|
Post by Fozzy on Mar 26, 2007 9:26:30 GMT -5
I dunno. The whole school thing is a money maker for those who only care about the money... Those who really care about the schools are just seen as "useful idiots" by them. They usually come out with all the good thoughts about wanting to good things with training the industry future (BARF). but when they tend to really keep the finances a big secret until the pack their stuff and run over the hill with what seems like VERY little remorse over the whole thing.
I just got asked if I wanted to start traveling to our terminals all over the country to help set up a training program for the fleet.. so I'm looking forward to doing something like that. Of course right now we are looking for a lot of drivers to replace the wave that left over the latest turn down of speed on the trucks. We went from 72 to 68 and some of the drivers who where having the most trouble with both getting tickets for speeding and radar detectors and making all the loads for the week...
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Mar 26, 2007 12:10:27 GMT -5
So you had driver quit over 68 MPH? That is 4 MPH! I have had drivers complain about stuff like that and I have had to prove to them that when you are allowed to speed, about all you do is to get you ahead of the game just enough to let you walk into a truck stop, and about the time you pour your coffee, all those trucks you spent hours passing just went around you.
If driver were to apply as much effort into using their on duty not driving time wisely as they do complaining about it, they might make a better paycheck. I drove for a company in Lawton OK called Farm Fresh, and I hauled bread and Ice Cream and you either learned to use your time wisely or you lost your job. I think that is where my dreaded obsession started.
I told one school that they needed to put an online application on their website, and they looked at me like I was stupid. Then they told me I needed to worry about my job and let them worry about theirs. This is the same ones who budgeted us on fuel so when we got to the end of our weekly fuel, we had to go watch movies at the local truck stop......
|
|
|
Post by Fozzy on Mar 28, 2007 8:55:17 GMT -5
So you had driver quit over 68 MPH? That is 4 MPH!So far, We've had six quit for 4 MPH...
|
|
|
Post by Fozzy on Mar 30, 2007 9:05:30 GMT -5
I've been pressed into more driving duties due to the fact that we've had several drivers go "over the hill" for greener pastures. I got to see two of these guys last night as they where sitting behind 12 or so trucks at the loading rack... Unpaid of course. Our company has its own dedicated loading rack, I waved at them as I drove past them, loaded, drove back out.. waved at them again and left... at least they now have a nice Peterbilt sleeper truck to sit around in.... We turned the trucks back up to 70 MPH also...
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Apr 7, 2007 23:37:43 GMT -5
Being efficient with your time as a driver can get you a lot farther down the road. The company I am with now keeps pulling options out from under the drivers and still expecting them to get the same amount of loads.
Years ago at a company in Lawton, Farm Fresh. I took an ice cream route that no one wanted and rearranged it so that the company added about four stops on the route. That made it a route everyone wanted, so I lost it to a driver with higher seniority.
He couldn't cover the extra stops, so it went back to being an unwanted route. The company no longer exists. I love companies who reward slackers and punish those who do the job.
|
|
|
Post by Fozzy on Apr 8, 2007 10:15:31 GMT -5
Being efficient with your time as a driver can get you a lot farther down the road. The company I am with now keeps pulling options out from under the drivers and still expecting them to get the same amount of loads. Years ago at a company in Lawton, Farm Fresh. I took an ice cream route that no one wanted and rearranged it so that the company added about four stops on the route. That made it a route everyone wanted, so I lost it to a driver with higher seniority. He couldn't cover the extra stops, so it went back to being an unwanted route. The company no longer exists. I love companies who reward slackers and punish those who do the job. You just hit the nail on the head why I quit the "big blue" company, they were at one time a very fine company with some high standards, when they started their desire to be the "biggest", the lowered the standards to the point where it was like a fleet full of slackers, malcontents and idiots! I got SICK of cleaning up messes from slackers and idiot's as a trainer "team" that I just finally realized that it wasn't about the training anymore. The trainer teams are a complete sham and have become a low priced team to clean up or morons and poor dispatching. Anyway... We just raised pay too, so these veteran guys and the new hires are getting plenty for their patience. So its a local job, pays better and the equipment is better than average... thats hard to find in southern Oklahoma! LOL
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Apr 15, 2007 3:02:07 GMT -5
"thats hard to find in southern Oklahoma! LOL "
Yep, that is why I had to leave Roosevelt Oklahoma and move south.
The trouble is that the brass at these companies have no idea of how to get things done. I missed being a safety man for Central Reefer in Dallas over one guy that didn't see me as qualified. The guy that didn't want me never sat his ass in a truck in his life, he was a hold over from thingy Simon trucking.....
|
|
|
Post by Range Rat on Apr 29, 2007 21:02:09 GMT -5
Hi truckertom,
You indicated Jacobson was a bit less than truthful with you. My experience with them at facilities they control was always less than acceptable. Same thing goes for J.B. Hunt.
I started driving in early 2005 with Gordon. I soon tired of their proven and well practiced methods of shorting my pay so at 6 months in the industry I went to Knight Transportation.
Tom, you have always seemed to have a yearning for the open road yet can't seem to make the jump to a good OTR company. I have to tell you that my time with Knight was great. They run you as hard as you want and will regionalize you if you want. Bottom line, they work with you. I even had them run my butt off during the week and get me home for the weekends.
As an example, how many companies do you know of that will allow you to keep your company assigned truck at home for over two weeks while you're sick with pnuemonia? What's the norm, three days and the truck is reassigned?
Although I've quit driving, I still hold Knight in high regard. I just felt compelled to pass that on to you and any other drivers that are looking for a company that really treats you as a human being.
Good luck to you.
Regards,
Range Rat
|
|
|
Post by Range Rat on Apr 29, 2007 21:06:11 GMT -5
Correction, I went to Gordon in 2004.
Range Rat
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on May 19, 2007 15:38:46 GMT -5
Here is the trouble: I am 51 years old and have seen the trucking industry go from handing drivers road dope, to sending them down for drug screens at the drop of a hat. I have seen drivers die from trying to run four days in a row only to have companies wash their hands of it and claim they never asked the driver to do that.
The trucking industry is filled with liars, but at least in the old days they didn't claim to be virgins with grandchildren. They use the DAC system to blackball drivers and then complain because they can't find drivers.
I could be on the road tomorrow if I wanted to be. I know of two companies that would LOVE to have me back. But I would be leaving a job where I bring home $800 a week with weekends off, medical, 401-K and holidays. Why would I leave that? Most of the companies I used to train for are no longer in business. Most of my ex-students who went out on the road now have local jobs....and many of these jobs pay more.
And you are now an ex-driver so you know how corrupt the trucking industry is. If drive-thru restaurants were to try what OTR companies get away with, the Government would shut them down yesterday!
|
|
|
Post by Fozzy on May 20, 2007 21:13:04 GMT -5
I'm still waiting for the mandated OBRD's that the big carriers are all pretending that they want. The fact is that this will make all that free work that these carriers have become to depend on disappear overnight! I for one can hardly wait! We are in the final stages of getting the OBRD's up and completely installed and running in our fleet, the things that it can do are amazing!
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Jun 2, 2007 10:21:52 GMT -5
Either that or they will use it as an excuse to lower wages or replace USA drivers with NAFTA drivers.
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Jun 10, 2007 13:54:15 GMT -5
I was getting my bbq grill out of the shed when I saw the milk carton box that I keep my Radio and other things in. There in the box is the nerf football that my students and I used to toss around while another was practicing his parallel parking.
d**n I miss teaching......Investing your time it humans makes it worth working. There is more to life than a paycheck.
|
|
|
Post by Fozzy on Jun 13, 2007 21:11:41 GMT -5
Yeah, I think anyone who loved instructing or really loved something would love to go back. The sad realty is that you just cant. Usually trying just results in missing the old crew and the old times. I get to train new (experienced) drivers coming from other companies. it's nothing near as fun nor fulfilling, but it's something.
|
|
|
Post by truckertom on Jun 30, 2007 17:37:48 GMT -5
Well, I am going to go down to the local quick mart and buy a lotto ticket. There is an old diner/truckstop out on 287 at 407 between Decatur and Rhome Tx and if I win, I am going to start my own school.
One of the feaures will be that the students driving time will be filmed and available to the student. It will be a 6 week school that will have housing on the property including washers and dryers.
"Have lots of dreams, they are cheap"....
|
|