You're all probably sick of posts like this but...help!

NEW AND WANNABE DRIVERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

Hey guys/girls! (first post so hello to you you all!)

I was hoping for some advice -

I currently live in Loftus (in the general Teesside area) and I passed my C+E on 16th dec 2011 (so not that long ago) Thanks entirely to the excellent guys at Teesside LGV Training! (I’m not entirely sure I can praise them directly, but they do, in my opinion, desreve a shout out as they are awesome!)

I’ve got my full CPC untill 2017 and have done an additional 7 hours “Driving Essentials” module to pick up some much needed info on tachograph rules/regs, working time directive, safety checks on a vehicle and securing loads.

I am keen/eager to learn and passed EVERYTHNG first time. I am reliably, friendly, a very hard worker… but above all - I’m desperate for work!

I currently have a part-time retail position which is, well, massively inefficient for me. I am prepared to do shadowing/shunting or even yard work if it would help me gain the experience required for a full time C+E tramping position (prefferably). I can do days/nights/weekends given enough notice (my current job is very flexible and my mgr is aware that i will be leaving soon).

The nitty gritty set-backs (or so it would seem):

I am 23.
I have no previous professional driving experience.
My location.
I have 6 points on my licence (2 offences, “speeding” “running red light” and as most people would probably claim, both were severely unjust!)
I have dreadlocks (allthough im no hippy - as most people seem to think!)
My dad wasnt a driver, nor my grandad, nor anyone in my family.
I dropped out of university to do something totally different, and have mainly gained typacle student experience (Bar-work, Retail etc)

I have sent a C.V and cover letter to many different hauliage firms and agencies, all with the same response “Its a quiet time of year” (understandable), “nothing at present but we’ll keep your c.v. for future reference” (the usual, fluffy way of saying no) etc etc.

Do any of you by chance know any hauliage firms that would potentially take me on?
What experience do I need in need in order to get a full time tramping job/where can i get this experience?
And finally, I am ambitious and loyal, and aim to find a full time job that I can excel and develop my skills with! Any companies that would fit the bill once I’ve driven for a year or 2.?

Sorry for the long post, I figured I’d get as much detail down as I could off the top of my head!

Thank you all for reading, ill keep trying and keep my fingers crossed!

Take care all,

Kian.

2

The only advise I can give is register with agencies and see where that leads.

3

To be perfectly honest IMHO you haven’t a lot going in your favour the way the jobs market is and as you live in an area of fairly high unemployment already, that wont help you either. Sorry to sound so negative but that’s the way I see it and you did ask.
But don’t give up and keep knocking on enough doors and one day someone will give you a truck to get you out of the place.

4

Foxstein:
The only advise I can give is register with agencies and see where that leads.

I figured as much! thanks for the reply, ive registered with about 4-5 agencies and have been in touch with them a couple of times to no avail. I’ll see if things change!

raymundo:
To be perfectly honest IMHO you haven’t a lot going in your favour the way the jobs market is and as you live in an area of fairly high unemployment already, that wont help you either. Sorry to sound so negative but that’s the way I see it and you did ask.
But don’t give up and keep knocking on enough doors and one day someone will give you a truck to get you out of the place.

Yea I appreciate that, so you think it is just a numbers game? Contact them all and eventually I will get something?

I dont want to be a total pain in the arse though. Would firms get annoyed if I contact them once a week/fortnight?

I’ll ring around in the meantime, and see if I can get something!

Cheers guys,

Kian

5

kikidude:

Foxstein:
The only advise I can give is register with agencies and see where that leads.

I figured as much! thanks for the reply, ive registered with about 4-5 agencies and have been in touch with them a couple of times to no avail. I’ll see if things change!

raymundo:
To be perfectly honest IMHO you haven’t a lot going in your favour the way the jobs market is and as you live in an area of fairly high unemployment already, that wont help you either. Sorry to sound so negative but that’s the way I see it and you did ask.
But don’t give up and keep knocking on enough doors and one day someone will give you a truck to get you out of the place.

Yea I appreciate that, so you think it is just a numbers game? Contact them all and eventually I will get something?

I dont want to be a total pain in the arse though. Would firms get annoyed if I contact them once a week/fortnight?

I’ll ring around in the meantime, and see if I can get something!

Cheers guys,

Kian

I’m just about to turn 19 with a clean license and it’s extremely hard for me, i’ve been trying since December to get a start and I’m still trying, today I’ve held out 7 CVs and wrote about 5 emails.

Just keep trying.

6

Sam Millar:
I’m just about to turn 19 with a clean license and it’s extremely hard for me, i’ve been trying since December to get a start and I’m still trying, today I’ve held out 7 CVs and wrote about 5 emails.

Just keep trying.

Yea, its definitely not easy is it? I keep getting told there are plenty of driving vacancies in the area, but I’ve yet to stumble across any! Cheers for the reply dude! I’ll keep at them!

oh, and dont let the [zb]s get you down!

Kian.

7

kikidude:
I am 23.
I have no previous professional driving experience.
My location.
I have 6 points on my licence (2 offences, “speeding” “running red light” and as most people would probably claim, both were severely unjust!)
I have dreadlocks (allthough im no hippy - as most people seem to think!)
My dad wasnt a driver, nor my grandad, nor anyone in my family.
I dropped out of university to do something totally different, and have mainly gained typacle student experience (Bar-work, Retail etc)

Hi Kian,

I am going to pick up on some of the stuff you clearly are aware of but others may have thought it tactful not to mentions. I get the impression you are a straight talking intelligent guy so you will take what I say in the spirit in which it is intended :sunglasses:

"I am 23”
This will change with time, you have no control over it so focus any CV on the positive aspect of it, You have youth on your side.

"I have no previous professional driving experience”
This is something you can change so get out and take any driving job that you can, be it Van’s, C1 or even drivers mate and this may open a door or two or at least get you some connections that will help you find otherwise hidden doors. Not every vacancy is listed on a website or agency books.

"My location”
Again, this is something you can do something about. You are young, chances are you have limited or no ties to keep you where you are so as old Norman Tebbit said, get on yer bike’ and move to where the work prospects are better.

"I have 6 points on my licence (2 offences, “speeding” “running red light” and as most people would probably claim, both were severely unjust!)”
There are two things here, firstly make clear that you are acutely aware of the impact further convictions could have on your employment prospects and as such you have learned from YOUR OWN mistakes and you are now a better and safer driver.

Secondly, don’t see this as a total block because many many employers acknowledge points don’t necessarily indicate a bad employee as indicated by the adverts that say no more than 6 points.

"I have dreadlocks (allthough im no hippy - as most people seem to think!)”
Get your hair cut… Now before anyone gets on my case about not judging people by the way they look, let me say that in the real world that is exactly what people do. When I was a young mechanic I had hair down past my shoulders (well it was the 70’s) then I went for a job as a fork truck engineer with a Biscuit manufacturer. I was given a clear choice if I wanted the job, get my hair cut otherwise i wouldn’t be allowed to work in their food production areas and thus no job. Not quite the same scenario but the point I am making is its hair FFS. And if your as serious as you sound about getting a job, you need to give yourself every advantage over the next applicant so look professional.

My dad wasnt a driver, nor my grandad, nor anyone in my family.
So this means you are breaking away from the easy line of following family traditions and being a free thinking individual following your own ambitions. (See what I mean, sell yourself)

I dropped out of university to do something totally different, and have mainly gained typacle student experience (Bar-work, Retail etc)
So you are unreliable, flitting from job to job having dropped out of uni because you couldn’t be bothered to commit to your studies■■?
OR
You took stock of your chosen path and realised you had made a mistake. Rather than take the easy option of coasting through university to achieve a degree in something you had no career aspirations you took the difficult decision to leave. You have since taken on any job that you could secure in your efforts to save every penny with a view to obtaining your LGV licence.

I wish you well Kian.

8

I have held my licence a bit longer & I am just up the road from you & there are no jobs up here either

Containerships ( run out of Teesport dock) wont entertain you until you have at least 2 years experience ( yep that again but has been like that in the jobs market for over 39 years now ) they are also making redundancies

Like you we are both in 1 of the highest unemployment black spot in the country

The story that you here about there being a lot of vacancies for drivers is simply not true it is al made up mainly by brokers / agencies or the government like everything else

Your age is against you atm as they normally like 25 due to insurance ( & yep it has been like that for a long time so not new )

Yes you can recommend a training provider

How have you only got your dcpc until 2017 thought it would be either 2014 or 2019

9

animal:
How have you only got your dcpc until 2017 thought it would be either 2014 or 2019

I may be about to learn something here :laughing:

I thought the 2014 thing only applied to those of us that are old gits and got the grandfather rights until 2014. We have until then to do our 35 hrs cpc at which time we then get the 5 years added on from 2014 taking us through to 2019. Don’t the youngsters have to do CPC to obtain the licence at which point it is valid for 5 years from the date it was obtained?

iDriver

10

How have you only got your dcpc until 2017 thought it would be either 2014 or 2019

Having passed Mod 4 in 2012 this would run to 2017 without any grandfather rights.

I agree with iDriver. May not be politically correct but the view is that you are an ambassador for the company so looks mustn’t offend. And before anyone starts, my daughter had dreadlocks (bright green, blue and pink!) in her student days. She is now a very respectable comp school teacher aged nearly 40. But she had to learn the hard way that people DO judge on appearances.

You’re wasting your time ringing round. The way to do it is below:

Identify companies running trucks
Then phone and find out the name and job title of the person who deals with hiring and firing drivers
Send that person a letter on Friday so it arrives Monday, personally addressed, enclosing your CV and letting them know you will be contacting them on Wednesday.
Call on Wednesday as you promised. Don’t take NO for an answer. Don’t ask if they’ve got a job. Simply suggest you’d like to call in and introduce yourself - tomorrow. (This is Thursday because no-one wants callers on a Friday).
Turn up, smartly dressed (not a suit) and clean and tidy. No dreadlocks - sorry.
Having had the meeting, make sure there is an arrangement for you to contact him every, say, Tuesday.

Do that enough times and mathematics dictate you will get a start.

This is a sales technique I’ve used for many years and it works the same for employment.

You have very little to loose and a hellofalot to gain.

All the best with it, Pete :laughing: :laughing:

11

Just to add to the above; send out 10 letters on a Friday. You should get 4 meetings. Allow at least an hour and a half for the meeting. It wont take that long but the other guy may be late starting. Give yourself plenty of travel time between appointments. Turning up late is a death wish. IF you end up running late, at least call ahead with apologies and a plausable excuse. But avoid it at all costs. End the first meeting promptly to make sure you reach the next one. Does no harm to mention that someone else has shown interest in you and you need to get to their appointment.

You must, in this day and age, go out and sell yourself. If you just ring up and say “have you got any jobs for drivers?” then the easy answer is NO. And then you’ve got no-where to go. To push for a meeting puts the other person off guard and then you can strike.

Good luck, Pete

12

Peter Smythe:

How have you only got your dcpc until 2017 thought it would be either 2014 or 2019

Having passed Mod 4 in 2012 this would run to 2017 without any grandfather rights.

I agree with iDriver. May not be politically correct but the view is that you are an ambassador for the company so looks mustn’t offend. And before anyone starts, my daughter had dreadlocks (bright green, blue and pink!) in her student days. She is now a very respectable comp school teacher aged nearly 40. But she had to learn the hard way that people DO judge on appearances.

Yep sorry wasnt sure how the new mod 2&4 worked :blush: :blush: :blush:

Yep appearance do matter my son did have long ( naturally curly hair ) which has been bright red /green/blue/yellow
for those who have been to Truckfest in the past may have met him he now has a job working for O2 as a technical guru in 1 of there stores Yes he did quit uni as the course he was doing turned out to be not quite what he thought or wanted but came back & found a job straight away has since moved on

As you are the face of the company it can matter as you are who the customer meets so maybe a change of hair style then go out & look but no it not easy

13

Under 25 and 6 points …?

Sorry mate but you’ll struggle…lads with clean tickets and 25 years exp can’t get work especially up in the NE.

The advice on here is very good…stick at it and you’ll get something in the end.

Oh yes, most important thing is attitude and appearance so get that hair cut!!! :laughing:

14

I would just like to add that I myself have dreadlocks and a face full of metal with 7 lip peircings and eyebrows done I still managed to find work in customer facing positions and other work so if you put your self out there and clean and well dressed and with a Good can do approach then your be alright. I’m 26 on Friday and had my pierings nearly 9 years so im sure your get a job with they way you look.
Dan

15

Up until feb 10th this year when I closed my failing garage I had dreads, I worked for myself. Now I am about to undertake training (thursday) and have registered with a couple of agencies… with hair like my fathers :frowning:

I am 45 so at more of a risk that it wont grow back than you, but I am having to sell myself to employers not them to me, and first impressions do count

(I am old school punk in outlet so the idea of being told what to dress like sticks in my throat, but the fat wallet at the end of the week eases the pain considerably :wink: )

iain

16

The postie around here of whom is carribbean decent i’d imagine, has dreadlocks, they suit him as well to be fair. If I was an employer, it wouldn’t matter to me, dreadlocks or not.

17

Pete, your technique, what do you say us people that live in small places should do. Example, I live in a small place called Kilmarnock, about 20 miles from Glasgow City Centre, I can’t afford to travel to lots of different companies all over as I’m only on £106 fortnight. I rely on yell.com and a map pin pointing transport companies locations.

Also, for those of us with only Class 2 licenses, how can we be sure we aint phoning a class 1 only company?

18

Sam Millar:
Pete, your technique, what do you say us people that live in small places should do. Example, I live in a small place called Kilmarnock, about 20 miles from Glasgow City Centre, I can’t afford to travel to lots of different companies all over as I’m only on £106 fortnight. I rely on yell.com and a map pin pointing transport companies locations.

Also, for those of us with only Class 2 licenses, how can we be sure we aint phoning a class 1 only company?

Easy Sam, when you ask the receptionist, to put you throught to the person yuou say are you hiring for Class 2 drivers.

Sam, why dont you go join the buses locally for a while they take on youngsters I passed my bus test when I was 18 and spent 6/7 years on the buses it will get you work and experience

19

discoman:

Sam Millar:
Pete, your technique, what do you say us people that live in small places should do. Example, I live in a small place called Kilmarnock, about 20 miles from Glasgow City Centre, I can’t afford to travel to lots of different companies all over as I’m only on £106 fortnight. I rely on yell.com and a map pin pointing transport companies locations.

Also, for those of us with only Class 2 licenses, how can we be sure we aint phoning a class 1 only company?

Easy Sam, when you ask the receptionist, to put you throught to the person yuou say are you hiring for Class 2 drivers.

Sam, why dont you go join the buses locally for a while they take on youngsters I passed my bus test when I was 18 and spent 6/7 years on the buses it will get you work and experience

Even the buses ain’t interested :frowning:

20

Sam Millar:

discoman:

Sam Millar:
Pete, your technique, what do you say us people that live in small places should do. Example, I live in a small place called Kilmarnock, about 20 miles from Glasgow City Centre, I can’t afford to travel to lots of different companies all over as I’m only on £106 fortnight. I rely on yell.com and a map pin pointing transport companies locations.

Also, for those of us with only Class 2 licenses, how can we be sure we aint phoning a class 1 only company?

Easy Sam, when you ask the receptionist, to put you throught to the person yuou say are you hiring for Class 2 drivers.

Sam, why dont you go join the buses locally for a while they take on youngsters I passed my bus test when I was 18 and spent 6/7 years on the buses it will get you work and experience

Even the buses ain’t interested :frowning:

get your arse down to london they will take you on