http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7460146.stm

whats this world coming to?

what greed...

I dont earn as much as i think i should, but im not gonna strike and expect it to be handed ot me - im bloody retraining my ass off to get my self a better paid job...

this country makes me sick.

quote:

---

Union officials had been pushing for a 13% pay rise that would have increased the drivers' basic salaries to £36,000, but the details of the settlement were not immediately available.

---

well i think ill go for my hgv licence i dont earn that and im a plumber
and they tell me i earn too much

i dont earn that much.......

Well I dont have an HGV licence let alone the extras that you no doubt need to transport fuel but as an agric engineer I have a range of skills that far exceed what they have & I get £8.50 an hour!
It works out at half what they get!
How can anyone in a manual job such as that possibly justify such a wage? I understand they have a big responsibility & will need special training for emergencies etc but it's just crackers, the job just isnt worth it.

Average earnings are already £38.5k with overtime.
Personally I think the greed they have shown is disgusting. And I don't buy that rubbish about driving round with a dangerous load, when was the last time a petrol tanker spontaneously combusted.
Apparently they have to work long hours and weekends and stuff, boo hoo.

i build eurofighter typhoon for a living, and i don't get near 32k

Gentlemen,

I guess there are tanker drivers using this forum, but have kept their mouths shut.

I am a tanker driver for a major oil company. We work 12 hour days, 12 hour night shifts, 12 hour shifts at weekends. We are trained to the highest standards, and constantly assessed and evaluated.

If we make a mistake while we are working the results could be catastrophic.

We all complain about the stress of driving in heavy rush hour traffic. Imagine 40,000 litres of petrol in a 50 foot long tanker while people cut you up, undertake and generally drive like pratts.

I have never complained about my job, it was my choice. But remember the job you do was your choice.

john

I agree with John.

I am also a tanker driver for an oil company that has not been on strike. like everyone on this forum i chose to do the job i do and was given my wage when i started the job .now i have to justify how much i get payed and am getting called greedy .at the end of the day we will only get payed what our companies know we are worth.

Andy

way of the road...

jake_truck & lotusmadandy: Fair play to you for sticking your head above the parapet! From what you say you I take it you hav'nt been shouting for more pay so I won't tar you with the same brush.
As you say you chose your job as in the main we have ours, but would you not think it would be greedy at that rate to ask for more? How does more money make the job less of a responsibility or less stressful? It not like they're stuggling to make ends meet is it?
I do my job becuase I like the variety of machines I get to work on, it's close to home & I know most of the customers by first name. But I often do a 12hr shift (like today & likely tomorrow), I have to work on dirty shitty stuff & I provide almost all my own gear.
There is the possibility someday I'll have to give up the job I love, working with & for freinds in the area I grew up in just so I can afford a place of my own. Do you think the Shell drivers on 35k+ a year are really undervalued at that?!
How many of us really took our jobs based on the money? Given the choice we'll go for the job we want to do, it's just the cost of living that makes us look at something different.

Really, I'm not having a go and yes I respect you both for putting your argument forward too especially when so many people seem to be slagging your job off. I'm often in the same position but decide not to post. Here goes though.Lots of people nowadays work 12 hour days on various shifts, your job at least is limited by your tacho so you know that you won't be working more than your max hours. Just because you carry fuel doesn't make your job any more dangerous than anyone elses. For example I used to be in the forces and have served all over. I have been in a helicopter in Iraq that got locked on by an RPG which wasn't nice. I also have my HGV licenses and did have my HAZMAT so I have carried chemicals and missiles and explosives all around the country and the dreaded M25 even during rush hour and road works loaded to the hilt with Skyflash missiles. During these jobs I was never on as much as 30K. There are people on here that work in all sorts of jobs that potentially could have catastrophic effects too.
In the past I have got to the point where for one reason or another I decided I didn't like my job so instead of complaining about it, afterall it was my choice, I went and got a different one. I've no specific qualifications, I just went to the job centre and looked it's full of jobs. Floor to ceiling loads of them. Admittedly in my job in the forces I wasn't allowed to join a union but in my others I refuse to join a union. Things are not like they were in the 80's with massive oppression and shortage of jobs. If you don't like your job or feel that you want more money then go and get another one. Like I sat there's loads of them.

The moral of the story is each to their own. If you are getting what you consider is a raw deal, do something about it. If you can do better for yourself and your family then fine, but don't slag off people for doing just that. If any of you on this forum were offered £200 per week more in a different job, you would take it. I work for an oil company as I said, not shell. The facts of the matter have been seriosly distorted by the media. Most tanker drivers earn way more than £32,000. The shell drivers want parity. I have no problem with that. If someone was doing the same job for more, I would want more. I am sure these comments will cause no end of slagging off. I chose the job because as a truck driver it is the best I can do. What is the problem with that? I am not a public servant. Soldiers make a choice as do nurses, police officers, teachers, fire fighters and so on. We all know that to make a better living is in your own hands. I absolutely refuse to make excuses for my salary. Tanker drivers are in no way responsible for the duty the government places on fuel. If I am able to earn £50,000 then I will try to do that. Anyone that moans about others doing well for themselves is jealous. Simple as that.

john

if you (the proverbial 'you' refering to striking drivers of course) wanted the same money as other tanker drivers, why not apply for a job with those companies who pay that much? Its meant to be a free and competitive market, ie shell and their contractors have to pay what it takes to get the job done. They had however many people prepared to do the job for X, who then decided they wanted more.

Now, as an employer, i keep my employees by paying them enough that my rivals cant part me with them. If i didnt, they would leave soon enough, which is how a free job market should work. All refusing to work at once is blackmail.

So to sumarise, unions suck.

[Edited on 19/6/08 by JoelP]