Labourer vs Forklift truck?

FreshFruit

(skip below --- to get to the point)
Hello, I was looking for some extra income, the problem is that i'm not really qualified in much. I have decent GCSE's / A - Levels but aside from working on my own projects I don't have a good job history - it's mostly cash in hand or jobs I got fired/quit.

I'm studying something on the side and doing odd things, until then I wanted to work for 1-2 years and bank all the extra.

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The two ideas I have are obtaining a CSCS card and working as a labourer or becoming a forklift truck driver - it seems a CSCS card would be £200ish all in whilst a fl truck license would seem to be £750 ish

I was also looking at HGV training but you're talking many thousands so not right now.

I'm unsure, is it worth getting a CSCS card? A lot of job offers ask for experience and references, i'm unsure as to how much demand there is, it seems that the pay is somewhat ok at £9-11/hr.

VictorT

I got a counterbalance certificate but was very disappointed with the pay on offer. It's a lot of legal responsibility for being in charge of a dangerous machine when you could earn as much or more standing around in a shop. I think you'd do better picking up casual work at a good rate of pay on a building site. You'll also make more contacts there.

eamon

Warehouse work (and that is the spiritual home of forklifts) is poorly paid. You will struggle to earn more than the minimum wage with a FLT driving abilty or not.

Building site labourers can earn lots of money but you need to be part of a team that is always working.
I think your idea of LGV driving is your best one. Pays better, conditions are usually better and there are always jobs once your face gets known.
This is just one site that I found on the net. I have no idea if they are good, bad or indifferent but looking and doing the research costs nothing.
https://www.hgvtraining.co.uk/how-to-become-a-lorry-driver-in-the-uk/

Xbigman

Also, a lot of warehouses require you to pass their own internal forklift tests as a requirement of their insurance.

With xmas coming there will be a ton of warehousing jobs going. Good workers often get kept on (as long term agency) after xmas so that is a good way into warehousing. Stick it out long enough and you can get a permanent warehouse job which have better rates of pay.


Darren

JustAnotherSaver

Maybe you could get on somewhere where they'll put you through your fork lift training so you don't have to pay for it yourself. You may initially be able to drive the fork lifts without a ticket and just some on site training & they'll possibly send you off for training.





Regards HGV training & becoming a HGV driver, all i'll say there is be fully aware of what you're getting in to. You may or may not know that it's not just simply driving. Not to try and put you off but i know many who are unhappy with the way it seems to be going and some that are trying to get out of it altogether although whether all their issues are HGV-issues as in all HGV drivers have to face them or just company-issues i'm not 100% sure as i'm not a HGV driver myself.

suki1964

£9 to £11 an hour?

Id rather shelf fill in a supermarket for those wages tbh

Don't get me wrong, I work in a MW job and tbh, its a lot better then when I was working as a chef for just 50p an hour more. No responsibility or worry whatsoever

If you want to get your HGV, have no dependents etc, try the forces, get paid to train, do three years, and you have a solid CV plus a skill to move forwards with

JustAnotherSaver

suki1964 wrote: »

£9 to £11 an hour?

Id rather shelf fill in a supermarket for those wages tbh

I always think that kind of comment is pretty insulting to those who do the job. It comes across as though it's the lowest of the low.


I wonder who wins in a shelf stacker vs McDonalds flipper bottom-rung-of-ladder face off.


To be honest, £9/hr shelf stacking or £9/hr driving a fork lift, i'd rather the fork lift. Less robot-conveyor-belt like. At least the case in my experience.

suki1964

JustAnotherSaver wrote: »

I always think that kind of comment is pretty insulting to those who do the job. It comes across as though it's the lowest of the low.


I wonder who wins in a shelf stacker vs McDonalds flipper bottom-rung-of-ladder face off.


To be honest, £9/hr shelf stacking or £9/hr driving a fork lift, i'd rather the fork lift. Less robot-conveyor-belt like. At least the case in my experience.

As I said in my next sentence I do a NMW job, one that shelf stackers would turn their nose up at

Id love to get back into a supermarket but unfortunately those jobs are hard to get here

1886

The HGV licence which will initially allow you to drive 7.5T and Class 2 will cost £1,000+. You’ll almost certainly have to go down the agency route for work once passed, most direct employers want min two years exp for insurance reasons

After obtaining the class 2 licence you can go for class 1. Depending on where you live 7.5T work could well be minimum wage, class 2 probably 9.50+ an hour up to maybe £11. It’s a big outlay initially to get the licence so requires a lot of thought

Truck Net UK have a wannabe section

MEM62

VictorT wrote: »

I got a counterbalance certificate but was very disappointed with the pay on offer. It's a lot of legal responsibility for being in charge of a dangerous machine when you could earn as much or more standing around in a shop.

So you viewed that as the limit of your prospects?

The guy that works for me as our warehouse manager started as a warehouseman, progressed through supervisor and now runs our warehousing operation. Another of my warehouse guys migrated into the office and is now an export supervisor and doing nicely for himself.

Warehousing, logistics, freight forwarding, fulfilment, these are all well established stable industries and getting a forklift license is a way into the game, once there your career is limited only by own talents and ambition.

If you look and a job as dead end it will be. If you look at it as an opportunity it may well prove to be.

patman99

At £750, I expect the op is refering to a telehandler operator's certificate as you can get counter balance flt certificates done free if you are unemployed or on low income.


Same with CSCS card. I renewed mine tail end of 2018 at no cost to myself.
If the op does indeed mean a telehandler, then most sites require a level 2 NVQ and a blue CPCS card before they will allow you on site.


Telehandler pay is around £17.50 an hour.


The CSCS card route opens up more than just labouring. If the op is good at painting and making-good, then they can get on site as a handyman at £14+ per hour.
Been there and done that myself.