It does help if you have a TM that actually cares about his drivers. Yesterday I told mine that I had a squeaky steering wheel, expecting to be told to “just get on with the job” like I was in my last job he told me to fill out a defect note and he’ll speak to the workshop to pull the wheel off and sort it out when it goes in for service.
Where do you work Nighthawk? I am beginning to think you are being creative 
Tommy7437:
eagerbeaver:
Nighthawk.:
Well I’ve been dabbling on agency & have landed myself a full time job direct.
I don’t have any skills - I’m 34 have a 3 year old & a 4 month old daughters. A wife that spends money faster than I make it. Oh and a big mortgage to boot.This is the best paid job I’ve had. Worked in a factory, worked in an airport for 17 years before being made redundant. Getting up at silly o clock & working crazy shifts.
I just drop building supplies off which is Monday to Friday 8-4 or sometimes 5. 3 - 4 drops in my local area.
No two days the same.
I’m back early enough to see my girls & im bring home over £500 a week.
Easiest money I’ve earned.Oh & I enjoy seeing cool stuff you wouldn’t see stuck in a factory screwing lids on pots.
Are you saying that you do 40-45 hrs per week Mon-Fri days for over £13 per hour?
[/quote]Think he is trying to say he is half scooped
Yes I’m currently on £13 - I’m in the southeast I should add that I’m 90% time in London
Uh oh! Someone just got trapped. 40 hrs @ £13 p/h is £520. Then take breaks off and then deduct tax & NI. Bring home around £400.
Assuming you work your knackers off and do 45 hrs… your gross is £585. Again, less breaks and deductions.
So you DONT ’ bring home ’ £500 per week for doing local deliveries on day’s… 
Liar liar, pants on fire 
Last non driving job I had was as a fabricator/welder…at just under £10 an hour.
On a basic week I took home just over £300 quid.
What good is that?
No good at all.
Sure…i was home at 4 o’clock every day,but you can’t do owt coz your skint.
Can’t save owt for the future…coz your skint.
And it’s hard graft.
I dragged over £700 quid last week…i simply can’t earn that kind of money anywhere else.
Oh…and I like lorries.
eagerbeaver:
Uh oh! Someone just got trapped. 40 hrs @ £13 p/h is £520. Then take breaks off and then deduct tax & NI. Bring home around £400.Assuming you work your knackers off and do 45 hrs… your gross is £585. Again, less breaks and deductions.
So you DONT ’ bring home ’ £500 per week for doing local deliveries on day’s…
I’m happy 
Nighthawk.:
eagerbeaver:
Uh oh! Someone just got trapped. 40 hrs @ £13 p/h is £520. Then take breaks off and then deduct tax & NI. Bring home around £400.Assuming you work your knackers off and do 45 hrs… your gross is £585. Again, less breaks and deductions.
So you DONT ’ bring home ’ £500 per week for doing local deliveries on day’s…
I’m happy
Don’t get me wrong mate, I’m glad you are. Just be aware that plenty newbies get fed a load of ■■■■■■■■ about how we all bring home £500 a week for reading the paper and doing office hours.
And being that this is a newbies forum, false expectation isn’t a good thing in my view.
eagerbeaver:
Nighthawk.:
eagerbeaver:
Uh oh! Someone just got trapped. 40 hrs @ £13 p/h is £520. Then take breaks off and then deduct tax & NI. Bring home around £400.Assuming you work your knackers off and do 45 hrs… your gross is £585. Again, less breaks and deductions.
So you DONT ’ bring home ’ £500 per week for doing local deliveries on day’s…
I’m happy
Don’t get me wrong mate, I’m glad you are. Just be aware that plenty newbies get fed a load of ■■■■■■■■ about how we all bring home £500 a week for reading the paper and doing office hours.
And being that this is a newbies forum, false expectation isn’t a good thing in my view.
Well said Beaver!
Too often people see the figures posters like to portray as their income, without giving the real story. No reflection on you Nighthawk, but when a Newbies see’s figures of £500 take home, they don’t realise that they’ll more than likely not see anything other than their bed during the week, and at the weekend they’re too tired to go out and spend their cash. Yes you can earn a good income trucking driving if you put the hours in, the hard part is finding the balance, as overtime in a lot of gigs is not optional, it’s compulsory! 
Juddian:
To be fair Evil, i suppose i come from the previous generation (or maybe the bugger before cos i was old fashioned as a youngsterand seriously out of time now
I know the nuclear family has come in for ridicule from the feminazis the hip media and other assorted people with problems and useful idiots over the years, but, like Christian ideals not necessarily involving religion, it wasn’t a bad way to guide your life.Unfortunately the only way the average working bloke could make that happen was by earning serious money, hence the two weeks worth of work every week became the norm.
Basically why i followed the route i did throughout my driving years, always followed the money.In many ways i’m glad people don’t usually have to do that any more, but whilst you are young, and if you’re careful with how you spend the extra, ie shovelling as much as possible against the mortgage to get that paid off early, then i think its still a valid work ethic, if for no other reason that if you don’t ■■■■ it up the wall then once you have your house paid for and have no debts they, the govt, employers etc, no one has got you by the ■■■■■■■■, the day that last payment goes to the building society is a very good day indeed
I think the problem for the youth of today is even dreaming of getting on the property ladder. A young lad (that you also know ) had to raise a stupid amount in deposit before he could get close to qualifying for a mortgage. And how many young people can do that with rents what they are? You, and to a degree me are from an age where mortgages achievable without having to scrape every single penny together, and with terms where we could see an end of actually paying it off. Today I fear most will never get to own their own home, and those that have stretched themselves thin to get on the ladder, may yet fall off it if interest rates change/rise!
As you’ve said before, this country is screwed…
Evil8Beezle:
Juddian:
To be fair Evil, i suppose i come from the previous generation (or maybe the bugger before cos i was old fashioned as a youngster
I know the nuclear family has come in for ridicule from the feminazis the hip media and other assorted people with problems and useful idiots over the years, but, like Christian ideals not necessarily involving religion, it wasn’t a bad way to guide your life.Unfortunately the only way the average working bloke could make that happen was by earning serious money, hence the two weeks worth of work every week became the norm.
Basically why i followed the route i did throughout my driving years, always followed the money.In many ways i’m glad people don’t usually have to do that any more, but whilst you are young, and if you’re careful with how you spend the extra, ie shovelling as much as possible against the mortgage to get that paid off early, then i think its still a valid work ethic, if for no other reason that if you don’t ■■■■ it up the wall then once you have your house paid for and have no debts they, the govt, employers etc, no one has got you by the ■■■■■■■■, the day that last payment goes to the building society is a very good day indeed
I think the problem for the youth of today is even dreaming of getting on the property ladder. A young lad (that you also know
As you’ve said before, this country is screwed…
One of the reasons I’ve gone into Trucking. Got a far better chance of getting a mortgage with my wage now and to boot I get a nice 39 percent discount on my house.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
Working less than 5minutes from home , granted it’s nights but less idiots on the roads , it’s only shunting from one site to the other with the odd distance runs but same start time everyday except friday which is reduced rest but short shift so weekends off , hourly rate is better than the general drivers as we are on a specific contract so yes just shy of £500 take home for a 58hour week .
I’m happy
Gillberry:
Working less than 5minutes from home , granted it’s nights but less idiots on the roads , it’s only shunting from one site to the other with the odd distance runs but same start time everyday except friday which is reduced rest but short shift so weekends off , hourly rate is better than the general drivers as we are on a specific contract so yes just shy of £500 take home for a 58hour week .
I’m happy
And the fuel saving means your most likely earning more because you’ve not got to shell out for fuel.
I was spending £50 a week at one point. Now my work place is 5 mins away and in August when we move I’ll be walking to work. Saving lots of pennies.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
Chunkzilla:
WonksterDude:
In lots of posts I read about poor pay, long hours, idiot TM’s etc. etc. etc. so what is it that still drives (excuse the pun!) to choose this profession if we know what is in store for us?? intrigued to hear your thoughts.All these complaints you hear, are no different from any profession.
The pay isn’t enough, the hours don’t suit, the gaffer tells you how to live your life etc. If you can tell me one job, as an employee, that people don’t complain about , I’ll hang up my keys tomorrow.There are very few jobs that offer the illusion of freedom that driving does. For example in my job , I get told what load to load from point A and told to drop it at point B. I can choose the route (within reason), I don’t hear anything from anyone whilst travelling and then I give them a call for the next job. That’s what appeals to me. The ability to do the job my way, without 1000 questions as to why.
Nail hit on head.
Moaning is the No1 UK national pastime.
Why (if you have little or no qualifications) do the job indeed, when instead you could have the same monotonous commute at the same time as everyone else (when the roads /trains are heaving) to the same office (or factory if you are a bit more fortunate) five days a week, dull monotonous week after dull monotonous week to spend most of your waking hours with people you probably don’t like, listening to them rabbit on about pointless ■■■■■ while your work involves doing a variety of largely pointless carp (office) or maybe something more worthwhile but boringly repetitive (factory) all while having someone breathing down your neck waiting to threaten you with a disciplinary / redundancy. Thereby spending your days stuck between wanting to leave your job while at the same time fearing losing your job, because even though you don’t really like working there, you like it much more than the thought of having to face a series of interviews for something else for which you fear you may be either over or under qualified / experienced / age etc.
If (like me) you actually have quite a lot of qualifications, then the world of work (outside of driving) tends to be fairly similar to above. You may get more job satisfaction and more money but if you get both of those then you will also certainly get a great deal more stress to go along with it and longer hours to boot.
Driving sidesteps just about all of that, as drivers are in demand and it is the ultimate transferable skill.
Can you drive a truck?
Yes.
Doesn’t matter if you are 63, have only a CSE grade 4 in woodwork and can’t find the spreadsheet tab in MS Word.
As stated above, you get a feeling of freedom out on the road and (because it is such a transferable skill, that many others are not interested in doing e.g. most women) you are also much more free to seek work elsewhere as and when you feel like it.
I am working for some agencies and generally switch between driving and other sorts of work as and when I feel like a change, I didn’t want to put all my eggs in one basket so to speak as I’ve got a very varied work history, not always a good thing but can come in handy. Every company I’ve worked for has it’s moaners. One I’m currently with has about 10 perm staff who’ve been there for over 10 years who do nothing but moan about everything and ■■■■■ about each other like women. My attitude is the job needs doing, so crack on with it… if you don’t like it, try something else and good luck with the job hunting as there are hundreds of people applying for the same job.
One thing I’ll say for the French, they just start a riot and trash the streets, block ports etc. if they get upset about something… we just moan and bend over.
I’m on £9.89 hr no overtime rate unless you do a extra shift at weekend. Currently doing about 55 hrs week. But the yard is only 6 mins from my house and I only get 3 pick ups and tips a day(walking floor). Yes I could possibly get more £ per hour but a the expense of time/fuel driving to nearest city which in my case is 45 mins.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk