Gremmie

The big L i pressume you meen Lyndon,,well he threatend to buy some ,all i got was a mini pizza tho

Well i geuss you 2 tarts will be doing the rounds soon,so i thought this tip might help,,, In whatever town/city you are in google as follows,,,ie(saskatoon trucking companies) this will give you maps,tel Numbers,websites to all the companies in the area,,try it for the route you are taking,,bet you find some co,s youve never heard of before

kb33

I think its fair to say that a lot of drivers /families that come over 3 or 4 years ago were exploited by these trucking companies , But in all fairness most if not all have got there act together now and have realized people will simply go back home if they are not treated fairly.

But if you are looking at Canada long term i.e. PR you must find out if the company know what they are doing when it comes to the PNP and PR application. They could quite easily offer you a position then six months later find out you don't qualify for the PNP programme therefore no PR. Then you have to return home or try and get another work permit but you cant do that forever ...

scooby109

That rather puts us bods of being in the position of having to stick with the big boys til we are accepted for PNP....at least most do actually know what they are doing

dinger24

Good tip! (odd for you Gremmie!) but also try http://www.yellowpages.ca/
its a good way as well, just type in trucking companies and the area!

bigwheels241

Well, all these Canadian Co's that Prey on poor down-on-their-luck UK drivers and a lot out of Canada seem to promise the world, then you see and read issues on this web-site of massive up-front payments to get a f.....job.

Well, more fool all those who have to PAY for a Bloody Job.

Guess I will have to backseat on all this, gets my hairs up........peeved off ...

As many know, I arrive there (Canada) soon, and before anyone asks:

No - Never Paid for the Job
No - Not via an agency
No - Never worked for this Family Company before - never met them till I paid my own return ticket and jumped on a flight to meet them.

Yes - Been offered even my return airfare up-front to see the job and the Bosses. But didnt take them up on it.

Yes - Money and contract conditions are very good.

Yes - I will get a NEW Truck when I start.

Yes - They arranged for my 1st 3-months accomadation for the wife and I

and to top this off.

Yes - I sent this Company an email last year with a copy of my past Exp and they emailed me with a telephone number and best time to talk about the job.

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Gremmie

And off course you aint going to tell us the name of the company

bigwheels241

Will do, but let me clock-on 1st or you lot will undermine me...

Gremmie

What you got to fear then BW ????

bigwheels241

Lot's to fear, all these Pommy drivers who paid massvie funds for a job may just start flooding the gates of the small Canadian Company and they will think I am a Union Boss with a FIST massive lot of followers and will never get to clock on.

If you get my drift.

But will let you know day after I start.

Gremmie

kb33

Whereabouts ? I mean which Province

I dont know of any Truckers that have paid to get a job out here , I dont think its as common as you think.

usca driver

wow I'm on my way to Portland,Oregon from Edmonton. a whopping 900 miles.....(Thats a joke) 2 years of hell I've endured and I see my truck as my prison cell. My landed status soon to be will be the sweet smell of freedom.......

Sounds like you guys are ready to take the plunge and I hope you make the right choices. 80% of my brit co-drivers share my dispondent feelings but that's because we work for a shower of s.... hope you choose better than I did.

.39 or .41 cents per mile is a guaranteed quantity, the unknown quantity is how many miles a carrier will give you thats the biggest complaint together with hometime. Number of miles has always been my issue. I do ok but i run hard for it.

You'll get conditioned to running 650 miles a day but getting that consistently .... good luck.

Some are better than others and I tell you there are some good jobs in Canada. But they aint on the PNP program. Ask yourself why they need to recruit from elsewhere if they weree that good?? It's a means to an end. Do your spell get landed and move on.

Of the names I have seen mentioned Bison are out of the picture (Agent $7000) Yanke probably want you running team for the first year (Don't go there!!)

H&R. Are the next best bet. Freighliner Columbia's and cascadias (Plenty of space) and well maintained equipment. Run reefers and bags of miles. They do L.A all the time (dump) and run fruit and veg back up Gives you chance to do a stop at the wild wild west truck stop and venture to the vegas strip.
Loads of dutch, german and brits on there. Without doubt one of the better options. They also have plenty of work down to Laredo. Miles you need !!!

US is 70% consumer driven and Canada's trade is 70% to/from US so you need a solid carrier during these current economic times. I've noticed a lean spell.

Anyone unhappy with their choice has the option of going to a competitor already having been put through their test by their initial choice carrier and getting another job offer and LMO going to the border and getting their visa switched there and then. That's been done by many.. Don't wait too long because you go back to square one with regards immigration papers and landing etc. Many of these carriers are beginning to feel the heat from the relevant provincial government. Stats are kept with regard to retention rates and many have been threatened to be withdrawn unless they improve.
They have a long way to go...

Here's an example of my mates day yesterday..
woke up at 7am waited for a satellite till 10 am ... called dispatch 'call us back at 1pm'.... he did... 'call us at 4'.... he did .... 'call us at 7'.... he did and at 9pm he ran Calgary over to Toon town with LTL 3.30 am arrival.. been up since 7am. (If he turned down the load then he gets no layove because he declined a job offer) That's regular and not uncommon.

I have loads I could share but my fingers are beginning to bleed now and I need a beer. lol

Good luck all,

alandoug

To USCA driver:
Whats tour opinion of Kindersley? (Siemens) whatever you want to call them?

usca driver

to alandoug.

the mate i referred to drives for Kindersley. I have loads of mates on there and every one hates them with a passion. US trucks no older than 3 years HAHA. Their terminals are mud patches, equipment is scrap and they treat u like s..t once they've hooked ya. That goes for all the group and no one will tell me different.

Anyone reading should show extreme caution and please mark those words.

They even resorted to taking on Phillipinos because the Brits answered back too much, Canadians don't do that as much, problem was that when a bunch of Phillinos off Edge got to the border they weren't able to comprehend English and were unable to fill in their I94. That made me laugh, now they just do domestic and Siemens are sick of em because they are generally lazy and don't adapt well to cold temps.

Carriers choose different running option. Some lease and some buy.

Siemens buy their equipment, they have a monopoly in SK but remember the longevity of their trucks may be 10 years so sitting idle for a week is no big deal to them because they have no monthly repayments on the truck (They'll find a way of not paying you).

You want a carrier who leases decent equipment (It's going to be home!) Because generally speaking they need the truck to earn just as much as you do. You want as few breakdowns as possible, you want AS MANY MILES as legally possible. Some of Kindersley get 9000 miles....lol I want nearer 14000 and beyond. You also want a carrier who has diversity, believe me, keep running the same route and the novelty wears off. You want to be treated with just a little bit of respect, you won't get that with the carrier mentioned.

Gremmie hit the nail on the head.... You can't compare like 4 like, neither in wages nor culture. I like the fact I am able to breathe, I have space and don't have the fear of getting a kicking by a group of yobs. the UK has lost control, government has no regard for it's citizens well being, I don't miss the rain nor the grey skies. But thats just me, Canada aint perfect but for me (It's better) Everyone has their own perceptions of good and bad.

Anyone reading please remember "Talk is a cheap commodity" when you get to the interview they will bullsh.. you like theres no tomorrow. They don't care the fact you are making such a huge commitment. Seen it for myself, you come, you go, we'll get more.

My main reason for joining this forum was to do my utmost to ensure others don't suffer as myself and many others. I want the truth to get back to England so that the word spreads and perhaps eventually the companies in Canada begin to recognise the meaning of treating people fairly. (some do)

However, one thing I know is that if drivers were united then the industry itself would have no choice but to improve.

Hope this answers your question. I'll be leaving this site at the weekend so anything else i may be able to offer anyone please let me know.

koogar

Just talking to a "friend in the industry" back in Canada and he says it's rumoured that bison just layed off 150 people?
Anyone hear anything about that?