This was my post when I lost my job http://www.roadtransport.com/blogs/transport-operators-blog/2009/05/
and what I did while I was looking and then finding work again.
Thank you for all your comments, some really good advice in there. I was surprised by the number of people recommending the ‘cold calling’ route as a means to secure a job. Looks like if you really want it you have to be prepared to start knocking on doors…
Best of luck to those searching for work.
Cheers
Chris
The best thing to do if you lose your job is, dont say to yourself ‘I will have a week at home then start job hunting’. You have to start straight away otherwise you will find yourself falling out of ‘work mode’ and slipping into ‘I will do it tomorrow’ mode. You need to be pro-active and get out there and find work. Not sit at home looking through job adverts and being picky. Get a job, any job then you can sit back and be more picky.
chrisgoddard:
The best thing to do if you lose your job is, dont say to yourself ‘I will have a week at home then start job hunting’. You have to start straight away otherwise you will find yourself falling out of ‘work mode’ and slipping into ‘I will do it tomorrow’ mode. You need to be pro-active and get out there and find work. Not sit at home looking through job adverts and being picky. Get a job, any job then you can sit back and be more picky.
I agree.
General Haulage I feel, is still a job where some independent thought is preferred in a driver.
Cold Calling, rather than waiting for a ‘suitable’ job advert to come up, demonstrates some get up and go. Especially if your ready to go now, when you’re knocking on the door.
Simon:
chrisgoddard:
The best thing to do if you lose your job is, dont say to yourself ‘I will have a week at home then start job hunting’. You have to start straight away otherwise you will find yourself falling out of ‘work mode’ and slipping into ‘I will do it tomorrow’ mode. You need to be pro-active and get out there and find work. Not sit at home looking through job adverts and being picky. Get a job, any job then you can sit back and be more picky.I agree.
General Haulage I feel, is still a job where some independent thought is preferred in a driver.
Cold Calling, rather than waiting for a ‘suitable’ job advert to come up, demonstrates some get up and go. Especially if your ready to go now, when you’re knocking on the door.
Yep, I agree too. First thing monday morning is the best time to turn up. Chances are someone may have phoned in sick or an agency hasn’t turned up and you could be the life saver they’re looking for.
I’m with what’s been said above:
Wear a SMART suit, but have a change of clothes in your bag and get out there and knock on every door within commuting distance.
Leave your CV if they say no and ALWAYS ask to speak to the transport manager, not the receptionist.
Make sure you look presentable and professional.
Don’t turn up if you can’t start for weeks, always be ready to work that second, it might be 5pm and you might have been knocking on doors all day but if they say go then you need to be ready for it.
Most of all be polite and courteous to everyone you meet on the way, be friendly and never beg, act like you would be a credit to their company and they might just think of taking you on.
Just chucking CV’s in the post doesn’t work, and those that send them by email really aren’t trying!
Alex
SWraith:
I also wore a leather jacket
Turning up in a leather jacket will almost guarantee you a job, especially if you wear shiny tracksuit bottoms, moody Adidas flip flops & call yourself Vladimir 
Just landed a full time position after 8 months of agency work following redundacy.
Apparently at the interview, i was the only person that made the effort and wore a suit and tie, {and this was on the same day that the weathermen were predicting a heatwave and suggesting that some companies relax the work dress code accordingly}
the person beforehand was in an open necked shirt and trousers, & when the position is for a nationally recognised firm where appearances matter, i obviously stood out over the rest.
theres a lot of drivers chasing just a few decent jobs, so if you really want the job, it makes sense to make that extra effort.
a clean licence, over 20 years experience and being up to speed on current regs, safety issues, highway code etc…also helped
trix-trux:
Just landed a full time position after 8 months of agency work following redundacy… appearances matter, i obviously stood out over the rest.theres a lot of drivers chasing just a few decent jobs, so if you really want the job, it makes sense to make that extra effort.
Good for you Trix!
When made redundant at the start of last year when fuel prices where going through the roof I quickly learned back at the agencies that my old attitude of picking and choosing my start times would have to be binned.
It was my saving grace as other drivers still had the plenty of work about attitude.
I started full time again four months ago after being placed there by the Agency and it would not have happened if I did not change.
Funnily enough this is the first job I have had where the days and hours are perfect for me.
Change your name to Momchilovich and tell them your a migrant worker happy to drive for £6/hr.
My old company now has a driver workforce that is over 60% migrant, so I reckon we dont stand a chance.
17,000+ experienced British truckers are out of work, there is no quick way back.
I have been looking for a ‘proper job’ for over a year, work agency to keep the wolf from the door. I send out cv’s daily, phone companies till they know me by name but it makes no difference. Its soul destroying but I refuse to work stacking shelfs after all the effort and money I have sunk into my training over the years, somebody somewhere wants a conscientious British driver and I am determined to find them.
hang on in their some thing will come up where in the same position in ireland all our eastern european neighbours working for peanuts my mate does european work and at the time these poles where going around to different yards saying they would work for 200 euro less than what they were paying the irish lads.
also they are cheaper at first but when you then add up all the tips&smacks they have it costs the company more i the long term and its a known fact that there is about five companies in ireland that wont touch them with a barge pole im hoping to start soon with one of them.
Ditto the go and find it yourself comments, if you want permanent blow the agencies and knock on doors. I was at a dinner last week with the bosses of 3 of the biggest hauliers in Kent and the general jist was what happened to the old drivers and why don’t the brits apply no more!!!
Because the agencies work for profit, redski wanting 5 quid an hour V our rates and they are quids in on a fixed rate deal. Lay off the employers and blast the agency scum suckers!! or do as is said cut out the scum suckers and hit the companies yourself
What do you wear for an interview?
Have my first job interview in a fair few years tomorrow…should i turn up in a suit and tie, jeans and shirt, trousers and shirt…?
I know what i would wear if i were going for an office job…but never really had to give much thought to a drivers interview…and actually feel a bit snobbish for thinking that a suit and tie may be OTT.
if you have a suit wear it if not smart casual also bring along a copy of your C.V(making sure its up to date)
as for the interview allways look the interviewer in the eye(while talking to them) if they ask you on how you would deal with a situation keep it short and to the piont.
never ask about the ££££ let them bring it up first and never ever talk about an ex employer in a bad way also try and find out about the company your going to work for i.e how many depots do they have etc what type of work do they do
to get an interview cold calling, if they send you an application form fill it in and take it in by hand if you post it they can just throw it in teh bin but if you take it in they wont have the balls to do that infront of you, plus they can see you straight away if they have the time and as has been said saying good morning/afternoon and please (not just “alright mate”) and thank you (instead of cheers or ta)go a very long way. i also thanked them for thier time when i left
For my last two interviews i have turned up in a pair of black trousers and a shirt (£6.50 from tescos so didnt care if it got covered in oil/grease) with polished shoes as well. i also took along a rucksack with my folder in (driving licence,digitach, passport, proof of NI number) and a hiviz, a piar of gloves and a pair of safety boots, ready to do an assessment if needed at that moment. and got both jobs (one was just casual for fowler welch and the other was for paul mathews). for the fowler welch job i originally spoke to them when i was loading there with the agency and they said they would post me an application which i never received so i rung them every week about it, but being polite with it. in teh end they said just come in on saturday and do an assessment (i think they got fed up with me ringing up) with paul mathews i sent them a CV with a covering letter and then rung them about a week later to enquire if any openings had happened and they sent me an application form and an envelope to send it back in, i filled it out and took it down there to drop off (even though it is about 45 mins from where i live) and was very polite when i got there (even though they kept me waiting in a room for 30 minutes while they got the TM. 2 weeks later i got a phone call asking if i could come for an interview. finally got the job 2 weeks ago and start it in 3 weeks time.
just keep knocking on doors and try the personal approach, it works as they say first impressions last…
good luck to everyone that is still searching, something will trun up, eventually
I got laid off from Stobart 4 weeks ago along with 18 others in Newport. They haven’t all gone yet as the redundancies are being spread out over a couple of months, but i was the 1st. Took a fortnight off cos holidays were planned anyway, and then a week last monday i was up with the lark, my kit in my car and i set about knocking doors. All day monday and tuesday i drove around Newport Cwmbran Pontypool and a bit of Cardiff but there was not a sniff. Everywhere was quiet. I filled in countless application forms, i had a million ‘yeah we’ll call if we need you’s,’ i had an interview on wednesday morning and then in the afternoon of wednesday i called in to CJ Birds yard in the Rhondda and asked was there anything going? ‘Do you know’ he said, ‘i’ve just had a phone call from a customer who’s order has gone from a rigid to an artic for Glasgow tomorrow morning and a class 1 driver who’s just had to go home because of a family problem, and i’ve been scratching my head over what to do.’ ‘I’ll do it’ says i. ‘Really?’ he said. Yup, i got my kit in my car, i can go right now. Just gotta ring the missus and tell her i won’t be home for tea and then i’m gone. At first he said it’ll only be temporary while this other driver was off, but later he came back and said we’re getting busier anyway, i’ll take you on full time. So, happy days for me. As it happens on the run up to Glasgow i had phone call from one of the many firms i’d gone to asking if i could cover a night shift that night. Er, no sorry. And then the next morning i phoned the company i’d had the interview with to say don’t consider me, and he said Oh, i was just about to offer you the job. Bloody hell, got job offers coming out me ears.
Ok so i was lucky to be in the right place at the right time but i think thats the way a lot of jobs are got. Especially in transport. In my opinion CV’s are ■■■■■■■■. They only impress the type of people you wouldn’t want to work for anyway. If you can demonstrate a willingness and flexibility and a good attitude face to face with the boss then you’re home.
By the way, my dress code was a pair of black Stobart trousers and a decent polo shirt. I know i should give the trousers back but they are comfy.