, break the boredom with The Extra Mile 🤩

Wow! Where did January go?? Lockdown happened and I think more and more of us have been experiencing Groundhog Day pretty much most of the month. Whilst Groundhog Day is a Northern American tradition (and a film starring Bill Murray), it also very much symbolises a day that repeats itself over and over again.

The short days and long nights of January don’t help along with the renowned British winter – although most of us enjoyed a snow day or two to break up the monotony. On the positive side, February means longer days – I am writing this at 4.30pm and it’s still light outside with sunset not due for another 26 minutes 🙌

Walks in our local areas have become a highlight of our week and a chance to get the kids and the dog into the fresh air. Many of us will have found new routes and maybe seen parts of our local area we may not have seen in the commotion of everyday life outside of lockdown. We will have dusted off those board games that have been sat at the back of the cupboard and enjoyed some laughs if not fierce competition around the table. Netflix series have been devoured and we have re-watched our favourite series on catch-up.

This all said, there are many of us on our own and maybe not feeling as positive as others, and possibly lonely with no immediate family and maybe no support bubble – if you know someone who may be struggling with lockdown, or if you’re aware of a neighbour who lives alone – drop them a call for a chat or knock on their door (socially distanced of course!) to see how they are. A little interaction can go a long way.

Happy February drivers – keep those wheels turning – the lorries won’t drive themselves 😊

We have nominated Michal Marcin who is a Class 1 Ocado Hatfield driver as our first Driver of the Month for 2021.

He offers great flexibility with his start times, from pre-midnight to late afternoon and everywhere in between, he will work at whatever time we need him. He also allows us to move his break days to wherever suits us as needs demand and gets his timesheets in on time, every time. He happily helps with shifts we need covering in Erith and does all of this with a happy demeanour!

Thank you Michal, from us all at Driver Require.

YOU NEED TO GET READY FOR IR35 !

Changes to the Government’s IR35 legislation will come into force in April 2021, preventing larger haulage companies from taking on drivers who work as Ltd Companies. Instead, you’ll need to be employed as a PAYE worker — either as part of a haulage company's permanent driver pool or on your agency’s payroll, or as an agency worker through an Umbrella scheme.

If you are working through a Ltd Company you may continue to do so until the beginning of April 2021. Remember that, as a Director of your Ltd Company, you will remain responsible for paying your PAYE tax and National Insurance Contributions and you will be liable to HMRC for any underpayment.

As we approach April 2021, we will work closely with you to guide you through the decision on whether to transfer to PAYE and how to do this as cost-effectively and smoothly as possible.

If you transfer to PAYE, you will have two options, which have different benefits and disadvantages:

Work through an Umbrella PAYE scheme
Transfer to the Driver Require PAYE payroll

We only work with the best and most compliant Umbrella companies, all of whom are FCSA accredited (the industry “gold standard”) so you should have no concern that you will receive an excellent service and your taxes will be processed correctly.

Are you a Ltd Company Contractor? You need to get ready for IR35

In the meantime we are working hard to negotiate the best market pay rates for you.

We have thoroughly updated our website with all the information you need to guide you through this change:

Go to driverrequire.co.uk/ir35#drivers

Should you have any questions please contact your branch who are keen to help you through this process.

They say ‘charity begins at home’ – well in our case it began in our local community. We heard of an urgent appeal, from People for People – Stevenage (a local community charity), for laptops and tablets for the children who were being schooled at home. There are many families in the area who have no electronic device provision or families with multiple children sharing one device – during this time of remote learning, it is far from ideal!

We had the brainwave that we had recently done an audit of all our ‘old’ laptops and they may no longer be fit for purpose for us but we hoped that some still had enough life in them that they could potentially be of use. We knew that some would not be suitable due to their age but we were confident that many could be reset and passed on to the children through the charity.

We set off on a mission to charge the laptops and reset them to be ready for use. We were pleasantly surprised that we managed to get 15 laptops wiped and ready so we contacted Kenny at People for People, Stevenage and we arranged for him to collect from the branch – all social distanced and safe of course.

People for People, Stevenage were so grateful and told us they were going to be distributed to the children through one of the local schools. Not only were we able to help, it helped spread the word to other businesses who stepped in to help with the cause too.

It feels good to give back to the community we work in.

ANNOUNCING OUR COMPANY TRAILBLAZERS

We celebrate our company award winners 2020

Going far beyond the call of duty, doing more than others expect. This is what excellence is all about. It comes from striving, maintaining the highest standards, looking after the smallest detail, and going beyond the extra mile.

Recently, we recognised just some of our extraordinary team members in our Company Awards (online) ceremony. These exceptional people exemplify all that we strive to achieve as a company – best practice, excellence, dedication, enthusiasm and sheer hard graft.

OUR TRAILBLAZERS IN 2020 ARE:

Team of the Year: The Ocado Account Management Team (Kerry Gevaux, Mike Beard, Gemma Purps, Andreea Munteanu, Vicky Collyer, Liam Poolman, Nathan Humphreys, Andy Griffiths)

Read more...

Employee of the Year: Mike Beard (Ocado Account Management Team)

Significant Improvement Award: Matt Neville (Consultant, Stevenage)

Special Recognition Award: Maxine Dobbin (Payroll & Accounts)

Company Award: Hugo Dawson (Branch Manager, Stevenage)

Read more...

Welcome to our new, regular feature - The Health Hub.

Health and wellness has become a hot topic in recent years and is relevant now more than ever during the pandemic. From exercise regimes to new diets, everyone seems to be on the hunt for the next big thing.

In The Health Hub, we'll be putting together tips and information for living a healthy lifestyle. From nutrition and fitness to mental health, we have lots of useful resources to help boost your well-being and to make sure you're staying well as you keep the nation's businesses on the road.

This month we're talking posture and simple stretching exercises....

Keep fit, Keep healthy...

It's important to make sure that you're keeping fit, healthy and strong whilst you're driving.

Driving is mostly a sedentary job so it is important to be aware of your posture and to try and keep active while you are on your rest periods.

Maintaining good posture:

As a truck driver we understand that you probably spend most of your time sitting in your cab. Sitting is a big part of your job, right? If you pull up at any truck stop and look around at other drivers getting out of their cabs, chances are you would see someone struggling from some sort of discomfort. Whether it is that first big stretch they make as they start to walk around, or even worse, walking with a hunch and have clear, visible, upper body stiffness. Read more in these useful areticles:

https://www.freightlink.co.uk/knowledge/articles/health-series-hgv-driver-posture

https://www.thewindscreenco.co.uk/help-advice/what-is-the-correct-hgv-and-truck-driving-posture/

And it's not just about working towards a healthy body, mental health is so important. We've curated a few articles for you and your family:

Coping with going into work during coronavirus

If you’re going into work during coronavirus, Mind mental health charity offers some excellent advice and guidance to help you feel more able to cope. The information provides tips for understanding difficult feelings, managing stress and anxiety and taking care of your mental wellbeing.

It also tells you where you can find support. Here are a few but check out their website for the full list of resources and services:

You may find these pages helpful:
seeking help for a mental health problem.
facing and overcoming barriers, if you’re finding it difficult to access support.
tips for taking care of your mental health during coronavirus.

Go to: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/coronavirus-useful-contacts/

Next month, we'll include a feature on Home-schooling and Lockdown Advice and Tips for Parents