Spardo you may be helping yourself, but the gaffers know the crack with these markets, and know you pay to get it done, and in the end THEY are the ones who gain by not having wagons and men stood about.
I have said about three times now if I get my money back I will pay, if I dont I wont I will not subsidise the gaffers Beamers and Mercs out of my pocket.
As for FLT drivers I was once offered a weeks work by an agency when I lived in Croydon at CG at £15 per hour (nights) but had just got a job with ASDA at Dartford and turned it down, with all that fiddle on top would probably have been best weeks id ever have done.
Rob K:
Give it up Dave . You’re wasting your breath as the guy clearly has problems differentiating between the two obvious arguments being brought about in this thread.
Both arguments are clear as day to me.
You’re right Rob, I give up, now I must remember that if I go back to work, I want the money up front for the car, otherwise I’ll walk it. In the rain if need be. That’ll teach him.
Spardo you are I think being deliberatley obtuse, I never said anywhere I wanted money up front, I have said all the way through I just want money I have spent doing the job refunded, if you think that is being awkward or difficult im sorry, dont worry when/if I ever get a managers job I will send for you, nitwits who will dip into there own pockets for the company will always be welcome.
BUT YOU ARE!!! From my point of view, I will sit there forever before I will give anybody MY money to do work they are allready paid for, possibly more than I am, market work is plainly not for me as I would get to CG on a monday and still be sat there Saturday morning.
Guy Rope:
BUT YOU ARE!!! From my point of view, I will sit there forever before I will give anybody MY money to do work they are allready paid for, possibly more than I am, market work is plainly not for me as I would get to CG on a monday and still be sat there Saturday morning.
ces la vie mon ami.
So, say were paid £10/hr and are guaranteed to be paid for 10hrs work each shift, but the work is actually job and knock.
The run to the market and back takes 4.5hrs and usually 30 minutes to tip by the FLT driver of the company you’re delivering to, so you do the job and are on your way home after 5hrs, right? Therefore effectively you’re working for £20/hr.
The following week you go in and you discover that the shift patterns have changed for the FLT driver and he now doesn’t come in until another 5hrs. You explain this to your gaffer and he just shrugs his shoulders and says you’re paid for 10hrs so you’ll have to sit with it until he comes in and I still want you starting your shift at the same time.
You hang up in disgust and open your window to spit your dummy out only to find the FLT driver from company opposite saying that he’ll tip you for a fiver (out of your own pocket and can’t claim it back from your gaffer).
Are you seriously telling me that you wouldn’t take him up on his offer and would instead sit there for 5hrs waiting for the FLT driver of the company you’re delivering to, to turn up?
Logic says (assuming 5 shifts per week) :
25hrs per week for £500, less your fiver per tip = £475
Rob has hit the nail on the head SPOT ON & the whole point of my argumant.
What I want to know is do u sign this guys paperwork for him and if so that means if u were that guy you could burn or dump your produce and forge a signature yourself and say that you delivered it and if anything came back about it you can say that such and such FLT driver from another company unloaded you so its your word against theres
Nobody signs anybody’s tickets (usually) on overnight market work (or they didn’t last time I did it). It’s all a game of trust & if I am in Birmingham every night,I’m hardly likely to ripoff an owner driver am I It’s often 90% the same guys in each market night after night & helping each other to earn or save a few quid was part of the job.
Odd times i would have a Wolverhampton thrown on mine & rather than spend an extra hour or more, I would willingly throw a regular a couple of quid to drop on for me (better than doing 60 mins work for £2)
This is a classic thread and a serious point I think.
I can see why people are arguing in favour of this system of backhanders to make life easier, get the job done and get home sooner.
But at the same time I can see Guy Rope’s argument and I think I favour that…on principle you shouldn’t be spending your own money getting tipped.
I come across this sort of thing on building sites every now and then, one contractor has a forklift and the one I’m delivering to doesn’t and when they ask a favour the answer is “three quid a lift”.
Last time it happened they got me to pull my lorry in front of the forklift so he couldn’t move til we’d handballed it…he soon wished he’d done them a favour.
I assume your £500 is take home, Fruitex were paying that gross and the hours were I was told were between 10/12 sometimes longer (and yes I know about the wtd) that night I started I had three drops London I was told, did not stick around long enough to find out where exactly so do the math 3x£5 =15x5=£75 bit more than £25 £500 gross =£360(approx)take home -£75=£285 I think thats quite a big lump.
I’ve only offered a forkie a tip one time, many years ago.
Driving for a small 2 truck co. been away early doors, had a long day.
Tipping booze in LIverpool, in the evening, in the dark, pouring rain, Friday night, rapidly running out of spread over duty hours.
Finds the place quite easily by directions given to me earlier.
Pulls in, books in, told to come into yard, turn round & undo curtains.
Forkie comes over, “what you got mate?” “Full load for you”. “Oh, i’ll just take the 1st couple off then i’m on my break for 1/2 hour.”
“oh dear” thought I. By the time he’s had his break, then tipped it, then i’ve buckled up, got paper work etc. I can’t get home legally.
Normally the boss would always come out in the car & rescue me if i run out of time, but i knew he was already out at a function that night.
So, I explained my predicament to the forkie & offered him a £5 (was worth a bit then!) to finish tipping me before he had his break.
He willingly helped me out and refused the £5!
I was in Blackpool with a pint in my hand by 10.30pm
Guy Rope:
I assume your £500 is take home, Fruitex were paying that gross and the hours were I was told were between 10/12 sometimes longer (and yes I know about the wtd) that night I started I had three drops London I was told, did not stick around long enough to find out where exactly so do the math 3x£5 =15x5=£75 bit more than £25 £500 gross =£360(approx)take home -£75=£285 I think thats quite a big lump.
Oh FFS. You just don’t get it do you!
Whether the £500 is take home or top line is completely irrelevant; it was merely an example.
It can’t be spelt out in any more simpler terms for you to understand.
I give up.
If you don’t want to pay out of your own pocket to get tipped and ultimately get home quicker for some small change then don’t do it, sit there all night if that’s what it takes. The rest of us can see the big picture and if corners can be cut to better ourselves then we don’t hang about mulling over the pro’s and con’s.
No market work isnt for me which is obviously why im not doing it, as im not quite witless enough yet FFS, ill stick to RDC work where you dont have to pay backeesh to do the job, far from not GETTING IT I do GET IT and I am as entitled to my opinion as you are to yours, and just because I dont agree with you does not mean that you are in the right. there are two sides to every argument.
I am with you on this one Guy Rope , I think you have had some good advice from people who have done the job before and some complete rollocks from some people
I think some like market work and fit in with it and some wont, I fall into the later , doesnt appeal to me one little bit , but everyones different I guess.
Also fruitex have never been a super mob to work for , like most of the Spalding area I think, but as they are under the Turners banner things are only gonna go down hill now the drivers are mostly east european and the occasional top quality *ay *urner agency “driver”.
So all in all I think you made the right move in walking away.
Thank you. I had no idea when I did the first post on this thread how controversial it would be, and I am a bit suprised at how heated it got at times, but unless these things are talked about you never here opposite points of view, that people resort to bribery to get a truck tipped really took me by suprise I have never been in that position where ive even thought about it before, that some drivers use there own money to do so, in such a poorly paid industry as ours I find stunning.
I will as a consequence never apply for a job working markets again, as I would be a round peg in a square hole.
I am sorry if ive upset anybody there was no intention to do so.
And Rob im a Yorkshireman too, born in Bingley and lived there for the first 40 years of my life.
Having been away the last 12 days, I read this and wet myself!!!
Guy, go back to driving for Tesco’s or whoever!
By the way, I bet the other drivers at Fruitex never told you about their little ‘earners’■■?
They may pay the forkie a fiver to tip the pallets for them to other drops BUT did they tell you they also CHARGE £5 a pallet to deliver them for other drivers?? We often used to get to Cardiff Market and have a pallet or two for Swansea! Mr Fruitex used to take them there for us for a fiver a pallet and our Boss was happy to pay it considering the money he was saving by us not going there.
You may have left that job a wee bit too quickly, Guy
. You’re wasting your breath as the guy clearly has problems differentiating between the two obvious arguments being brought about in this thread.
