Enjoying a quiet Sunday afternoon, I had an agency phone me up and ask if I was available today. Not being on duty until tomorrow evening I said yes.
They said Tesco MK this evening I said sorry, don’t drive for companies that won’t pay a premium rate for night or Sunday’s cos I may as well do days only for the same rate.
So they said how about Asda Bedford (an easy job asfaik)? “can you go in this evening, we will get back to you with the rate”. OK I said
20 mins later they come back with £10.48p ph, so I turned it down as well (thats a self emp rate btw). They apologised and said there were too many agencies and drivers undercutting each other.
Only a couple of years ago I was getting £18ph at Argos on a Sunday nights and £14 weekday nights. I appreciate there is a recession and jobs are not so plenty, so I have watched with fingers crossed as rates have tumbled.
Seems to me the biggest enemy to truck drivers, are drivers themselves. I appreciate that there are some intelligent and not so intelligent drivers around (in fact ive met some brilliant people) But collectively (and apologising) are we stupid? I despair at the idiot drivers who would shoot themselves in the foot working for next to nothing.
Should I not be so fussy and tug my forelock, surrendering whilst watching my more stupido contemporaries ruin the rates by accepting crap wages?
Should we as Drivers stop whining and procrastinating (oops obviously guilty…sorry!) and actually get together to fairly improve our lot. Is it possible?
Just wondered about peeps thoughts.
Jim
PS: I’ll get me coat!! 
My sentiments exactly. I no longer do the weekends nor late shifts for the reasons stated
well i think drivers are there worst enemy i asked a bloke other day what company was like to work for said not to bad . £6.60ph 
think i would of told them to shove it for that rate .
weekends should be better pay but if you dont do it someone else will and come new year when there is load of drivers on there books you can guess who they will offer work to .
I would look at it this way, if the job stretches to 9.5 hours it’s almost a hundred quid, do i go and earn a ton or stay home and earn nil.
Depends on how much I need the ton.
Saying no to the job (which I do, often ) wont push up the rates, it’s all about “supply and demand”, and at present demand is slow and supply is plentiful, and until that changes, monies gonna be poor.
A Sunday’s got to worth a minimum of £180 with an agency
I used to Do a Saturday night newspaper run freelance, Somerset - Watford or Westferry - Bridgend - Camarthen - Somerset, full 15 hour slog for £250, 300 if it was short notice and they were desperate.
D’ya not?:
I would look at it this way, if the job stretches to 9.5 hours it’s almost a hundred quid, do i go and earn a ton or stay home and earn nil.
Depends on how much I need the ton.
Saying no to the job (which I do, often ) wont push up the rates, it’s all about “supply and demand”, and at present demand is slow and supply is plentiful, and until that changes, monies gonna be poor.
I appreciate the supply demand scenario so whats wrong with collectively saying no to work surely this must have an effect.
9.5 hrs also means being on duty for 10rs plus doesn’t it.
The thing is couldn’t drivers get together and act as one with our own interests in mind to get a fair deal?
Jim
all rates are rubbish
worse from those making mega bucks
only you can decide when to say no
There’s some desperate people out there who will run for nowt just to put food on the table and you can’t really blame them for that. If you aren’t desperate for the money then I think you are right to turn it down if the green isn’t good. It’s like Tesco dropping the minimum shift from 8 hours paid to 6 hours, I would have to be eating worms out of the garden to put up with that to be honest but i’m not and never have been in the “drivers position”. As an operator, I have one good paying job for 2 trucks (used to have 2 before recession & the eddie factor), I could run 5 trucks or more still but haven’t got the decent paying work and won’t run them on the ■■■■■ that’s easily available. All my eggs in one basket for now but at least if it goes south I can walk away unscathed.
I don’t think you can afford to be too fussy the way things are right now. Are you cutting your nose off to spite your face? Someone else will always work for less and as stated above it depends how much you need to earn as opposed to earning nil
Blimey, you should be grateful for 10-odd per hour even at the weekends… I drive coaches and I get 7.20 per hour and that includes washing, cleaning (inside) and fuelling the thing once I get back to the yard irrespective of what day it is! On top of that, there is a fine of 50 quid a time if we damage the vehicle.
i agree i drive coaches too, 10 ph is a lot, ok its diff rates for diff parts of country but its still high, think thats what got this country in state its in by greedyness.
The coach lorry argument is not that valid as the work is so different.On coaches we get perks and tips.also it loads and unloads itself. The lorry needs to be loaded and unloaded sometimes manually.Or by anZB with a forklift.
alamcculloch:
It also it loads and unloads itself.
Please do enlighten we where you can find luggage that can be loaded by forklift, pallet truck or even better, by itself! 
Converseley a pile of bricks (for example) doesn’t answer back, in some cases can barely speak the mother tongue, or leave a mess allover your motor…
Yes, of course there are differences but there are also similarities. At the end of the day both are occupations where one must act in a professional driving capacity and abide by the same rules and regulations.
We all know what the ups and downs of either occupation; you pays your money, you takes your choice.
My last lorry job was with a builders merchant hand balling joists and plasterboard was no fun.My coaching is matter of lifting wheeled cases into and out of the luggage compartment easy work.
The whole premium rate thing has been in decline ever since 4 on 4 off shift patterns and the like became more popular, companies starting cutting back so that you wouldn’t have an agency driver in at the weekend on a lot more than the full timers.
jcfd55:
Enjoying a quiet Sunday afternoon, I had an agency phone me up and ask if I was available today. Not being on duty until tomorrow evening I said yes.
They said Tesco MK this evening I said sorry, don’t drive for companies that won’t pay a premium rate for night or Sunday’s cos I may as well do days only for the same rate.
So they said how about Asda Bedford (an easy job asfaik)? “can you go in this evening, we will get back to you with the rate”. OK I said
20 mins later they come back with £10.48p ph, so I turned it down as well (thats a self emp rate btw). They apologised and said there were too many agencies and drivers undercutting each other.
Only a couple of years ago I was getting £18ph at Argos on a Sunday nights and £14 weekday nights. I appreciate there is a recession and jobs are not so plenty, so I have watched with fingers crossed as rates have tumbled.
Seems to me the biggest enemy to truck drivers, are drivers themselves. I appreciate that there are some intelligent and not so intelligent drivers around (in fact ive met some brilliant people) But collectively (and apologising) are we stupid? I despair at the idiot drivers who would shoot themselves in the foot working for next to nothing.
Should I not be so fussy and tug my forelock, surrendering whilst watching my more stupido contemporaries ruin the rates by accepting crap wages?
Should we as Drivers stop whining and procrastinating (oops obviously guilty…sorry!) and actually get together to fairly improve our lot. Is it possible?
Just wondered about peeps thoughts.
Jim
PS: I’ll get me coat!!
The way the economy is and with the recession it would have been 10.48 ph more than you earned for that night anyway so I don’t see your logic. 
10.48 adds up into a nice wage, your lucky to have a job given to you by an agency
supply an demand, was the reason you was once on £18, its the reason they’re offering £10.48. if you where a TM or ran your own motor would you still be offering upto £18ph (+ agency cut) to the agency boys?
stevie
currently employed, but prob done about 50:50 employed/agency since i started driving 10 years ago
i’ve just bought a house and the soliciter said he has had to drop his rate by 50% since the recession kick in 18 month ago. he got my business, he wouldn’t at his previous price in this climate.
mickyblue:
10.48 adds up into a nice wage, your lucky to have a job given to you by an agency
He did mention that was a self employed rate, and a Sunday
The Trouble is £10.48 is mega bucks to a eastern europeon driver you have only got to go to northamptons RDCs and you hardly here english being spoken 