Does it get any easier?

NEW AND WANNABE DRIVERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

well folks I passed my class C and class C+E last August and to be honest let them categories sit and gather dust for a about a year!

I worked for a local council on the bins for about 6 years leading up to taking my lessons and afterwards did the odd bit of driving here and there for about a year but I wasn’t really bothered if I’m honest!

This July I went into a local haulier on a whim and asked about class 1 work and got offered a job there on the spot so I decided to take it up! As I’ve read the horror stories and how much of a swine it can be to get work. Naturally I was apprehensive as I have been a bin man since leaving school and it was like my life.

they put me through my crane test and so I started there a week later on a 17.5 metre truck and drawbar delivering bricks and blocks and such and boy what a culture shock first day out I realise I’m learning to drive the truck, learning to use a crane, learning to secure a load, learning how to ratchet strap, learning to use nets and then wondering if i’ve done them right etc learning the tacho rules and every single building site is like a matchbox with various s**t all over the place to cause a problem and of course how to be a tramper.

First couple of weeks weren’t too bad but it’s stressing me out big time when you’re constantly chasing your backside all the time to get loaded, drive somewhere, get tipped, get loaded somewhere else, drive somewhere, get tipped and get loaded somewhere else for the next day etc!

and more that at the end of the day when you’ve about had enough of it you have to have a bit of kip and wake up in the hot seat ready to do it all again. I’ve barely eaten anything for about a month lol! but my wonder is whether it is normally like this for newbies in this industry and does it become easier?

By no means am I calling the industry as I imagine it can be really enjoyable and a good career once you’ve cracked it but it’s just cracking it I’m having trouble with!

Fire away ladies and gentleman with your experiences and old sea sagas [SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]

2

Yes, it does get easier. Tacho rules become second nature as does strapping, driving and loading. Unfortunately it can be a bit of a pain to get to that level. In another month or two, you’ll have cracked it and look back on this thread with a smile.

3

Yes, it does get easier.

Take your time, keep to speed limits=less stress. You can only do What you can do in the time allowed, if you start rushing about-it will only lead to accidents & incidents that will ultimately cost you time & money.

Within a few weeks you will probably be loading out of the same few places, so they will be a lot easier to find & plan your day to get there in good time.

The delivery’s will always be different, we deliver to construction sites all over the country & if I don’t like the look of it, I park up & take a walk to see where to park/turn around/reverse in, I usually have a phone number to call, so it’s a good idea to call when you are 30 minutes away, can save you a lot of time Flapping About trying to find ‘Fred’ from ‘So & So’ company on a huge Building Site with 25 other contractors all fighting for space.

Winter will be the ‘Best Fun’ on said sites, try to stay on the hard stuff & drive VERY SLOWLY if you don’t want 500 gallons of ■■■■ plastered all over the wagon (you probably know about that, if you’ve been on Landfills with the rubbish, but their drivers don’t usually give a Toss about the state of the wagon :unamused: )

I don’t Tramp but have a couple of night’s out a week, usually stop in secure yards (especially if I’ve got a high value load on) but I’ve got the usual night out stuff in the cab, Gaz stove, Kettle, coffee, creamer, sugar, cereals, long life milk & a few cans of stew/soup (all handy if you cant get to a shop) If I get the chance to pop into a supermarket I usually grab a pasta salad or sandwiches & probably a bottle or 2 of Henry Westons Vintage(for relaxation)
If you’re out all week, you can always grab some fish chips, Maky D’s or even shoot into a carvery now & again.

Stick at it, as you learn more, you will soon start to enjoy it.
It’s a lot better that being stuck in a warehouse or office all day, where some Numpty is watching over you all day long. :wink:

4

That’s all great advice. Just add deep breaths!

Pete :laughing: :laughing:

5

There’s some information here on what to take with you, which has added to my kit after 5 years on nights out.

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=37297

I used to do blocks on my last place (just left to go back on tippers) so here’s a bit I picked up.

Make an effort to get on with the stacker drivers, they can screw your day up when it’s barely started.

Take breath and plan your reverse and as importantly how you’re going to get out again.

There’s no such thing as too secure a load, if your not sure if it wants another strap bang one on.

PPE may well be a ball ache but with the elf and safety brigade looking for an excuse to ban you wear it whenever you’re on site or delivering to merchants.

Stay within the speed limits as has been said before it makes the job much easier and you’ll keep on the good side of Johnny Law.

Can I take the opportunity to say WELL DONE. You’ve taken on a heck of a lot, not just for a newby driver.

Best of luck and stick at it drive, it’ll get easier.

6

I’ve done brick/block work with HIAB for most of my driving career. I started on it at 21 and only finished 18 months ago. It does get easier as you’ll become much quicker with the crane, and know your way to certain large sites that you’ll do on a regular basis, and where they’re likely to want the load dropping. It’s far from the nicest job in transport mind. Most places 'elf and safety policies are completely beyond nuts, and there’s always somebody watching to see how they can make life more difficult. The weather can be the worst of any you’ve ever seen, and you’ve still gotta get up there and use the crane. The amount of dust on sites in the summer makes your dashboard look like the Sahara desert. The constant chasing of your tail because sites are only open until certain times, and loading isn’t 24 hours a day is a constant pain in the backside. The pay isn’t always that great either. BUT, personally I was always left alone by the boss. He would give me my jobs for the day, and I just got them done.

I tend to find general haulage to be a little easier. Most places I go to are open 24 hours a day, so only ever tend to squirm when I’m running out of working time before finishing being tipped.

If you don’t mind me asking, who are you working for?

7

Well it doesn’t appear to be getting much easier! I know it’s only been a week or so since my post but I’m pretty sure in the future I’m going to again take the plunge and quit said job!

The only real reason I say this is really after my last straw nightmarish week!

I asked at the beginning of the week if it was possible to get home one night in the week! (For me to reset my brain really) but they got a more important reason! And when I took on the job I was told it would be only be “occasional” nights out!

come wednesday, the night they said id be home the people who set the work told me to go load up at Nottingham from Peterborough and notts only being about 20 miles from the yard I thought I’d get a local run! I had to load up for GOSPORT!!! So I just thought if that’s you trying to help god forbid you try and be awkward!

Other than that I’m getting sent to sites everyday that aren’t meant for a rigid and drag but rather a rigid only and the customers do not get their 24 hours notice so it’s impossible to even get in half the places! and I’ve had a few this week where people are out with camera phones taking pictures because they don’t like the trucks being down there nice little cul de sacs.

I’m thinking of trying for a local class 1 multi drop job (with mostly under 25 year old staff) that my mates told me about and just at least do a driving job that gets me home each night and gain some real experience before going into tramping again!

And aswell having the transport manager ringing me up squawking at me telling me I should be as quick as the experienced long term drivers by now and throwing a wobbly when things with the dodgy old truck go wrong e.g burst pipes, telling me its my fault and so on.

And other such things I don’t feel comfortable about i.e I must take breaks whilst tipping, crane security features over ridden, people having multiple cards on the go during a day!

I understand this is a major rant but by no means did I expect to become Jedi in the industry overnight! I am willing to go out and get the experience and crack it but I’m not sure it will be in this job as its bringing me down everyday, sleepless nights, majorly stressed to the point that this last week I didn’t eat a single bean for 5 straight days and being unsure about the legality of the procedures.

8

Get out and get yourself another job. Been there done that, it’s horrendous when you hate your job and can’t eat or sleep. If even half the things you’ve said are true then you’re working for a cowboy and putting your shiny new licence into jeopardy.

Sorry to sound melodramatic but there’s few worse things than being in a place like that and stressing about everything. Get another driving job, anything, and sort your head out.

9

ashman145:
And other such things I don’t feel comfortable about i.e I must take breaks whilst tipping

If you are working then that is illegal but if not actually working then there is no reason that break cannot be used

10

I must take break whilst using crane to unload

11

ashman145:
I must take break whilst using crane to unload

If you are using the crane then that is working so cannot legally take a break and if company wants you to do differently then tell them you will but only if they give you that instruction in writing and signed on company headed paper

12

Sounds like the Job is stressing you out too much & the company isn’t bothered, as I said in my earlier post- slow down & take it easy, keep taking the wage, but do it legally & in the mean time, start looking for another job, even turning up at potential employers in your wagon (shows that you can do the job :wink: )

This Cowboy operation will eventually ‘Let you Go’, but by then, you should be able to get something sorted. I believe that by law, they have to give your new employer a reference (if they ask for it) & they can’t say anything derogatory on it, if they do- then you can answer truthfully that you last employer was expecting you to Break the Law, which you were not prepared to do. (any good employer will respect that !)

As a final leaving present- you could always drop a line to VOSA- Re the work practices at your old company.
I don’t fancy driving down the road one day & have one of their Tired & Stressed out drivers, dozing off or making a phone call whilst eating their sandwiches & coffee at 56 mph on an A road in the wet/fog, because they don’t have the time to take proper breaks or their always putting their wagon back together because Bits keep falling off ! :unamused: