Van den bosch transport

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
821

Intriguing really. Almost all who have gone out there and have posted are changing their tunes. Now the honeymoon period is over and the bosses at home are chasing, you seem none too happy.

Get over it, guys. I worked alongside VDB for years and they were always decent. Almost any dutch firm is decent enough, it seems. Tank work involves all sorts of creativity and forward thinking. If you can’t load till Saturday then get washed out as late as you can on Friday, when the wash is quieter, and get your head down in the meantime. You may count 5 hours at a washbay as work time, but I suspect the firm consider it waiting time, unless the wash took 5 hours?? :open_mouth: And even then, I don’t suppose you were doing anything. Staying out of Erp, well there’s a thing, an international firm wanting the trucks out of the yard… what a surprise!

Vas is right enough, and he knows the way the Dutch work better than most, as does Wheelnut. The firms can’t be around that long, and grow that big, without getting it pretty well right. So the problem seems more likely to have been yours, not the companies. You are blaming all others for what you were unable to sort out.

I used to go for 2 or 3 weeks in an FL10, and up to 6 weeks in a Premium, so your complaints about the FM seem a little loose to me.
I wonder why some of you even thought of going out there.

822

bobthedog:
I wonder why some of you even thought of going out there.

If drivers have been ‘seen off’ over wages then I think they should chase it until it’s sorted and the company should also endeavour to sort it ASAP. Otherwise it can only lead to disgruntled drivers who will take every opportunity to bad-mouth said company.

However . . . . . . .

I did wonder when there was a ‘rush’ for these jobs if, once the novelty had worn off, the whole idea would look less appealing. Personally, I don’t get too excited about the whole ‘Euro driving’ thing. I can see the advantages but also the disadvantages; I’m not sure all drivers do, especially if they’ve only done UK work before. Maybe because I/we have lived and worked in quite a few different countries over the last 24 years or so, there is no novelty factor for me regarding Euro work. My last Euro job was fridges to Spain/Gib; I probably enjoyed it less than when I used to drive fridges for ASDA!!

To me, a long boring day is still a long boring day, irrespective of what side of the road you drive on. I actually prefer having 2 or 3 runs/tips in a day, rather than pushing out 2 x 10hr drives followed by 3 or 4 more 9hr drives, just for the sake of getting to Gib and back ASAP. Scenery and culture don’t ‘flick my switch’, certainly not Europe, although don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike it neither.

I guess what I’m saying is, especially to those who are still in the ‘thinking about it’ phase, the grass isn’t always greener . . . . . .

823

Agreed, Martin. It isn’t the scenery or anything like that which I preferred, it was the fact that you could be left pretty much alone, and mostly had quieter roads to keep you sane. I couldn’t handle UK traffic anymore, I really couldn’t. But I somehow doubt I could handle Euro traffic anymore either.

I am no sightseer on the road. I look around, sure enough, but I do not go visiting places. I just do the job and then go home, which is the only place I want to see anyway.

So no, the grass is not necessarily greener. The firms will want their pound of flesh whatever language they speak.

824

gogzy:
as for withdrawing if your out on the road and drive back they take the cost of the diesel out your wages, i dont know what would happen if you just went to the nearest airport and left the truck though.

absolutely no need to do it that way at all :unamused: just use the computer to tell them that you wish to finish and how and when and they will get you back to base as the last thing that they want is a truck stranded god knows where.

gogzy:
its just greed on the planners part, mines wanted me to do 7 days this week and god knows how many next week till i fly home on saturday. they finish up at 1730 everyday, work 5 days a week, and get 2 days off at the weekend.

i have no problem working 6 days a week but i am entitled to and would like a day off. ive been moaned at for parking up after 13 hours because i only had half an hours driving left and that wouldnt have got me very far,

The Dutch have always been known for having a more liberal view of the law than the UK, so if you want to work for them be aware of this ans when in Rome do as the Romans just as in the UK one expects the Poles etc to conform to the UK way of doing things.

gogzy:
my first 3 weeks driving here i was never given time to eat properly, find somewhere to get a shower and basically pushed until i cracked and did hand in my notice.

basically your own fault, a Dutch planner will always try to get his pounds worth of flesh out of you and will push to find your limit the sooner you show him as to what to how far you will go and no further then he will adjust to that.

bigsidney:
Vascignoles or whatever your name is, Have you read my post or are they not at that stage in your primary school yet!!
I dont want to go through it again but to put it to you straight, I have a pair of balls, i approached the person/s concerned with the working practacies at Wind and pish and after that handed my notice in after lenghty discussions which lasted most of a morning. Hence I am now back working in the UK for a UK firm this has been said before so keep on practacing your ABCs and the Janet and John books and maybe in a couple of years you might be able to work out that what I have posted is exactly what you have put in your silly post
Anyway Mummy and Daddy say you have been on the Puter long enough and its time for your Baffy waffy and off to beddy byes

never got round to Janet and John books as they were not available at nursery school :laughing: :laughing:

Working for Dutch companies never was and never will be every Englishmens cup of tea it will suit some and not suit others , a different country has different working practices and different ways of doing things which basically means if you go to another country to work then you have to adapt to their way of doing things and not the other way round,if you have problems with either working practices or money I have found that usually a face to face talk about it sorts the problem out quite quickly and this has been the case with the German, Dutch and Spanish companies that I have worked for over the years .

Unfortunatelythe Janet and John books were not much help to me when learning to read write and speak German, Dutch, French and Spanish without having the time or opportunity to do a course

825

gogzy:

Vascoingles:
the biggest load of crap that I have seen posted in years to be honest

got a gripe with the boss well rent a pair of balls and go see him and get it sorted

complaints about the way you are paid well theres nothing to stop you withdrawing your services and go elsewhere

Van den Bosch is a very big company with hundreds of vehicles and there will always be those who are happy and those who are not.

Most of those who are not will be the superheroes who have crossed the channel thinking that they have arrived in Europe to save the European haulage industry

well from what ive just found out our boss is in birmingham, and we are anywhere in europe…the planners try keep us away from erp as much as possible, im only back because ive got a load thats going 5 miles up the road.

as for withdrawing if your out on the road and drive back they take the cost of the diesel out your wages, i dont know what would happen if you just went to the nearest airport and left the truck though. its just greed on the planners part, mines wanted me to do 7 days this week and god knows how many next week till i fly home on saturday. they finish up at 1730 everyday, work 5 days a week, and get 2 days off at the weekend.

i have no problem working 6 days a week but i am entitled to and would like a day off. ive been moaned at for parking up after 13 hours because i only had half an hours driving left and that wouldnt have got me very far,

my first 3 weeks driving here i was never given time to eat properly, find somewhere to get a shower and basically pushed until i cracked and did hand in my notice. i had a word with frans and other people here at erp including my planner and it seemed to be all going fine until yesterday when i argued with the apprentice planner over the computer about working saturday and sunday even though i had done monday to friday, i probably could have done it but it was far too tight the way he was running it for me to fit a 24 in between today and 2moro.

im glad he finally saw sense and got somebody else to do it,i had alot of problems at loading today (4 hour load) which pretty much screwed up my day.

i may sound strange saying this after the above statements but i like the job…when im left alone to get on with it, but when that computer beeps saying i have a message im usually thinking wtf does he want now

Clear evidence that planners are thick ■■■■■ :unamused: It amazes me how poor they think of us even over there I thought it was only UK where were treated like crap :smiley: It would be nice to see them do the job for just one month and I bet they would stop putting so much pressure on the driver when they know how it feels :smiling_imp:

826

Vascoingles:

gogzy:
as for withdrawing if your out on the road and drive back they take the cost of the diesel out your wages, i dont know what would happen if you just went to the nearest airport and left the truck though.

absolutely no need to do it that way at all :unamused: just use the computer to tell them that you wish to finish and how and when and they will get you back to base as the last thing that they want is a truck stranded god knows where.

gogzy:
its just greed on the planners part, mines wanted me to do 7 days this week and god knows how many next week till i fly home on saturday. they finish up at 1730 everyday, work 5 days a week, and get 2 days off at the weekend.

i have no problem working 6 days a week but i am entitled to and would like a day off. ive been moaned at for parking up after 13 hours because i only had half an hours driving left and that wouldnt have got me very far,

The Dutch have always been known for having a more liberal view of the law than the UK, so if you want to work for them be aware of this ans when in Rome do as the Romans just as in the UK one expects the Poles etc to conform to the UK way of doing things.

gogzy:
my first 3 weeks driving here i was never given time to eat properly, find somewhere to get a shower and basically pushed until i cracked and did hand in my notice.

basically your own fault, a Dutch planner will always try to get his pounds worth of flesh out of you and will push to find your limit the sooner you show him as to what to how far you will go and no further then he will adjust to that.

not being funny or that but hows that my fault, i have the apprentice planner who has never stepped foot in a truck, doesnt know the rules at all, and thinks we can do 6 million miles per hour?
i was being forced to do 15 hour days without a break because i was run too tight, id be stuck in a factory all day so i couldnt cook inside the factory premesis
id never be run anywhere near a supermarket and if i was it would be shut when i arrived and wouldnt be open by the time i left

im also not eating out of motorway services stations as that will bankrupt me.

i was lucky if i was gettin 4 hour sleep a night on those first 3 weeks.

as for telling them your done and wanting back you obviously dont know these planners, they will either not give you anything and not get you back here.

you know i went 3 days without working wipers because they refused to run me back to get them fixed after asking them to run me back before they had given me my next days job,i wasnt even far away either, about 100 miles and normally we run trailers back from this place to erp. i was just lucky it didnt rain for 3 days.so you think asking them to get you back because yoru done is gonna work even though i couldnt get back to get this fixed…or even sent to a local garage …then think again

just to add this last week (these 2 weeks are to see if anything has changed after our little talk) i have done everything my planner has asked me (apart from working sunday) i have finished up after 15 or 13 hours or when my driving time was up, ok a couple of days i worked with the coordinators up at unilever rotterdam and thats perfect up there, planners an ex driver and he just leaves you to it, heres the details and ill see you when you get back. if theres any problems gives me a call etc. this is the way it should be, these motors have trackers fitted (or so we were told) so they shouldnt have to message us every 5 mins to ask where we are.

827

OllieNotts:

gogzy:

Vascoingles:
the biggest load of crap that I have seen posted in years to be honest

got a gripe with the boss well rent a pair of balls and go see him and get it sorted

complaints about the way you are paid well theres nothing to stop you withdrawing your services and go elsewhere

Van den Bosch is a very big company with hundreds of vehicles and there will always be those who are happy and those who are not.

Most of those who are not will be the superheroes who have crossed the channel thinking that they have arrived in Europe to save the European haulage industry

well from what ive just found out our boss is in birmingham, and we are anywhere in europe…the planners try keep us away from erp as much as possible, im only back because ive got a load thats going 5 miles up the road.

as for withdrawing if your out on the road and drive back they take the cost of the diesel out your wages, i dont know what would happen if you just went to the nearest airport and left the truck though. its just greed on the planners part, mines wanted me to do 7 days this week and god knows how many next week till i fly home on saturday. they finish up at 1730 everyday, work 5 days a week, and get 2 days off at the weekend.

i have no problem working 6 days a week but i am entitled to and would like a day off. ive been moaned at for parking up after 13 hours because i only had half an hours driving left and that wouldnt have got me very far,

my first 3 weeks driving here i was never given time to eat properly, find somewhere to get a shower and basically pushed until i cracked and did hand in my notice. i had a word with frans and other people here at erp including my planner and it seemed to be all going fine until yesterday when i argued with the apprentice planner over the computer about working saturday and sunday even though i had done monday to friday, i probably could have done it but it was far too tight the way he was running it for me to fit a 24 in between today and 2moro.

im glad he finally saw sense and got somebody else to do it,i had alot of problems at loading today (4 hour load) which pretty much screwed up my day.

i may sound strange saying this after the above statements but i like the job…when im left alone to get on with it, but when that computer beeps saying i have a message im usually thinking wtf does he want now

Clear evidence that planners are thick [zb] :unamused: It amazes me how poor they think of us even over there I thought it was only UK where were treated like crap :smiley: It would be nice to see them do the job for just one month and I bet they would stop putting so much pressure on the driver when they know how it feels :smiling_imp:

id give my apparentice planner a week before he get sick of it,mind you i dont think he could drive a right hand drive or even know how to let the handbrake off in the unit lol, my proper planner would have no bother as he is an ex driver but tbh i aint spoke to him in a good while now even though hes meant to be my planner,

828

There are a few people on here who are bad mouthing VdB, but for those few there are many more still doing the job and are basically happy.

These are the guys who understand what working for a big company like VdB is like, it’s not all a bed of roses, not many jobs in transport are. You work hard, get on with it and you earn a decent wage. You ■■■■ about and think that the planners are a bunch of idiots, you get what you deserve, less work and less wages.

The planning, I believe is not done job to job, they plan a few jobs for you in advance, with contingency plans if things go wrong. In transport things change by the minute so the planners have to change things, if you has a driver can adapt to the changes, like a good professional driver should be able to, you get on.

The planners aren’t perfect, none of the planners in my dept have any actuall driving experiance but they have years of experiance in the support network working in the background. They are told what to do and then pass it on to you, if you’ve got a concern with the planning you send them a message stating your concerns, they then send you a message back either explaining the planning or they look into it and change it if they agree.

Comunication is sometimes a little difficult has there are no native english speakers in the planning office as yet but there may well be in the future, we have hungarian and german drivers working with us and we have german and hungarian planners. Both sides are learning about each other, remember this is a new venture for VdB and there are teething troubles, for me it is getting easier, I’m learning how the company works and the little things you think are stupid are actually how they work and once you get used to that way of working it soon becomes normal.

It’s not usual I agree with Rikki, but for once I agree with most of what he has posted on this subject, apart from the bit about "who’s who in transport. there are many people in transport who sit behind a wheel and are a lot more knowledgable about transport than those who sit there nat a PC and tell everybody everything they know and think they are gods gift. There are quite a few on here some I think h, the nearest they have been to a truck is smelling the exhaust fumes of a passing scania.

829

Gogzy, you and I had this conversation the other day and I am still at a total loss as to how a grown man can find it impossible to eat for three days…

  1. You don’t need a stove to make a butty for lunch, nor do you need a stove to eat fruit or cereal for breakfast. So you could do both of those inside factories.

  2. You don’t need a fridge fitted to a vehicle to carry food, there are loads of things you can carry that don’t need refridgerating, and a basic coolbox (which is what I use) costs 30 quid from Argos. What do you think we all did before collers and fridges, anyway? Milk stores well a pint at a time on the vehicle step, and at this time of year an old fashioned insulated coolbag fastened behind the cab works a treat.

  3. If you’re having 9 off, it takes maybe an hour and a half at the end of the day to cook, wash, and get in bed, and half an hour in the morning to get up, freshen up, and get going. That leaves you 7 hours to sleep in. If you were “lucky to be getting 4 hours sleep a night” then what were you doing with the other 3 hours?

  4. It’s better these days, but as a female it’s always been hard and sometimes impossible to find a shower. So I stripwash in the wagon. Easy. Either a bowl or bucket and some soap, or - one of my favourite methods, although admittedly not the cheapest - get a plastic box and a pack of babywipes, put the wipes in the box, fill the box to the brim with water, then heat the whole lot up by the night heater for 5 minutes. Instant hot, wet flannels, and a clean one for every bti of you body plus a final rinse. Job done, and you end up cleaner than a lot of showers as well!

  5. If you know you’re going to struggle to find a supermarket, bring stuff with you for at least the first week, then grab every opportunity you can rather than waiting until you’re screwed and then being stuck. There is a world outside supermarkets, anyway. Fruit and veg from local shops, for example. Ask the other drivers for ideas locally, or even the places you tip/load at, for example. You can get basic supplies in a decent truckstop for a reasonable price.

  6. Struggling with language? Why not use that waiting time you moan about to learn some Dutch, then? It is a Dutch company, after all…

  7. Griping on about your planner having never driven and being a newbie is just silly. First off, the best manager I’ve ever worked under has never driven a truck in her life, it’s a different job with different requirements. And you’re green as grass yourself, Gogsy. You go on lke you’re Mister Experience when you haven’t even learnt how to look after your own basics, ffs! Hypocrisy at it’s very best…

  8. If you don’t want to tip off the card, say so. If you can’t do a job, say so, say when you can be there for, and stick to it. ALL planners/TMs learn their drivers limits and run you to them, but if you allow yourself to be pushed, you will be. It’s that simple. It’s also the same wherever you go in the REAL transport world. This isn’t tour work, this is standard road transport, and whilst I accept that the Dutch run hard - and have always done so, so it shud be no surprise to you if you know as much as you like people to think - it wouldn’t be that much different on any kind of tramping work. You either learn to hack it, or you move on and find another industry.

  9. As someone who has always been frustrated that he couldn’t get work because he had no experience, this is your chance to GET that experience. The reason you are struggling is because you haven’t learnt enough yet. That’s WHY most firms want experience. It IS actually worth something, no matter what you may like to kid yourself and everybody else. Time to wind your neck in, knuckle down, and start building some knowl;edge of your own.

  10. Just as a matter of curiosity - because I don’t pretend to know it all, in fact I consider myself still pretty ■■■■ junior after 10 years - what IS the Dutch way of coupling up?

830
  1. Just as a matter of curiosity - because I don’t pretend to know it all, in fact I consider myself still pretty ■■■■ junior after 10 years - what IS the Dutch way of coupling up?

It’s not much different from the British way except they don’t do a tug test and when a trailer is full they always drop the suspension so has not to put strain on the landing legs if their is an air leak on the trailer

831

Lucy:
Gogzy, you and I had this conversation the other day and I am still at a total loss as to how a grown man can find it impossible to eat for three days…

  1. You don’t need a stove to make a butty for lunch, nor do you need a stove to eat fruit or cereal for breakfast. So you could do both of those inside factories.

  2. You don’t need a fridge fitted to a vehicle to carry food, there are loads of things you can carry that don’t need refridgerating, and a basic coolbox (which is what I use) costs 30 quid from Argos. What do you think we all did before collers and fridges, anyway? Milk stores well a pint at a time on the vehicle step, and at this time of year an old fashioned insulated coolbag fastened behind the cab works a treat.

  3. If you’re having 9 off, it takes maybe an hour and a half at the end of the day to cook, wash, and get in bed, and half an hour in the morning to get up, freshen up, and get going. That leaves you 7 hours to sleep in. If you were “lucky to be getting 4 hours sleep a night” then what were you doing with the other 3 hours?

  4. It’s better these days, but as a female it’s always been hard and sometimes impossible to find a shower. So I stripwash in the wagon. Easy. Either a bowl or bucket and some soap, or - one of my favourite methods, although admittedly not the cheapest - get a plastic box and a pack of babywipes, put the wipes in the box, fill the box to the brim with water, then heat the whole lot up by the night heater for 5 minutes. Instant hot, wet flannels, and a clean one for every bti of you body plus a final rinse. Job done, and you end up cleaner than a lot of showers as well!

  5. If you know you’re going to struggle to find a supermarket, bring stuff with you for at least the first week, then grab every opportunity you can rather than waiting until you’re screwed and then being stuck. There is a world outside supermarkets, anyway. Fruit and veg from local shops, for example. Ask the other drivers for ideas locally, or even the places you tip/load at, for example. You can get basic supplies in a decent truckstop for a reasonable price.

  6. Struggling with language? Why not use that waiting time you moan about to learn some Dutch, then? It is a Dutch company, after all…

  7. Griping on about your planner having never driven and being a newbie is just silly. First off, the best manager I’ve ever worked under has never driven a truck in her life, it’s a different job with different requirements. And you’re green as grass yourself, Gogsy. You go on lke you’re Mister Experience when you haven’t even learnt how to look after your own basics, ffs! Hypocrisy at it’s very best…

  8. If you don’t want to tip off the card, say so. If you can’t do a job, say so, say when you can be there for, and stick to it. ALL planners/TMs learn their drivers limits and run you to them, but if you allow yourself to be pushed, you will be. It’s that simple. It’s also the same wherever you go in the REAL transport world. This isn’t tour work, this is standard road transport, and whilst I accept that the Dutch run hard - and have always done so, so it shud be no surprise to you if you know as much as you like people to think - it wouldn’t be that much different on any kind of tramping work. You either learn to hack it, or you move on and find another industry.

  9. As someone who has always been frustrated that he couldn’t get work because he had no experience, this is your chance to GET that experience. The reason you are struggling is because you haven’t learnt enough yet. That’s WHY most firms want experience. It IS actually worth something, no matter what you may like to kid yourself and everybody else. Time to wind your neck in, knuckle down, and start building some knowl;edge of your own.

  10. Just as a matter of curiosity - because I don’t pretend to know it all, in fact I consider myself still pretty ■■■■ junior after 10 years - what IS the Dutch way of coupling up?

Goedzo Lucy (Dutch). Great post.

832

My turn…

I have been working at VDB for nearly 5 months now and can honestly say I have had no major problems with the job. I am not here just to gain experience as i have done several years euro work prior to this. My main reason for being here is the money. I am happy with the amount going in the bank every month which is in line with what Frans has stated. Yes you have to work hard and max your hours every week, but is that not the reason we are out here?
The 3 weeks away and 1 week at home suits me fine, meaning I can totally relax and forget about the job when I get home, I have 2 young children and I seem to have more ‘quality’ time with them now than when I was working 9-5.
There is sometimes a problem with the communication using the obc and there have been a few times when I wish I could just pick up the phone to ‘get my point of view across’.but most problems do get sorted eventually. As i can not speak Ducth, German, French etc There is no way I can complain about some of the broken english from the planners.
As for the Fm’s Frans did state clearly in the inteview the i could well be driving an FM. In todays world of Megaspaces and Superspaces they are not ideal for 3 weeks tramping, but my view is that if I can store all my gear in one of the lockers in the yard, I can certainly fit it in a FM.

I am not trying to promote VDB, but I would not want any prospective applicants put off applying for a decent job by some of the comments on here.

833

Ive never done international or even regualar long distance uk work but the best controler i ever had couldnt even drive a car but he ran 30 skip tipper roll ons etc around london and got the max out of the trucks every day and ive worked at a firm where the ex driver controler couldnt run in my opinion run a scalectrex set so been an ex driver is not always the be all and end all of running trucks.
Since i first passed my test ive always done tippers roll ons etc and you are pushed to do the max everyday its the only way to make the job pay and realy dont understand when people moan they have to go to to there full hours thats haulage all over unless your lucky enough to get a job in something like f1 of music tours but id imagine even doing that work when its needed its a case of getting your head down and run the card until your times up.

834

Lucy:
Gogzy, you and I had this conversation the other day and I am still at a total loss as to how a grown man can find it impossible to eat for three days…

  1. You don’t need a stove to make a butty for lunch, nor do you need a stove to eat fruit or cereal for breakfast. So you could do both of those inside factories.

  2. You don’t need a fridge fitted to a vehicle to carry food, there are loads of things you can carry that don’t need refridgerating, and a basic coolbox (which is what I use) costs 30 quid from Argos. What do you think we all did before collers and fridges, anyway? Milk stores well a pint at a time on the vehicle step, and at this time of year an old fashioned insulated coolbag fastened behind the cab works a treat.

  3. If you’re having 9 off, it takes maybe an hour and a half at the end of the day to cook, wash, and get in bed, and half an hour in the morning to get up, freshen up, and get going. That leaves you 7 hours to sleep in. If you were “lucky to be getting 4 hours sleep a night” then what were you doing with the other 3 hours?

  4. It’s better these days, but as a female it’s always been hard and sometimes impossible to find a shower. So I stripwash in the wagon. Easy. Either a bowl or bucket and some soap, or - one of my favourite methods, although admittedly not the cheapest - get a plastic box and a pack of babywipes, put the wipes in the box, fill the box to the brim with water, then heat the whole lot up by the night heater for 5 minutes. Instant hot, wet flannels, and a clean one for every bti of you body plus a final rinse. Job done, and you end up cleaner than a lot of showers as well!

  5. If you know you’re going to struggle to find a supermarket, bring stuff with you for at least the first week, then grab every opportunity you can rather than waiting until you’re screwed and then being stuck. There is a world outside supermarkets, anyway. Fruit and veg from local shops, for example. Ask the other drivers for ideas locally, or even the places you tip/load at, for example. You can get basic supplies in a decent truckstop for a reasonable price.

  6. Struggling with language? Why not use that waiting time you moan about to learn some Dutch, then? It is a Dutch company, after all…

  7. Griping on about your planner having never driven and being a newbie is just silly. First off, the best manager I’ve ever worked under has never driven a truck in her life, it’s a different job with different requirements. And you’re green as grass yourself, Gogsy. You go on lke you’re Mister Experience when you haven’t even learnt how to look after your own basics, ffs! Hypocrisy at it’s very best…

  8. If you don’t want to tip off the card, say so. If you can’t do a job, say so, say when you can be there for, and stick to it. ALL planners/TMs learn their drivers limits and run you to them, but if you allow yourself to be pushed, you will be. It’s that simple. It’s also the same wherever you go in the REAL transport world. This isn’t tour work, this is standard road transport, and whilst I accept that the Dutch run hard - and have always done so, so it shud be no surprise to you if you know as much as you like people to think - it wouldn’t be that much different on any kind of tramping work. You either learn to hack it, or you move on and find another industry.

  9. As someone who has always been frustrated that he couldn’t get work because he had no experience, this is your chance to GET that experience. The reason you are struggling is because you haven’t learnt enough yet. That’s WHY most firms want experience. It IS actually worth something, no matter what you may like to kid yourself and everybody else. Time to wind your neck in, knuckle down, and start building some knowl;edge of your own.

  10. Just as a matter of curiosity - because I don’t pretend to know it all, in fact I consider myself still pretty ■■■■ junior after 10 years - what IS the Dutch way of coupling up?

I found this one of the most useful/friendly posts on this thread from the ‘Staff’ :smiley:

Now that the ‘Staff’ are here, will they will keep an eye this thread it as in previous posts a lot of bullying has gone on from the ‘experienced’ members, who have been there and done that, their high post count proves that??! :laughing: :laughing:
I have had the ‘experienced’ try and ‘bully’ me on this forum, I don’t give a toss cos they are just ‘binary code’, not real people. :frowning: but it’s not nice.
I have had the pleasure to meet some real members and it was a real pleasure. :stuck_out_tongue:

‘Experience’, ummmm interesting word, where do you get this elusive ‘experience’? Doing Agency work isn’t really the way, when you go to a Company as an Agency Driver you are expected to know ‘everything’, if I have a problem as an Agency driver I just say “if I could do ‘(whatever it is)’ then I wouldn’t be working for a crap Agency”, and unfortunately I made another mistake and picked one of the naffest in my 'hood. :unamused:
Why are the vdb planners ‘pushing’ newbies/inexperienced drivers like this? What is the point of making a drivers job crap or harder work than it needs to be? It’s not some naffin game seeing how many hours work you can get out of an new driver, :unamused: :unamused: OR IS IT■■? :angry: :angry:

835

Okey-Didley-Dokely:

  1. Just as a matter of curiosity - because I don’t pretend to know it all, in fact I consider myself still pretty ■■■■ junior after 10 years - what IS the Dutch way of coupling up?

It’s not much different from the British way except they don’t do a tug test and when a trailer is full they always drop the suspension so has not to put strain on the landing legs if their is an air leak on the trailer

That makes sense, especially with tanks at full weight. Thanks. :grimacing:

836

Hi all
Can I ask…why do a dutch company not employ dutch drivers but rely on foreign drivers?
Plus only getting 3/4 pay for waiting is a shocker especially as the hourly rate is only 7 odd quid!!! :open_mouth:

837

Lucy you work on containers, when your being unloaded/loaded you can go and sit in your truck and go to bed or do what you want really,

the only times i can do that when unloading is when its a gravity feed as once the manlid is open and the pipes attached it just flows out on its own accord, if im unloading under pressure i have to sit and watch the tank just so i dont put too much air in and explode the tank.
when loading i have to be up there ontop of the tank so its not like ive got time to myself when having to take breaks.

if i do get a chance to sit in the cab or on the bunk then yes ill more than happily take my break, this is not the problem.

as for not eating, when your stuck on a factory site for 2 days because an incompetent planner does not listen to you, containers dont get sent up to this place to unload, just to load but i got sent with one to unload and didnt have the correct equipment (trailers sealed so i cant check i have all the right bits to unload) i told my planner what at least every hour what i neeeded because he kept asking what was happening. i couldnt borrow pipes from any other drivers from other companies who were their because they had just had them cleaned and their trailer sealed for loading. end of my planners shift and i get a message from him.

and basically it said at the end {zb} happens. the only way i got out of it was with the help of the place i was delivering to and 2 hungarians who were luckily unloading the same product helped me me out…not my planner. i mean how hard is it to organise 2 air hoses and an unloading hose to be brought to me? or just send me with the correct equipment in the first place lke a proper tank instead of a container

as for the dutch way of coupling well their is no tug test, their is no parking brakes on the majority of the trailers.

the only thing that i see from it being sensible is dropping the trailers suspension and raising the front of the trailer, only on the proper tanks so as to take pressure off the trailer legs.

I do a job i enjoy, or at least try to but get put downs by old hands like yourself and you seem to wonder why youngsters dont want to join the industry because its put down after put down after {zb}ing put down, you know how tough the last year has been for me so there is just no need for those comments ok lucy,i could tell you to get a real job instead of being a container jockey, but im not because you seem to like it so who the hell am i top tell you what to do

and as for mister experience as you say lucy, have i ever said that? i struggle for work back home because of where i live, i dont happen to live in that golden triangle where their is lots of work.

838

dinostevus:
‘Experience’, ummmm interesting word, where do you get this elusive ‘experience’? Doing Agency work isn’t really the way, when you go to a Company as an Agency Driver you are expected to know ‘everything’, if I have a problem as an Agency driver I just say “if I could do ‘(whatever it is)’ then I wouldn’t be working for a crap Agency”, and unfortunately I made another mistake and picked one of the naffest in my 'hood. :unamused:
Why are the vdb planners ‘pushing’ newbies/inexperienced drivers like this? What is the point of making a drivers job crap or harder work than it needs to be? It’s not some naffin game seeing how many hours work you can get out of an new driver, :unamused: :unamused: OR IS IT■■? :angry: :angry:

It’s not ideal, I know, but it’s the way this industry has always been, so you just have to do the same as everyone else who came before you and learn as you go.

As for getting experience, that too is nothing new. Myself, I took every crap job for every cowboy in the South West (where I was living at the time) until I worked my way up to something decent. I didn’t earn much, but BOY did I learn. I hung around the docks and begged the small guys to let me have a drive, until one day I got one. When that went ■■■■ up I did the same again, then I went and worked for a firm with a stinking reputation and low pay who struggled to get drivers, simply because they weren’t fussy and were prepared to teach me. All time served, all valuable stuff. The key is not to be in any way fussy.

I always come to the same conclusion whenever I read posts from newbies struggling to find work - and this isn’t aimed at anyone in particular, just a general observation. They all want a good job from day one, they can’t accept that you have to start at the bottom, just like any other industry. Lower your sights, get creative, knock doors again and again and again and again. Do anything you can get your hands on. Don’t sit and wait for Agencies to ring you - sure, register, and take what they offer, but don’t waste the time you are waiting when you could be making your own luck. That’s what the rest of us had to do. Hell, I was 23 and female in a backwards and backwater part of the coutry when I started, back when most people in that area thought the nearest women - never mind young girls, which is what I was - should get to a truck was handing their husband a butty before he drove off in one, and I still managed to get work. Crap work, but still work. I got my head down, did whatever I could, served my time, and here I am. If I could do it, there’s no reason why anyone else can’t.

839

Lucy:

dinostevus:
‘Experience’, ummmm interesting word, where do you get this elusive ‘experience’? Doing Agency work isn’t really the way, when you go to a Company as an Agency Driver you are expected to know ‘everything’, if I have a problem as an Agency driver I just say “if I could do ‘(whatever it is)’ then I wouldn’t be working for a crap Agency”, and unfortunately I made another mistake and picked one of the naffest in my 'hood. :unamused:
Why are the vdb planners ‘pushing’ newbies/inexperienced drivers like this? What is the point of making a drivers job crap or harder work than it needs to be? It’s not some naffin game seeing how many hours work you can get out of an new driver, :unamused: :unamused: OR IS IT■■? :angry: :angry:

It’s not ideal, I know, but it’s the way this industry has always been, so you just have to do the same as everyone else who came before you and learn as you go.

As for getting experience, that too is nothing new. Myself, I took every crap job for every cowboy in the South West (where I was living at the time) until I worked my way up to something decent. I didn’t earn much, but BOY did I learn. I hung around the docks and begged the small guys to let me have a drive, until one day I got one. When that went ■■■■ up I did the same again, then I went and worked for a firm with a stinking reputation and low pay who struggled to get drivers, simply because they weren’t fussy and were prepared to teach me. All time served, all valuable stuff. The key is not to be in any way fussy.

I always come to the same conclusion whenever I read posts from newbies struggling to find work - and this isn’t aimed at anyone in particular, just a general observation. They all want a good job from day one, they can’t accept that you have to start at the bottom, just like any other industry. Lower your sights, get creative, knock doors again and again and again and again. Do anything you can get your hands on. Don’t sit and wait for Agencies to ring you - sure, register, and take what they offer, but don’t waste the time you are waiting when you could be making your own luck. That’s what the rest of us had to do. Hell, I was 23 and female in a backwards and backwater part of the coutry when I started, back when most people in that area thought the nearest women - never mind young girls, which is what I was - should get to a truck was handing their husband a butty before he drove off in one, and I still managed to get work. Crap work, but still work. I got my head down, did whatever I could, served my time, and here I am. If I could do it, there’s no reason why anyone else can’t.

this isnt helped by people like will pringle etc, all they see are blinged up trucks in truck mags and they want one, you know ive done some {zb} and id drive it aslong as i got paid. the most blinged up truck ive driven was andy biltons old magnum or bricktrotters volvo. other than that everything else has been fleet spec, fleet spec tesco wagons, fleet spec royal mail wagons etc etc, i was lucky to land on the rm contract but i had to work my way up from doing the vans on parcelforce to getting onto the artics over a 2 year period so its not like i got on them straight away like it seems.

ive always avoided general haulage/pallet network etc like the plauge aswell because id had enough of multidrop when i got my class 1.
i dont even want a blingedc up motor i just want a well specced motor inside, hell if it had just a fridge id be over the bloody moon.

also as for getting a coolbox on the plan lucy its a bit hard when i only get 15kg to put on the plane

840

Lucy:

dinostevus:
‘Experience’, ummmm interesting word, where do you get this elusive ‘experience’? Doing Agency work isn’t really the way, when you go to a Company as an Agency Driver you are expected to know ‘everything’, if I have a problem as an Agency driver I just say “if I could do ‘(whatever it is)’ then I wouldn’t be working for a crap Agency”, and unfortunately I made another mistake and picked one of the naffest in my 'hood. :unamused:
Why are the vdb planners ‘pushing’ newbies/inexperienced drivers like this? What is the point of making a drivers job crap or harder work than it needs to be? It’s not some naffin game seeing how many hours work you can get out of an new driver, :unamused: :unamused: OR IS IT■■? :angry: :angry:

It’s not ideal, I know, but it’s the way this industry has always been, so you just have to do the same as everyone else who came before you and learn as you go.

As for getting experience, that too is nothing new. Myself, I took every crap job for every cowboy in the South West (where I was living at the time) until I worked my way up to something decent. I didn’t earn much, but BOY did I learn. I hung around the docks and begged the small guys to let me have a drive, until one day I got one. When that went ■■■■ up I did the same again, then I went and worked for a firm with a stinking reputation and low pay who struggled to get drivers, simply because they weren’t fussy and were prepared to teach me. All time served, all valuable stuff. The key is not to be in any way fussy.

I always come to the same conclusion whenever I read posts from newbies struggling to find work - and this isn’t aimed at anyone in particular, just a general observation. They all want a good job from day one, they can’t accept that you have to start at the bottom, just like any other industry. Lower your sights, get creative, knock doors again and again and again and again. Do anything you can get your hands on. Don’t sit and wait for Agencies to ring you - sure, register, and take what they offer, but don’t waste the time you are waiting when you could be making your own luck. That’s what the rest of us had to do. Hell, I was 23 and female in a backwards and backwater part of the coutry when I started, back when most people in that area thought the nearest women - never mind young girls, which is what I was - should get to a truck was handing their husband a butty before he drove off in one, and I still managed to get work. Crap work, but still work. I got my head down, did whatever I could, served my time, and here I am. If I could do it, there’s no reason why anyone else can’t.

23 Years ago you had prejudice against Female drivers, now we have Foreign Drivers, loads of the twts and the recession. :unamused: :unamused: