just wondered, who is the best ‘union’ type body to join these days if ever I needed a solicitor/advice or such like?
Is it the FTA, RHA or someone else…■■?
Am lost these days with unions 
FTA/RHA represent the employers mate. I found the United Road Transport Union useful and with a more down to earth approach.
Been in the URTU over 10 yrs, found them very helpful.
URTU is the only union that only represents drivers.
Join today, you know it makes sense and you will need them at sometime!
0800 526639
Unless you have had your job for more than 12 months you’ll be wasting your money.There’s not much protection they can offer in your probation period.The employers have a right to dismiss you because you are “not suitable for the job” in the first 12 months and there’s not much you can do about it.
JISL to ESL:
Been in the URTU over 10 yrs, found them very helpful.URTU is the only union that only represents drivers.
Join today, you know it makes sense and you will need them at sometime!
0800 526639
DITTO
Great union for personal issues
If you want a union for national issues then none are have any teeth for that these days
Deathstar:
Unless you have had your job for more than 12 months you’ll be wasting your money.There’s not much protection they can offer in your probation period.The employers have a right to dismiss you because you are “not suitable for the job” in the first 12 months and there’s not much you can do about it.
Not much of what you say there is accurate, it all depends on circumstances and they are still able to offer advice on many issues however long you’ve been employed.
On the flip side, I was not impressed with URTU when I needed them most and it has put me off unions for life.
When we were in the process of redundancy, the shop steward left and got a job elsewhere and was not available to represent us. Likewise the area rep was completely invisible and not interested during the redundancy process. Never again!
Personnally I wouldn’t bother with joining a union. Just left a unionised job and they were hopeless. I was invited to join and wished I hadn’t bothered. All the shop steward was interested in was getting an easy ride for him and his mates. I know it varies branch to branch but this was the second bad experience I’d had with unite. Never had any dealings with the district or national people so couldn’t comment on that.
So long ted and the radlett boys.
Goldfinger:
‘…who is the best ‘union’ type body to join these days … Is it the FTA, RHA or someone else…’
It has been on my mind to get union ‘cover’ too - but am just as keen for them not to fund political nonsense via my pocket through affiliations, etc.
Anyone know of the loyalties that the seemingly sound URTU have before I ring 'em?
Happy Keith:
- but am just as keen for them not to fund political nonsense via my pocket through affiliations, etc.
You could go to a private solicitor to get advise but how would you know if they gave 10% of their earnings to the monster raving loony party or terrorism groups ?
Would it matter as long as you got what you needed and any monies paid were not funding illegal acts ?
I pay URTU for a service - I get that service - what they do with that money that I pay them for that service is their affair
john_london:
Personnally I wouldn’t bother with joining a union. Just left a unionised job and they were hopeless. I was invited to join and wished I hadn’t bothered. All the shop steward was interested in was getting an easy ride for him and his mates. I know it varies branch to branch but this was the second bad experience I’d had with unite. Never had any dealings with the district or national people so couldn’t comment on that.So long ted and the radlett boys.
I have been in various unions over a period of forty years. The same thing was apparent in each one. The local branch committee were interested in one thing, themselves. They had no time to sort out members problems unless they affected them personally. In some instances when they got promoted they wanted you to do things that weren’t acceptable when they were shop stewards etc.
When I retired my emplyer claimed they had made a mistake and reduced my pension by 22%. When I asked the union for help their attitude was you’ve left now, sort it out yourself. This I did and got my pension reinstated.
Citizens Advice Bureaux or if you have house insurance and legal cover they may be of more use.
waddy640:
john_london:
Personnally I wouldn’t bother with joining a union. Just left a unionised job and they were hopeless. I was invited to join and wished I hadn’t bothered. All the shop steward was interested in was getting an easy ride for him and his mates. I know it varies branch to branch but this was the second bad experience I’d had with unite. Never had any dealings with the district or national people so couldn’t comment on that.So long ted and the radlett boys.
I have been in various unions over a period of forty years. The same thing was apparent in each one. The local branch committee were interested in one thing, themselves. They had no time to sort out members problems unless they affected them personally. In some instances when they got promoted they wanted you to do things that weren’t acceptable when they were shop stewards etc.
When I retired my emplyer claimed they had made a mistake and reduced my pension by 22%. When I asked the union for help their attitude was you’ve left now, sort it out yourself. This I did and got my pension reinstated.
Citizens Advice Bureaux or if you have house insurance and legal cover they may be of more use.
That’s if you can get an appointment with them…
waddy640:
john_london:
Personnally I wouldn’t bother with joining a union. Just left a unionised job and they were hopeless. I was invited to join and wished I hadn’t bothered. All the shop steward was interested in was getting an easy ride for him and his mates. I know it varies branch to branch but this was the second bad experience I’d had with unite. Never had any dealings with the district or national people so couldn’t comment on that.So long ted and the radlett boys.
I have been in various unions over a period of forty years. The same thing was apparent in each one. The local branch committee were interested in one thing, themselves. They had no time to sort out members problems unless they affected them personally. In some instances when they got promoted they wanted you to do things that weren’t acceptable when they were shop stewards etc.
When I retired my emplyer claimed they had made a mistake and reduced my pension by 22%. When I asked the union for help their attitude was you’ve left now, sort it out yourself. This I did and got my pension reinstated.
Citizens Advice Bureaux or if you have house insurance and legal cover they may be of more use.
Unions are only as strong as the workforce they represent. If all drivers say they are doing a overtime ban to get a problem resolved and some drivers continue to work then the boss,s win but if they all stick together they win, so to say unions are only interested in themselves is wrong .
As for the op post most if not all unions will give free legal advice not just to you but also your family . they also have other benifits as well
Deathstar:
Unless you have had your job for more than 12 months you’ll be wasting your money.There’s not much protection they can offer in your probation period.The employers have a right to dismiss you because you are “not suitable for the job” in the first 12 months and there’s not much you can do about it.
I was in the URTU when two off duty coppers tried to overtake me on the inside while I was going round a roundabout, this unfortantly led to them taking an earlier exit off the roundabout than they wished.
Without the free barrister and accident investigator provided by the URTU, I doubt if I could have afforded to defend myself and would probably have been my word against the two coppers (wonder who would have won 
) but instead not only got not guilty, got all costs, and the two coppers were admonished by the court and a letter from the judge sent to their boss. for the specialist legal cover alone it is worth it.
That said, in pay negotiations even in companies that recognised the union the full time officials were worse than useless, and if the employee reps tried to stand up their lives were made “difficult” by the companies.
My URTU union rep was going to represent me at a meeting where one of my former employers was trying to get rid of me unfairly instead of being honest and saying that the work was falling off.
I had only been there 11 months so the employer could easily have been nice but they were determined to ‘do it their way’ - that was until my URTU rep said he was going to be at the meeting and sent them his credentials and his views on what they were proposing !!
All done properly after that with no black mark against me - thanks to Dave, my URTU rep
ive just joined urtu,after 10 years with unite(t&g),not had to use them so far,but im quite impressed with the level of basic info made available to me immediatley,which is a ■■■■ sight better than unite ever did.a few years ago,i was (wrongly) given 90 days notice and it took my a full week of trying to get a full time official to fight my corner,because i live in the north east,was a member of north west area,and worked for a scottish company.no-one wanted to know.in the end,i had to phone london hq ron webbs secretary,and threaten legal action if i did not get representation.everything with the t&g was a battle including an accident claim i had,and speeding fines they are supposed to pay for.then when i left i got a letter saying “as a valued member,we want you to reconsider”!!.i wasnt so valued when they took my subs. 
Hmm! 12 months union subs or 5 nights in a little Spanish apartment including flights. £150 
GRACIAS 
Unite has 140000 members involved directly and indirectly with the road haulage industry, if they are so good why are drivers so poorly treated in conditions and wages, isnt it about time they earnt thier wages?
I would join any union that was prepared to fight for this industry, but they wont, so i am staying out of it till they will!
Unite are backing 80% of 9200 cabin crew to bring down British Airways.
You are paying for that!!!
Whooooaaa …a thread about unions
you`ll be needing …
peirre:
Whooooaaa …a thread about unions
you`ll be needing …
And as usual, the shop stewards and union reps have already been in the tin and picked out the tasty morsels and the best bits 
IAJSTR