These “layabouts”, as you describe them, don’t get paid to stand on any picket line anywhere, at any time - whether they can afford it or not!
These “layabouts” are usually on a picket line to get a better wage, better terms and conditions etc etc.
You should take an example from them, go and get yourself a set of balls, and refrain from the ■■■-kissing that you most likely do on a daily basis!
It’s well seen you live in the retiral capital of Great Britain (Eastbourne), cause’ your brain stopped working a long time ago!
Thats nothing short of a personal attack, why not grow a set yourself and attack the argument rather than the person behind it?
Because there’s nothing wrong with my argument, I don’t care what strikers do or think, I’m paid to work and thats what I’ll ruddy well do!
All those things you feel you’re “owed” just because you have a job? why not wake up in the real world pal. Companies don’t feel they owe you anything, and they have control over the pennies, so you either work and get paid, or you dont work and don’t get paid.
Me? I’m going to work and get paid thanks. Feel free to martyr yourself anytime!
I would not cross a drivers picket line. I am saddened by those who judge the tanker drivers on their wages. (Shades of the Tesco dispute at Livingston!) These men would have at one time been employed by Shell. Like most companies in the greedy Thatcher years, Shell got rid of their drivers and brought in contractors.
To those who say, I have a mortgage and a family therefore you would go through. It’s a poor excuse. Most of the people who complain about unions and strikes are people who have never been there!
If there is anyone here who thinks that conditions in this industry will get better by going through drivers picket lines because those drivers are better paid than you, I am sure the employers will be delighted to hear your views. United we stand. Divided we fall.And divided we lorry drivers surely are.
Instead of asking, what have these strikers ever done for me, you should ask yourself, ‘What have I ever done for my fellow drivers?’ When general haulage drivers park up their vehicles and the RDC’s empty, then matters will get better. Not until.
The future is written in history, so they say. That is very true. In the mid 70’s the lorry drivers of central Scotland parked the wheels for a month to get what they wanted. United they stood. Nowadays, all we get is whinging!
If there is anyone here who thinks the employers will be the ones to improve your pay and conditions, I am afraid you are living in a dream world. Individual drivers have no chance of improving matters. United, lorry drivers are a powerful force in this country.
A final word, calling strikers layabouts is discourtious. People outside the transport industry also look at this site, if you dont agree with the argument, please, by all means, put forward your point of view. By making personal attacks on others merely draws attention to the lack of constructive debate in your comments.
Alex.
I can’t help feeling that one of the reasons truck drivers are treated with so much more respect and have such better facilities in France is because French truckers have been prepared to stand together and fight for it.
so if you dont agree with strikes how do we go about gettin a well paid job, i would NOT CROSS
When anybody goes for a job the wages are always stated on the interview. It is then up to you to decide if you want to take that job at those wages or turn the job down and go elsewhere for employment.
If you agree to take the job then i think it is very wrong to then go on strike because you want more money. You had the choice to begin with.
Unions where a good thing when they were first formed as the poor downtroddon worker needed to have a solid body behind them to help get them decent conditions. Now the unions are so strong that they themselves as the bullies and many a firm has gone under because they cant pay the wages that are demanded. (Not talking about haulage firms exclusively here but usually small companies in general)
As for being called a scab - one has to be involved with unions to worry about being called one.
I too remember the miners strike and what good did that do? It just brought a lot of suffering for a lot of people. You cant go on working a job where there is no need for the product any more.
depends on the circumstances to me, tanker drivers then yes I would go through!
end of the day my family would come first so that would be the main consideration, especially after being crapped on by a previous union who would have left me high and dry given the opportunity as well as my so called work mates!, luckily for me a mates sister is a top employment law lawyer and I came out of it with a good few quid, guess what union and work mates tried to go the same route as me afterwards? but lost!
NO NEVER ! and if you do for what ever crap reason you come up with , YOUR A SCAB !! no if,s or but,s . Koop , nice house is it !
If Koop is a scab then so am I.
When I made the decision to cross the picket line I knew some of my closest and best work mates would be there and that I would have to face them.
Right or wrong in your eyes is neither here or there to me. I made that call for myself. If you can not respect me for doing what I believed was right for me at the time then that’s up to you.
Since the Royal Mail strikes I have had to face many ■■■■■■■■■ union members with my head held high, because I did what was right for me then and my friends have respected me for it. They might not like what I did or my reasons for it but they do respect me.
When anybody goes for a job the wages are always stated on the interview. It is then up to you to decide if you want to take that job at those wages or turn the job down and go elsewhere for employment.
If you agree to take the job then i think it is very wrong to then go on strike because you want more money. You had the choice to begin with.
And after a while the the wages haven’t gone up but inflation has, so what do you do?
Ask the boss for a rise.
" not a chance" he replies.
What now? Fight or run away to another job?
And if you do decide to fight and it comes to either giving up or striking, what then?
Because at the end of negotiations that is the only choice you have.
Striking is the nuclear deterrent of industrial negotiations , the last resort… but when all else fails it is all a worker has left to fight with.
I have always been a union member and partly because of this I have had 2 jobs in the last 34 years.
Not paid a fortune but always a reasonable wage, a pension , sick pay, good holidays etc etc .
You don’t get this without a fight of some description.
I have always believed that if the job you have is no good anymore, then don’t leave, IMPROVE THE JOB
And a word for those who cannot stand unions…
I bet you don’t turn down the pay rises and conditions that collective bargaining brings.Even if you are earning more than union rates then you can be assured that your boss is pressured by the rates that are set elswhere in the industry.
Believe me , if it wasn’t for unions in the past we would still be working for a pittance, with minimal conditions and holidays etc.
You dont have to look much futher than some off the replies on this subject to see why the uk transport is in such a mess , if we were all cramed in to a room we still would,nt be togeather ! theres a lot of " Im alright stuff you " going on , dont be jealous at what tanker drivers get or want ,if you want the same become one, you can tell who the workers are and who the boss is on here , and as for you lot in the services moaning at your wages and not being allowed to do some think about it , THEN LEAVE !! none forced you to join up , If any top dogs from SHELL or HOYER are looking at these sites , they,ll be more than happy at whats being said on here , dont worry plenty of spinless cheap drivers still around.
I must admit I find it interesting listening to all the views on this subject especially the comments from the union men and the other side of the coin the philosophers. I have been in this industry all my life as a truck mechanic, driver and now employer but I still cannot fathom the understandings of the union (please don’t take this as a criticism) I thought the glorious Maggie sorted out all this left wing Trotsky stuff back in the 80’s and things were all Rosie until now. My point is I cannot see how all this standing together in the glorious fight is going to achieve anything history has proved that all you do is alienate the general public, they don’t blame the government they blame YOU which is one of the reasons why Maggie stayed in power for so long as she became the heroine who put an end to it all. I now see history repeating itself Mr Brown has not got long to go (The Iron Lady would have sorted this faster than you could say General Belgrano) Only problem is there is no one to improve on Gordon Brown (at the moment).
So what is the answer to the immediate problem which is how do we get fuel to the stations seeing as giving in to militants is clearly not an option, the forces don’t have the resources to cope, so perhaps another option is for the Government to round up all the pickets and lock them up under the new terrorism laws only problem is the prisons are full (what a mess).
I have to agree with removaliser here. After having read the thread, I am just amazed that so many people still believe in all this brothers united stand together rubbish. It might have been all very necessary when dealing with children up chimneys, but we work in a market economy.
If you dont like it, find something that suits or rewards you better, and ask for your cards; if you can’t find something better, stay where you are and live with it.
To answer the question would I cross a picket line, yes without a second thought.
All you lot who would cross picket lines weather you agree with the strike or not will be complaining about the way you are treated at RDC’s next.
Those tossers at the RDC’s know drivers and hauliers won’t stand together, That’s why we get such a raw deal. Weather it’s the treatment of drivers or the rates you get.
You make us a bloody laughing stock, You should be ashamed,
Can’t you see the bigger picture or do your mortgages dictate your sense of thinking.
My family comes first just like the rest of you, But i look at the long term, Not the short term.
Exactly, and as a driver you are SELLING your time to your employer. So you should aim to get the maximum the market will bear.
if you can’t find something better, stay where you are and live with it.
I don’t understand how ANYONE can put this forward as an argument or philsophy for life.
If you are not happy with the deal you have got, try and improve it.
If that fails then look for something else.
With some of the attitudes posted on this thread, (excepting the ones from OD’s and Employers who obviously have a different viewpoint), I am not surprised that driving is still the 3rd rate job it has always been in the UK.
