Lorry driver shortage

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
As off last month unemployment was less than 5% there is an undoubted shortage of labour and if you are in the job market and the choice is working in Starbucks or killing pigs for the same money. I’d say if you chose killing pigs voluntarily there might be something wrong with you.
I have done turkeys, you get used to it
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
IMO staff shortage is and will not just be limited to haulage. In the past 2-3 decades the general standard of living has dramatically improved, as has people expectations. Kids in general have been spoilt, always having the latest phone, trainers or football top at the drop of a hat. Every man and his dog been to university and got a “degree” in something. Credit has become so easy to obtain the concept of working and saving for something has been lost and generally people have got used to living beyond their means with little or no repercussion.

Truth is for a decade or so now many of the people that have entered the world of work want cushy desktop jobs, 4 day working week, 9-4 daily and an hour for lunch. Very few people want to work in the manual trades and I cant see that changing anytime soon as the welfare state “safety net” props them up.
If people can make enough money to live without doing a s**t job, then good on them. Some of those jobs will need to be done anyway so the rates will have to go up and then someone can make good money from doing it for a short while.
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
You’re lucky. The last few trips to my closest Coop have seen:
No bottled water (last week)
No bread (week before)
No crisps (before that)
No chocolate bars (before)
It would seem so
plenty water in the tap
plenty bread at the bakers
don't buy them
can't eat it

a shortage o chocolate maybe the best thing to happen so far as the countries waste line is concerned
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
But they are government statistics, and we all know how easily they can be fudged to meet what the agenda is at the time. Contract covid, recover and get run over by a bus within 28 days = covid death 🤷‍♂️.

The 5% will not include the many millions that choose to work part time and top their income on universal credit, people on zero hour contracts earning very little or the millions of students. A better measure would be the amount of people supplementing their income with government grants, as thats is the clear indication of how many people are unable (or dare i say in some cases choose not to) support themselves.
So you're saying the arable guys with nothing but combinable crops, should jump on a truck over winter to increase their income instead of claiming subs?(y);):sneaky:
Perhaps they could go picking winter veg? Help those guys out.
 

glasshouse

Member
Location
lothians
You’re lucky. The last few trips to my closest Coop have seen:
No bottled water (last week)
No bread (week before)
No crisps (before that)
No chocolate bars (before)

Spoke to Tesco petrol forecourt chap, they had nothing edible in the shelves apart from some chocolate bars - hadn’t had a delivery in 8 weeks and were carrying stock from the store themselves rather than waiting for the supplies.
Maybe tesco will collapse!!😁
 

Lowland1

Member
Mixed Farmer
But they are government statistics, and we all know how easily they can be fudged to meet what the agenda is at the time. Contract covid, recover and get run over by a bus within 28 days = covid death 🤷‍♂️.

The 5% will not include the many millions that choose to work part time and top their income on universal credit, people on zero hour contracts earning very little or the millions of students. A better measure would be the amount of people supplementing their income with government grants, as thats is the clear indication of how many people are unable (or dare i say in some cases choose not to) support themselves.
I wouldn’t argue with that. However I can’t see any Government cutting benefits and going house to house to find those playing the system. If kids are spoilt the only people to blame are us parents who since the Second World War have had it increasingly easy. There is an increasing number of non workers for a variety of reasons and it’s going to be very hard for those working to look after those who don’t. This is just the tip of the Iceberg and due to declining birth rates and increasing life expectancy it’s going to get worse in the Western world. There’s no labour shortage in China. People are what drive economies.
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
I wouldn’t argue with that. However I can’t see any Government cutting benefits and going house to house to find those playing the system. If kids are spoilt the only people to blame are us parents who since the Second World War have had it increasingly easy. There is an increasing number of non workers for a variety of reasons and it’s going to be very hard for those working to look after those who don’t. This is just the tip of the Iceberg and due to declining birth rates and increasing life expectancy it’s going to get worse in the Western world. There’s no labour shortage in China. People are what drive economies.
would there be a labour shortage if we got rid of all the pointless jobs ?
get rid of the CPC for a start then the administrators could go lorry driving and so could a lot of folk with a license but no CPC
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
Chickens and Turkeys it’s pretty industrial and they aren’t the brightest but Pigs and Cows all day no thanks. I say it’s not a job for anyone who likes animals. We used to do the odd one for the freezer but working in an slaughterhouse I’d have to be desperate.
I would say its just the job for someone that likes animals, they would make sure it was done correctly
 

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer
It would seem so
plenty water in the tap
plenty bread at the bakers
don't buy them
can't eat it

a shortage o chocolate maybe the best thing to happen so far as the countries waste line is concerned
why are we wasting transport infrastructure carrying water round the country in lorries anyway, when there is already a system in place (water pipes), surely we shouldn't be using fossil fuels to make plastic bottles, then carry them full of water to people who have access to a tap!
 

mx110

Member
Location
cumbria
would there be a labour shortage if we got rid of all the pointless jobs ?
get rid of the CPC for a start then the administrators could go lorry driving and so could a lot of folk with a license but no CPC
its not just the CPC, its also about the WTD and periods of availability etc, people cant work mon-fri in another job then jump in a wagon for a weekend for the extra money.
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
why are we wasting transport infrastructure carrying water round the country in lorries anyway, when there is already a system in place (water pipes), surely we shouldn't be using fossil fuels to make plastic bottles, then carry them full of water to people who have access to a tap!
Farmers moan when livestock is blamed for global warming and point the finger at fossil fuel being burnt, now that not so much fossil fuel is burnt because there is no drivers and the bottled water and chocky is running out that's wrong to, goes to show we are never going to address the real problem
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
Chickens and Turkeys it’s pretty industrial and they aren’t the brightest but Pigs and Cows all day no thanks. I say it’s not a job for anyone who likes animals. We used to do the odd one for the freezer but working in an slaughterhouse I’d have to be desperate.
Same.
There's heaps of freezing works jobs going here at the moment because no one wants it and they can't get the imports to do it.
No way I could do it unless I was really in the s**t.
 

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