the rare occasion that I have needed to return to collect an additional item, it has not been a problem. From a H&S standpoint, I am merely leaning into the vehicle in such a manner that does not constitute a position of being ‘at the controls’ of the vehicle. After all, remember that the incident that started all this off, if ‘rumour control’ has it right, was a driver of Eastern European origin who, having awoken from slumber, looked in the ‘wrong’ mirror, and saw a green light. The difference between ‘his’ state of awareness, and mine pursuing such an action are at different ends of the scale.

There is ONLY one place where I have known staff insist that an unattended vehicle be locked during loading. Hinckley Traywash. They were most put out when I told them to do it themselves, knowing that the lock on that vehicle hadn’t functioned for the last eighteen months. Well, it was a DAF. But even so, their action in this instance was in the interests of the driver. The site is open to the road with little or no security. Whether viewed as H&S or Crime Prevention, it was a logical policy for the geography of the site.

[krankee]

[Lucy]

Not fault your Ken…cross posted.

Now… I believe this line of discussion should be happening HERE