HGV 2 would I find a job easy?

NEW AND WANNABE DRIVERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

Hi everyone, I am deaf you may have notice of my bad grammar, I was wonder if I take a HGV Class 2 training for start rather carry through to C+E would I be able to find any job easy and build my experience? I am from Colchester, Essex. In the past people don’t really want to hired me what I have is disability with of loss of hearing but my health is fine, every job that I apply in the past a application asked me a question if I have any disability when I ticked it they never ever contact me! But when I did not ticked to lie that I don’t have any disability and I did invite for a interview! Now that I understood it is my disability are making me hard to find any job.

I don’t want to take the course HGV then I won’t find any job it would have waste my time again like before that I went to college did a course for car mechanical nobody want me, went back to college again do other course to become a landscape gardener it never happens.

I am currently work for Council rubbish collect in the village for £9.31 per hour 20 hours per week. I felt that I want to try refuse collect driver or work for supermarket.

I have been asked a few of HGV driver who works for supermarket three of them said I should stay my current job because the HGV 2 isn’t pay enough like round £10.40 a hour HGV C+E not much far as the HGV 2 but a awful long shift, poor management one of bloke had only have one weekend off per month is this true that Supermarket driver don’t have time to be home with family? I don’t know how is the timetable works for HGV driver who works for the supermarket? I can’t decide my future career till I ask this question.

2

Not sure how you would go about taking the practical test.
You need to follow spoken instructions…

3

I have a motorbike license and a car license for 17 years I didn’t have any problem with practical test!

4

I have considerable experience in training deaf folks both on trucks and motorbikes. Both of which are noted for being “close to impossible”.

Special measures are put in place for the test so the issues are minimal.

Good luck, Pete :laughing: :laughing:

5

Theflyingfab:
Hi everyone, I am deaf you may have notice of my bad grammar,

IN THAT CASE I HAD BETTER USE CAPSLOCKS SO YOU CAN HEAR ME :exclamation: :wink: :smiling_imp: :laughing: :laughing:

Seriously, I am fairly certain, Peter Smythe will correct me if wrong, that being deaf is not a barrier to LGV training and test

Just noticed that Peter beat me to it :smiley:

6

We had a driver with a hearing impairment, if he didn’t like the sound or allocated time of his back load, he came home empty. He could always hear if you ever said, can you get back tonight? :angry:

7

Can you lip read?

I know of a company that used to have a young deaf chap that would lip read on the loading/unloading docks and would assist with loading/unloading 7.5T and 18T vehicles - I don’t think he ever drove for the company though.

In the current job climate, I think you might struggle as a new driver, not because of the disability but because there are many drivers being made redundant and you will be competing with those experienced drivers to get work.

8

It’s not easy for any newbie in this climate to find an HGV job… that said, refuge drivers seem to have been in reasonable demand throughout this “virus crisis” - you might just be fortunately placed to ‘move up’ within the same company if you did happen to get your HGV licence. I’d have a word with the boss and see where you stand with that - “If I got my Class 2, would there be a job for me?”. Go from there.

9

Just get it done, I am sure a job will turn up no one would take me on because of lack of experience so i went on the roadsweepers (class 2), kept looking for other jobs though and got offered a job within 2 months of starting on roadsweepers with a small haulage yard been there over 3 years now, it might be a bit tight at the moment with covid, but i am sure it will pick up. One thing is for sure, you cant get a job as a lorry driver if you dont have the license, go for it!

10

Hi :slight_smile:

I hope you will be fine, and wish you all the best.
Actually I’m in the same situation. I had my medical assessment and waiting , 2 weeks ago my documents been sent to DVLA. Course is for free it’s called employability fund. I was also worried if I will find job after that, but as 1 person wrote here, very wisely, firstly you need licence to become professional driver, so … I’m trying ;p for now theory and hazard perception and case studies . I think driving of 16tonne lorry will be challenging for me: D
Take care

11

The truth is you have not been told the truth. These driving schools will advertise anything to get work and not have to go wagon driving again. They didn’t tell you that there is way more drivers than jobs and the 50,000 drivers short has been used since the year 2000.

More drivers keeps wages down stops hyperinflation , if wages go up so do goods in shops which in turn ruins the economy as less spare money from essentials people need.
99 percent of companies will want a minimum of two years on your license plus reference .

I know loads of lads one of them had to declare himself bank ruptas the back of the sun news paper where he got the job from was pestering him for money he didn’t have as they told him oh yeah u be on 40,000 a year.

God help you as the only firms that will take on new drivers are bad firms who can’t get drivers.Not only that wait till your doing a 17 hour shift which includes driving to and from work .
Good luck.

12

Truthsetyoufree:
The truth is you have not been told the truth. These driving schools will advertise anything to get work and not have to go wagon driving again. They didn’t tell you that there is way more drivers than jobs and the 50,000 drivers short has been used since the year 2000.

More drivers keeps wages down stops hyperinflation , if wages go up so do goods in shops which in turn ruins the economy as less spare money from essentials people need.
99 percent of companies will want a minimum of two years on your license plus reference .

I know loads of lads one of them had to declare himself bank ruptas the back of the sun news paper where he got the job from was pestering him for money he didn’t have as they told him oh yeah u be on 40,000 a year.

God help you as the only firms that will take on new drivers are bad firms who can’t get drivers.Not only that wait till your doing a 17 hour shift which includes driving to and from work .
Good luck.

That sounds like most LGV brokers and not LGV driver training schools

The so called driver shortage bit - I agree with you 100% that it is false - there is no driver shortage because if there was then those passing the test would be immediately taken on in full time permanent roles by companies without the need for agencies

13

The truth is you have not been told the truth. These driving schools will advertise anything to get work and not have to go wagon driving again. They didn’t tell you that there is way more drivers than jobs and the 50,000 drivers short has been used since the year 2000.

More drivers keeps wages down stops hyperinflation , if wages go up so do goods in shops which in turn ruins the economy as less spare money from essentials people need.
99 percent of companies will want a minimum of two years on your license plus reference .

I know loads of lads one of them had to declare himself bank ruptas the back of the sun news paper where he got the job from was pestering him for money he didn’t have as they told him oh yeah u be on 40,000 a year.

God help you as the only firms that will take on new drivers are bad firms who can’t get drivers.Not only that wait till your doing a 17 hour shift which includes driving to and from work .
Good luck.

Read my posts properly and I never, ever suggest that a new driver will walk straight into brilliant work. Never have and never will - unless that situation changes of course. Statistics show a driver shortage - but I struggle to understand that and have said so countless times.

But I strongly disagree with the final paragraph. It’s simply not the case 100% of the time. Of course it happens. But it’s not a “given” and it’s wrong to say it is.

And, having read the post again, the statement that 99% of employers want 2 years experience is untrue. Some do, most dont.

Pete :laughing: :laughing:

14

I passed my class 2 with PSTT back in late February, a couple of weeks later, licence came back so got in touch with a local agency for work.

I had 2 weeks worth of work in a 7.5 tonner (it’s a start, need to start somewhere!) for a local furniture company, and then lockdown hit, and that was it for work. Agency lost 80% of its work (apparently!) and the only thing he could offer me was nightwork as a milkman.

Not what i want to do at all, but bills need to be paid (he knew it wasn’t what i wanted, and agreed with me that it was a bit poop, but if i want it it’s there) so i agreed (partly a tactical play - prove myself by taking the poor jobs and just getting on with it, with the hope that when things return to 'normal, i’ll be higher up the work list) and there started around 2-3 months of midnight to 4am starts, delivering milk to 300 homes a night, though oddly enough i only drove 3 times in that time as they kept changing the round i was on preventing me from learning the rounds. Anyway, thats not the point here.

A terrible job with poor managers and communication, i got fed up of it after 2-3 months, so was going to ring the agency and say sod it, i’m done with this, but they rang first to say theres a class 2 18 tonner temp to perm role going, fancy a chat with the boss? Absolutely. After a rather informal chat with the boss on site, i started work a few days later, and have been there nearly 2 months now, becoming permanent in a week or so.

Decent pay, overtime pay, decent hours, hardly any nights out, HIAB training paid for and now qualified (yesterday as it happens), Class 1 to be paid for, allocated vehicle etc.

So for a totally green driver, who’d never really driven an 18 tonner, or strapped up, or used a hiab, near enough zero experience, and i somehow managed to get a decent job without issue, proves even in these strange times it can be done. TBH i’m still surprised i managed it, with so many experienced drivers out of work, but i’m not complaining.

I suspect it was a combination of things - a decent agency, (to sell you to them) coming across well to people (agency and interviews) plus saying the right things - telling them what they want to hear works wonders!

Some of the places we deliver to in this job are down some thin nasty unsuitable for HGV lanes, can’t open the doors sometimes, mirrors in and squeeze down, (i did have to reverse a mile down a lane like this due to a numpty) , a ■■■ papers clearance on certain maneuvers, on 3 points, shunting back and forth to bring the rear end round to clear the corner, it’s done wonders for my skills as a driver, (im still not perfect, never will be, but after a couple of months of bum clenching maneuvers, confidence and competence has grown massively.)