Drivers warned over trailers
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by David Craik • Drivers at Tradeteam are being told not to drive the company's new trailers "too robustly" for fear of load shifts causing the trailers to turn on their sides, says their union representative.
Brian Revell, national secretary of food, drink and tobacco with the Transport and General Workers Union, says Tradeteam has made an error by buying new trailers with unsuitable floors.
"The kegs slip around and in one instance I understand this caused a load shift in a trailer causing it to topple over while going round a roundabout."
This is only one of a list of problems with working terms and conditions coming out of Tradeteam depots, claims Revell. "There is very poor morale among drivers and warehouse staff around the country," he says. "Drivers are unhappy with new shift patterns of two weeks on days and then two weeks on nights."
In the next week Revell intends to write to the Department of Transport, the Health and Safety Executive and Tradeteam to highlight these problems.
David Wells, a spokesman for Tradeteam, replies that one Tradeteam vehicle has toppled over this year at a roundabout but says it was caused by driver error. He also says the new trailers are appropriate for the transfer of beer kegs.
"Of course no driver should drive trailers with beer kegs robustly, but I can't confirm that this has been told as policy to drivers by Tradeteam," he says.
"These views are not new from Revell," Wells says. "It is his opinion that there is low morale at the sites. There is no evidence to back this up." E BRS's new driver uniform is so hated by drivers that one has gone to the brink of being sacked for refusing to wear it.
John Humphries, a driver with BRS in Oxfordshire, refused to give up his shirt and tie he wore to work to wear the new blue and grey outfit.
He says his management threatened him with the sack unless he changed his mind which he has done after taking union advice. • Britain's biggest commercial vehicle operator is turning its back on roads and calling for more freight to be carried by rail Exel Logistics. which operates 10,000 vehicles in the UK and Ireland, made the request to the Government in its submission for the Integrated Transport White Paper.
Spokesman David Wells admits the volume of freight carried by Exel using rail is even lower than the 6% national average but stresses the company is keen to expand this side of operations.
In February it set up Intermodal, a division to handle the import and export of bulk goods such as paper, ceramics, wines and spirits to and from mainland Europe by rail.
It also took part in a trial in July with Milk Marque where tankers were loaded on to rail wagons. It now wants the Government to increase use by extending rail freight grants.
Exel also called for a halt to any new motorways being built, for freight freeways on existing motorways and for Elis to be allowed to use bus lanes.