Hargreaves subbies to get 3% rise in time for Christmas
Page 6
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
By Derren Hayes
UP TO 450 subcontracted drivers for specialist bulk and waste operator Hargreaves Transport Services (HTS) are to receive a 3% rate rise just in time for Christmas.
The rate rise, to be applied from 1 December, will be worth an extra £4,500 annually per truck (for those subcontractors earning £3,000 per week), which is equivalent to an extra 15p per tonne.
Hargreaves said the move will add £750,000 a year to its payroll bill, a sum it hopes to recoup through operational efficiencies and rate increases from customers.
HTS operations manager Neil Sowerby described the move as a “major commitment” to its “highly valued” subcontractors, 105 of whom work solely for HTS.
Sowerby said: “We recognise that life is hard for subcontractors, and that availability and supply of good-quality and compliant subbies is reducing year-on-year.
“If the subcontractor rate isn’t sufficient you can’t cover the work, and sooner or later have to address the issue with the customer. We have decided to be proactive, paying what they need now – not on a piecemeal basis.” Earlier in the year (CM 23 August) HTS general manager Andrew Spence-Wolrich hinted at the difficulties in retaining sub contractors: “The tipper world being what it is, there is not a lot of loyalty. Subcontractors will move for 10p a tonne.” The rise looks to be a move towards the more equitable and professional relationship between the County Durham-based operator and its subcontractors that Spence-Wolrich has been pursuing.
He added: “We work on maximising our subbies’ productivity and will keep them going. We pay [subcontractors] on time every month, and our finance director and chief executive have agreed that [they] take priority.” HTS also employs 250 of its own drivers and runs around 200 LGVs.