Q&A - Drivers (Case 1)
We have asked our workers a few questions about the roles that they are in so you can hear their experiences and advice first-hand.
What is your job role?
HGV driver delivering & picking up goods.
What made you want to drive professionally?
To have the freedom to get out of a job indoors.
How long have you been driving professionally?
About 30 years.
What skills have you learnt from being a driver?
To try to drive safe.
Do you drive locally or is it mostly long distance?
Mostly longer distance driving.
How do you combat tiredness?
Try to get enough rest the night before & if possible, stop for 30 mins to rest.
What are your driver essentials?
Essentials are phone & charger, driving glasses, truckers Road atlas, bottle of water & food.
What are the best parts about being a driver?
Being your own boss up to a point.
What advice would you give to someone who is looking at starting a career in driving?
Drive safe & expect the worst from other vehicles!
World Mental Health Day 2021
World Mental Health Day is on the 10th October every year. This year the theme has been set by the World Federation for Mental Health. The theme is ‘Mental Health in an Unequal World’.
To read more on the World Federation for Mental Health – Mental Health in an Unequal World theme, CLICK HERE.
According to Mind, ‘at least one in six workers are experiencing common mental health problems, including anxiety and depression’.
Here’s our top tips for staying well at work:
Take your lunch break!
CLICK HERE to read our article about why your lunch breaks are just as important as your work.
Create a ‘To Do’ list and clear your workspace
Organisation is key! A clear space equals a clear mind.
Keep your work life at work
Setting boundaries between your work life and your home life will help to relieve stress.
Ask for help
If you ever feel like you are struggling, talk to your friends, family, or employer. Good relationships are important for mental wellbeing.
Remember
You are not alone!
Donate to Mind – ‘Your donation could give someone hope and help them know they’re not alone’.
How To: Make the Most of Your Lunch Break
How To: Make the Most of Your Lunch Break
Breaks are important! Even a short break of 30 minutes can help you work more effectively throughout the day.
Totaljobs research shows that ‘More UK workers are skipping lunch – and paying the price’.
Here’s a few ways to ensure that you are making the most of your lunch break.
Eat
Don’t be that person that doesn’t eat their lunch because they want to look like a hard worker checking another task off their ‘to do’ list. Later in the day, you’ll start to lose concentration, feel lightheaded and will have gained a headache. Food fuels the body!
Eat your lunch away from your desk
Eating lunch away from your desk can help you be more productive, keep focused and be less stressed. Your lunch break is a time to get away from work. If you take your break at your desk, then all you will be thinking about is work!
Do some reading
Something that many of us wish we did more of is reading. Place yourself in a quiet place (this could be a quiet corner in the canteen, break room, outside or your car) and read a chapter or two.
Listen to a podcast
Podcasts come in all shapes and sizes. This could be anything from, educational, comedy, sports, crime stories, etc… Some people find it difficult to focus on a physical book so, another option is a podcast. You can just put your headphones in and listen.
Go for a walk
Walking is great for clearing your mind and lifting your mood! Not only are you clearing your mind but you’re moving your body which will help you feel less stressed. Being outdoors helps your body absorb vitamin D which can aid brain function and increase your energy levels.
COVID-19 Update
With COVID restrictions being lifted on the 19th of July, it means that we can start returning to some normality in our Head Office.
Whilst we are adjusting the office to allow for more people to return to work gradually, we are still encouraging social distancing, face coverings are optional when walking around the office and there are still hand sanitising stations around the office.
We are recommending that everyone does a lateral flow test twice a week so we can take all precautions possible to prevent spreading the virus. To order lateral flow test, CLICK HERE.
If anyone develops any symptoms of COVID-19 then we ask for them to get a PCR test and to stay at home until they receive their result. Once you receive the result, you must then follow the guidance that you have been given. If the result is positive, then you must self-isolate for 10 days from the date that the symptoms started.
What are the main symptoms of COVID-19?
– A high temperature
– A new, continuous cough
– A loss of sense of smell or taste
Timeline of events during COVID at Igloo:
23rd March 2020 – Our head office staff started working from home.
23rd April 2020 – Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
24th September 2020 – Our Director Dan and Uma from Compliance are showing their support by purchasing funky face masks where all donations go to the Air Ambulance. To make a donation, CLICK HERE.
15th February 2021 – Mike got to try out our new Igloo face masks.
How Igloo Are Becoming More Eco-Friendly
Over the past few years, Igloo have been trying their best to become more eco-friendly.
We’re all about doing our part to save the environment!
We are currently in the process of becoming a paper free office!
A few years ago, all our application packs used to be completed on paper. Which meant, not only were we having to print around 30 pages per person, but the candidates were then having to drive to their local Igloo office to complete their documents. We then had to store all these documents in our office, which took up a large amount of space! We have tried a few different E-Sign websites including DocuSign and Signable until we were able to have our own, branded, online E-Sign portal on our website! Now that our candidates can sign their documents online, we are now not wasting paper (here’s to saving the trees!). Although we always love to meet our candidates, by having a robust E-Sign portal we can cut down on wasted travel for candidates to sign some of our documentation. Which means candidates are not wasting fuel. Igloo are playing their part in the fight against air pollution.
Instead of using air conditioning when it’s not necessarily needed, we will open the windows to the office instead.
The lights in our conference rooms and side offices have motion sensors so if the rooms are not in use the lights will automatically turn off after a short period of time. This eliminates the fact that someone might forget to turn the lights off and then end up wasting electricity for no reason.
We have also made the switch to ‘The Cheeky Panda’ natural bamboo toilet rolls which has been branded as eco-friendly with no plastic casing on it.
Macmillan Coffee Morning
‘It is the world’s biggest fundraising event to help people facing cancer’
We hosted our Macmillan Coffee Morning on Thursday 23rd September 2021.
There was plenty of cake to go around! Someone snuck in for their first slice at 08:50!
If you would like to make a donation to help support people affected by cancer CLICK HERE.
If you would like to know more about this charity, what they do and how it helps CLICK HERE.
Fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support
One of our recruitment consultants will be taking part in a 42.5 mile charity walk to help raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support on the 10th and 11th July. Amandeep will be walking with GEFCO on behalf of Igloo and will be walking from Coventry to Rothwell.
She will be active all over our social media pages leading up to the big walk! Make sure to keep an eye out for updates, the countdown, training and the live event.
https://linktr.ee/Igloostaffingsolutions
Any donations for this amazing charity would be greatly appreciated! Please show your support by clicking the link below:
How To: Become a HGV Driver
Are you looking for a career change? Why not try driving!
As a HGV driver you will not only need to be able to drive the vehicle, you will also be responsible for potentially planning your route (adjusting the route if necessary), supervising the loading and unloading of your truck, making sure everything is stored/strapped down safely and completing any required paperwork.
What are some required skills?
- You will need to be confident working alone for long periods of time
- Good concentration skills
- Understanding of road safety and road signs
- Good customer services skills as you may be dealing with customers and clients
How do I get qualified?
You will need different training and qualifications to drive different loads. You will need to ensure that you hold a full car licence and are over the age of 18.
The LGV/HGV licence is split into two categories (Category C1 and Category C). There is also an additional test for Category C+E.
During your test you will be covering:
- Driving skills
- Vehicle safety
- Manoeuvres
- How to load and secure loads
- Basic mechanics
- Theory test
You will also be required to also get a CPC. This is made up of fours tests. These fours tests include: a theory test, a case study test, a driving ability test and a practical demonstration. Once you have passed this you will need to update it every five years.
To transport hazardous goods, you will need your ADR licence (Advisory Dangerous Goods by Road Certificate). You can gain your ADR licence online.
After gaining my qualifications, what are my next steps?
Update your CV!
Ensure that you have updated your CV and include your new qualifications. To see our tips on how to write a good CV please CLICK HERE.
Landed your first interview? Congratulations! For our interview tips CLICK HERE.
Interview Tips
Interviews can be a daunting situation for some people. However, with our top interview tips this experience should be more calming for you.
Take a look at our top interview tips below:
- Be prepared – Do your research!
- Dress appropriately – Keep your shorts and flip flops for the beach!
- Arrive 15 minutes before the scheduled interview time – If it’s over the phone, then sit by your phone ready (and make sure it has enough battery)
- Make a good first impression – A good first impression can open doors to many great opportunities
- If you do not understand the question, make sure that you ask the interviewer to repeat or explain in more detail
- Ask questions! – The more questions you ask, the more information you get about the company and the job role!
- It’s your time to shine so make sure to sell yourself
- Do follow up after the interview
- RELAX!
An interview is not as bad as it may seem!
CLICK HERE for tips on how to prepare for your job interview.
How To: Stand Out in a Competitive Job Market
A competitive job market refers to the total number of positions that are available for one job role. A job market can decrease, or increase based on the demand for labour or on how many candidates are applying. As competition for jobs increase, it is important that you do your best to get yourself noticed. You need to be able to stand out by having a combination of the right education, experience, and skills in your industry.
Ensure you have relevant work experience
If you are looking at pursing a professional job, relevant work experience could be the difference between you getting the role or someone else with more experience getting it.
You could do an internship or an apprenticeship in the industry that you aspire to work in. During an internship and apprenticeship you are learning whilst you are on the job so not only are you getting the work experience from being in a working environment you are also getting the knowledge from studying the relevant qualification. The experience and skills that you would gain in this role can transfer into any future position.
Education
To be considered for any skilled role you need to ensure that you have the correct qualifications. An agency would more often than not choose a candidate that has appropriate qualifications and experience over someone who does not.
For Example: If you are thinking of becoming a technician/mechanic you might need a qualification in light vehicle maintenance (qualifications may vary depending on the job role and company). DISCLAIMER: Some companies will occasionally accept people who are time served without qualifications.
There are different ways that you could gain a qualification for the job that you desire. You could go down the root of an apprenticeship (as stated in the ‘ensure you have relevant work experience’ section). Apprenticeships are a good way to get started as you’ll get great hand on experience of being in a working environment as well as getting the education. You earn whilst you learn!
Another way of getting your qualifications could be through college courses. These types of courses can be found on the City and Guilds website or on any other providers websites.
Network
Networking can play a big role in helping you find the best job opportunity for you. Staying in contact with people who are in your industry even though you might not be looking for a job at the time could help you out massively in the future. Even though the people you connect with might not be hiring they could recommend you elsewhere.
Update your CV
If you’re looking around for a new job the first thing to do is to spruce up your CV. CLICK HERE!
You want your CV to be relevant to the job role that you are applying for so make sure that your CV is tailored to the job role. Ensure that your CV has been updated with your most current skills, qualifications, and work experience (you might even want to remove some information that is not relevant to the position).
Prepare for an interview
Whether you are new to job hunting or you’ve been in the game for a while ‘winging it’ should never be an option. Take a look at our tips on how to prepare for an interview. CLICK HERE!