The ferry was the Free enterprise 5 in 1969. the wagon was secured by six heavy chains each side, but they all broke just outside dover when we hit a big wave. The load 19tons of hanging pork was transferred at Calais and taken to a local cold store. Back at Dover I was met by fitter who followed ne back to Poplar. The next morning the vehicle was declared a write off.
The night foreman’s job was to control the cleaning gang . Cleaning Blackwall Rotherhithe Hackney Wick
Strand Euston and Park Lane underpasses and tunnels.
Yes ok i have got it now i bet all the gang were English, not like now i watched a program on the LONDON under ground and the boss of a cleaning gang was not ENGLISH LIKE 90% of the staff ,what on earth has got in to the English mens work ethic ,they ant got one…It is a wonder that the new London lord mayor is not Muslim…
As for the ferry 1969,way before my time i had been at it for only 2 years on BRS…““i could have worked the ferry’s,”” as deep sea was getting harder to get a job …[containers] i expect there were not many trucks at that time , i do remember backing down in Folkstone along side the railway wagons…cheers pdb.
PDB I had four drivers and 1 labourer English and 3 Jamaicans…There was only 1 labourer on on a sunday night. One was scared of ghosts. especially when I pointed out that East India dock next door was called Jarl wharf and that’s where the people were deported from in the old days. I would let him get his head down in the mens locker room and after a while go into the office passage next door and stamp with one foot tread softer with the other whilst dragging a piece of chain along. He used to be one white Jamaican. I was always up to something there for a laugh.
Back to continental though, in those days if you saw another English truck coming towards you, you then pulled up for a chat and make a cuppa. Unfortunately it didn’t last.
Well I think we should get the true facts of some of these second hand stories, It was me and Chris Wilson who was in the film in Kuwait, Chris is no longer here with us so it is only me who is left to say what happend, we where stuck in Kuwait for some months due to the fact that we could not get Iraqi transit visas, we were invited to help with the film and thought it would be a good advert for UCC, we did not receive any money what so ever,if it was offered we would have taken it, I laughed at the stunt driving another second hand story, what happend was that duing the film in the desert they brought in s French stunt man to set alight a dumped car, but he was to frightend to do it soChris stepped in and done it for them, I had a return load so at Safwan the border they detained me and let Chris go, he waited in Istanbul for some weeks for me, that is what you call a good friend, you met this kind of man not in the canteen but on the road. I was coming in to Spain on the way to Portugal when my clutch went, 2 other drivers ex tractor drivers drove past me on a mountain, and left me there, about a week and a halve later I met them at the border, they were on there way home they looked the other way. The manager of the cold store asked what was the matter with them as he had booked a hotel for them, but they slepped in the cab and ate in the cab, give me Chris Wilson any day.Yes I also use my real name. Terry
Hello,Terry. A good story you told there and I agree with you about the tractor men.Even in the UK they,somehow,didn’t do a lot of nights out-while we were doing Edzell and the like,you’d find them on the Dock shunt.We’d have to relieve them and finishing at 1900 plus and the next day we were up the road on nights out. Quite annoying sometimes! All the best Tel, Ted and Dave. 
Terence, What a nice gesture that you made by doing that film for free, to get a bit of kudos for a multi nation, firm like Union International. Unfortunately your generosity doesn’t match your memory. YOU posted on 8/3/2010, that the film maker did not want to pay, but you eventually got the money and kept it. Also being the nice? person that you are, you posted that you got Luker to do your scotch run so that you could nip round his house for ■■■. As GOOD workmates do. Your post on14 /3/2014. Now as for two supposed tractor men leaving you alone with a faulty clutch, PERHAPS they were trying to let you know their opinions of you.
Now Mr 900x20, You were guaranteed 11hrs per day, which you enjoyed, but it seems that you only liked it as long as you didn’t have to work it. The tractor men/shunting in the docks were guaranteed local work which was AGREED when BCL depot was closed. Obviously you thought that as a NEW man you should be able to pick and choose the work that you were given. You were employed as a journey driver,END OF. Thinking back, if Terry had to write the documents out , to get the exit permit to come home, that may explain his delay.
Bill what a nasty person you are, to say things about Luckers wife was bad she was an old lady who was very ill. Just glad that I was not sitting in the canteen all day listing to all that ■■■■. This will be my last post. Sorry Ted and co.
Bill what a nasty person you are, to say things about Luckers wife was bad she was an old lady who was very ill. Just glad that I was not sitting in the canteen all day listing to all that ■■■■. This will be my last post. Sorry Ted and co.
Bill,ref. the tractor men.When I joined at Poplar, there were tractor men with the drawbars and us journey men with the Guys and ERF’s et al.Fair enough.Subsequently,approx 1968 everything changed. The tractors and all the old vehicles were disposed of and a new fleet of Guy Big “J” units and CF trailers came into being.Hence,no more tractor work, and we all became journey drivers. My contention is that those of us who always did the journeys stayed as it was,that was our job but we didn’t get local work very often. The local work seemed to still be assigned to the erstwhile tractor men. As we were all in the same boat so to speak,the journey work should have been shared out amongst us all. Remember the six day Edzell job? If,as I said,the work was equally shared out,it shouldn’t come round that often. I remember once that I was given Edzell two weeks running-fair enough it was the job but it didn’t seem to be shared equally amongst us all.This happened quite a lot of times. I don’t remember any of the old tractor men doing it (Edzell) or very many other journey jobs.I agree with the 11 hours etc. but at times it seemed unfair as we were now all employed to do the same job.
Your reference to the Bow Common Lane agreement didn’t work after we were all designated as journeymen with the influx of the new fleet. 900x20.
900x20, as stated the ex tractor men had the agreement that they would be shunters and local as long as they worked for UCC. That’s why they did shunting and local Weddel’ s deliveries. that agreement was obtained by Sam McAuley and Ted Cook. some drivers like my father etc decided not to be local.
the exceptions other than that were Myself, Bill Rutland, John Sadler and Simpkins. The first six chosen/medically tested at County Hall, and interviewed at head office were McAuley ,Wise, Revell , George Curtis ,His brother Ed was put off till later) Myself Later followed by Sadler Beal Lingwood and Box. It was only when our manager got sacked that Nick the traffic clerk started to let others do continental. How do I know the events and agreements, was because I was the union secretary directly we arrived at Warley. Also at the end it was Midge Galbraith and myself who negotiated the continental and office staff redundancy package. The Union officers wife was sick, so he could not attend, but he stated to us that he would not have been able to better it. Unfortunately, the other bloke writes a lot of crap and forgets that his postings are all recorded, if you can read them.
Hello fellers, going with the theme of the 11 hours,I can say that in my time on UCC i never refused any instruction about doing a days work. I just went and did what was asked,the job was a pleasure money was good and the blokes and buddies on the whole were a good bunch. I still think about the 11 hour days and the fact that most “journey men” actually worked the hours where our shunters etc worked 8 hours then were relieved by us to finish at 7pm having done the11. Next day on at 6am to do a Scotland this happened a few times and it did stick in the craw that we were all equal but some more equal than others.Keep up the good reviews and dont let it get personal.Regards Dave.
Michelin man, repeating that which is true, here are the facts. The shunters would be a 6am start to be at the docks and have trailers in place to load at O800. They would normally be relieved at around 4pm giving them time to reach back to the depot and finish by 5 30pm. making their working day 11hrs. That’s how it always was. The docks did not finish till 6pm, so they had to be relieved or else they would be breaking the law. The fact that you started later meant that you would be available to relieve them. this happened not only to you and your brother ,although you two always resented working the time for which you were paid. Plus in your own words you were in the pub next door part of your day whilst they worked their time. SIMPLES?.
NOW FOR TERRY. READ THE POSTS AGAIN. nobody mentioned anyone in the Luker house but YOU. It was his daughter that you were after. Unfortunately Luker was at home when you went calling.YOUR WORDS not mine. Please read your own posts if you can. I’ve given you the dates. Is that your last, last, last post
Me again, Never got asked to do the dock shunt ever.Regards dAVE.
Hello Dave again,have been thinking overnight nothing much else to do these days it appears to me that this site has now run its course,there are too few of us on here and we have started to bicker thats not good.I shall not be putting any more items on here,but will remember the fun we all had,the jokes,and good times enjoyed while working for UCC. To all of those that are still about I wish you all very sincere goodbye it was a pleasure to have worked with you. TTFN Dave.
I agree.There seems to only four of us left and three of us have upset cartageman with our with our comments on the job however right or wrong they may be.There’s a sense of acrimony creeping in some of the remarks too. Quite sad really as heretofore it was a good read.With that in mind,regretfully this will be my last post on this site as it is now not enjoyable.Goodbye to you all,regards,900x20. 
Hi, For the record, no-one has upset the cartageman. It just got a bit wearing to read of people who desired a JOURNEY drivers job on excellent pay and conditions fought for over the years with strikes etc, and the new drivers then wanted to oust long serving drivers from their local jobs. they say it was one of the best jobs that they worked at, doing Edzell. I thought that it would have been classed as JOURNEY work. Mind you they also busted their arses to do continental trips. nothing local about that. They also thought that they were big men drinking in the adjacent pub whilst on pay, whilst the TEA drinkers did the work. Doug Hannant and myself with one other were in the reeperbahn and the third man asked one of the ladies “i will go down on you then you on me, How much” and then went inside whilst we waited outside. That’s the first time I ever heard that from a driver in all my years. NO I am not annoyed but disappointed in the type of people attracted to a brilliant job and helped to close it.
flickr.com/photos/32200120@N08/26622688764/ one for you old fellas this guy on flickr has loads of pics of the meat trade and many wagon pics, hope this link works
Does anybody have information on ucc
my dad was the refrigeration engineer for them
they had stainless steel sided trailers and scania140 6x4 day cabs
the covered all of europe and beyond
where can i go for some pictures?
did anybody out there drive for them
they also had big j guys with side axle trailers on the lamb contract to smithfield
where they Union Cartage Company ? part of the Vesty Group ?
vernonbish777:
where they Union Cartage Company ? part of the Vesty Group ?
yes