Post by Applelight Limited on Jul 2, 2014 18:13:10 GMT
Yay!
Right, all last week I was mostly on that same run. That is, the commercial run of the east of the city. I had a much better time with the two other guys who came on. There was chaos on the Tuesday when a container (1100 litres!) of rubbish spilled out onto the street...a busy main artery of the city at rush hour. As it was a subway our foreman went in to borrow a brush...he came back with the dinkiest, daintiest one I've ever seen. It's one of those little tall thin ones that comes with a box on a stick to sweep up dust, and that's about it. We needed a frigging yard brush (or an excavator) to clear this!
Sadly on the Thursday there I got plucked off that run in the middle of that run to cover for another squad who where a man down. But it was a chance to catch up with them, as I'd worked with them last year, so still a good day all in all. It's exhausting work let me tell you.
On Friday I got put on to the West Commercial squad. Same deal as before, except now it's in my neck of the woods. The whole usual squad had it off so it was me, another agency guy and a regular driver from a different squad sent on this run. I think my uncle put me on this because in absence of an actual foreman somebody with local knowledge is the next best thing (the other two weren't from around there). Just one little problem...I got the distinct feeling that these two guys weren't prepared to take advice (or worse, orders!) from a guy twenty years their junior. They basically just, pretended they couldn't hear me. I told them that the next place on the list was right across the street, or that there was nothing at the top of this road, but they just ignored me and carried on conferring with themselves. I even said out loud 'you two aren't listening to me are ya?' and they still didn't hear me. End result, the run was not finished, and a lot of work got fobbed off onto overtime, which costs the council extra money and made my uncle glum. I was annoyed at that for two reasons...one, I feel like I let him down, and two....I don't like being ignored and patronized. See, I was way bigger than the other guys too in addition to be being younger and, I got the whole 'male pride' thing going on...but short of physically attacking them and taking over driving the truck I'm not qualified to drive there was nothing I could do.
It would go like this:
Me: So the next one is just in here ...
Driver: Aye sure we'll just check up the top o' the road to be sure.
Me: There's nothing up that way, only a ...
Driver: Sure we'll just check anyway.
(twenty wasted minutes later)
Driver: Nothing up here!
Other Guy: Aye, nothing up here!
Me: ..... ... ...
But, that was Friday, so whatever!
Monday this week was OK...Tuesday was long...today was exhausting, because I had to go out to help finish a run. So I had to do most of somebody else's work in addition to my own. I am burnt out.
Right, all last week I was mostly on that same run. That is, the commercial run of the east of the city. I had a much better time with the two other guys who came on. There was chaos on the Tuesday when a container (1100 litres!) of rubbish spilled out onto the street...a busy main artery of the city at rush hour. As it was a subway our foreman went in to borrow a brush...he came back with the dinkiest, daintiest one I've ever seen. It's one of those little tall thin ones that comes with a box on a stick to sweep up dust, and that's about it. We needed a frigging yard brush (or an excavator) to clear this!
Sadly on the Thursday there I got plucked off that run in the middle of that run to cover for another squad who where a man down. But it was a chance to catch up with them, as I'd worked with them last year, so still a good day all in all. It's exhausting work let me tell you.
On Friday I got put on to the West Commercial squad. Same deal as before, except now it's in my neck of the woods. The whole usual squad had it off so it was me, another agency guy and a regular driver from a different squad sent on this run. I think my uncle put me on this because in absence of an actual foreman somebody with local knowledge is the next best thing (the other two weren't from around there). Just one little problem...I got the distinct feeling that these two guys weren't prepared to take advice (or worse, orders!) from a guy twenty years their junior. They basically just, pretended they couldn't hear me. I told them that the next place on the list was right across the street, or that there was nothing at the top of this road, but they just ignored me and carried on conferring with themselves. I even said out loud 'you two aren't listening to me are ya?' and they still didn't hear me. End result, the run was not finished, and a lot of work got fobbed off onto overtime, which costs the council extra money and made my uncle glum. I was annoyed at that for two reasons...one, I feel like I let him down, and two....I don't like being ignored and patronized. See, I was way bigger than the other guys too in addition to be being younger and, I got the whole 'male pride' thing going on...but short of physically attacking them and taking over driving the truck I'm not qualified to drive there was nothing I could do.
It would go like this:
Me: So the next one is just in here ...
Driver: Aye sure we'll just check up the top o' the road to be sure.
Me: There's nothing up that way, only a ...
Driver: Sure we'll just check anyway.
(twenty wasted minutes later)
Driver: Nothing up here!
Other Guy: Aye, nothing up here!
Me: ..... ... ...
But, that was Friday, so whatever!
Monday this week was OK...Tuesday was long...today was exhausting, because I had to go out to help finish a run. So I had to do most of somebody else's work in addition to my own. I am burnt out.