We are now driving for Gainey Transport, as a team. So I will start a journal detailing our experiences as we go here.

Please note the following:

1. These opinions are mine and mine alone and do not necessarily represent the opinions or stand of the Gainey itself.
2. I tend to be blatantly honest, fairly patient, and understand the nature of corporate structure very well. However, some experiences MAY be exaggerated when I do get ticked off.
3. I cannot answer everyday, we will probably be running our butts off, so give me a bit to get back to you.

When replying to this thread please lets not get too much into arguing over Gainey's current financial status. Until I am actually affected by it, I don't really want to argue or have the thread drowned in arguing over it. We are all aware or at least should be, that the company is currently not in the best state.

----------------------------

Orientation

Four days of orientation, seems excessive. Really it is fairly excessive. Most of the time is due to stalling for the drug test, which take about 3 days to get back. Sent out day 1, received and processed at the lab day 2, and then received back to co on day 3. There are some ways to quicken the process, but lets face it, Gainey is a smaller corporation, they don't want to spend 80.00 per person on same day shipping.

The 'orientation pay' amount is not known, some of us were told 100, some 150.00. We are told we will recieve this on the following Friday after the week of orientation. Then we will be on a 2 week pay delay, so loads on week 1, will pay on week . This means that when you come to Gainey, there will be a week which you do not see a paycheck at all. Be prepared for this.

There were 3 classes that I know of (we did a conference call thing with the other classes), and a total of 12 total new employees. They have only one orientation a week. They have 600 power units. So, that works out to a turnover of 8% a month if my math formula is correct. They have like 750 drivers so it may be a bit less.

Our class started with more people then it ended with, 2 being sent home for unknown reasons on day 3.

While in orientation we spoke with several drivers, one whom was there for 6 years, one for 3 years, and one for 3 weeks. All said their miles were good, all were happy with the company.

Orientation starts on a Monday, they do provide a hotel, lunch, and dinner. Lunch does not include a drink other then water. The hotel we stayed in was literally the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in ever, save for the Hilton. The hotel had a breakfast buffet which had the same things that a truck stop breakfast buffet would have AND an omelett station. Lunch was pizza, and dinner was at the hotel and was limited to four items off the normal dinner menu. You still needed to leave a tip, but the drinks/food were paid for.

The orientation was boring. Very boring. But hey what do you expect. Most of it was paperwork. Day 3 and 4 was spent on teleconferences with the main office getting instructed on Gainey policies. They go over pretty much EVERYTHING from how they maintain and expect you to treat their trucks, their pay policies, their logging stance, to safety. They are very through, but its very important to pay attention as they answer most of your questions and outline out to receive pay, reimbursements, and so forth.

The terminal in DFW seemed very laid back, you definitively feel the small company difference in the amount of people hanging about the terminal. In fact there were only 3 trucks there at any one time, and most were picking up loads. The drivers lounge was barren, I guess they are out driving lol.

As a small company they don't have all the perks of other companies, but you do get some other perks. They do offer IDLEAIRE, if you are in hot/cold weather. Most of the big guys don't do that anymore.

They are apparently very strict on logs, even tying your reimbursements to legal logs. AKA if you go through a toll, the date/time on the toll receipt needs to correspond to you being on line 3 in your log. Scales need to be logged to be reimbursed. They are also, currently, in a DOT audit.

__________________


I am a Camaro Girl because IROC!

You have unlimited chances to go too slow, but only one to go too fast.

Congrats! Please keep us updated. I applied there online yesterday.

Hey, put in a good word for me. LOL!

__________________
OK, I finally got a job! Here is my ride.



Also an amazing photographer. Want to see, just ask.

Make sure to call them to check on the app, we didn't get anything rolling until we actually called.

__________________


I am a Camaro Girl because IROC!

You have unlimited chances to go too slow, but only one to go too fast.

I am going to call them tomorrow. The site said to wait 48 hours. So I plan on calling tomorrow.

Thanks!

__________________
OK, I finally got a job! Here is my ride.



Also an amazing photographer. Want to see, just ask.

Day 1 - We already have a load to pick up early AM tomorrow. Which is good, gives us time to handle loose ends around here. 1100 miles, in 24 hours. Well so much for slowly getting back in the game. My 9 months off won't hurt too much I hope.

Our truck temp is a T2000, with 626,000 miles on it. It is a 2006. So that is like 200,000+ miles a year. We are going to pickup our real truck in Grand Rapids.

Our class was around 8 people. Of the 2 got sent home day 3. One got a T660 with 500+k miles, one got a Century with 250+k miles, and the other two, a team, got a T660 of unknown condition but they too are headed up to Grand Rapids to get a different truck.

Our current truck is a disgrace to whomever last drove it. It is so dirty on the outside that you cannot open the door without getting stuff on your hands, and banged up terribly. Inside, it is clear the previous owner smoked, heavily, and he apparently spent days burning the truck interior with cigarettes. There are cig burns on the dash, the seats, the bed, the walls, and the door panel. When we first got it the passenger side door would not close either but the shop fixed that. If this was going to be our permenant truck I'd be sitting at the Streaky Beacon right now getting it washed off. And boy would they have their work cut out for them...

Granted the co doesn't pay for truck washes and the one here in Dallas they have in the terminal is broken, but making as much money as that truck made 40-80.00 once a month doesn't make me that upset to pay. I prefer to treat the equipment I am assigned like I would treat it if it were something I was paying for. And I would never let something get THAT dirty.

That said there is one feature at this co I really do like. No forced routing.

Attached Thumbnails

       

__________________


I am a Camaro Girl because IROC!

You have unlimited chances to go too slow, but only one to go too fast.

They do not pay to have the trucks washed?

So the only opportunity is at their terminal which is broken now?

Hmmm.

__________________
OK, I finally got a job! Here is my ride.



Also an amazing photographer. Want to see, just ask.

Well no worries for me, they cannot hire in Arizona now at all.

__________________
OK, I finally got a job! Here is my ride.



Also an amazing photographer. Want to see, just ask.

Here is new truck present for you. The Devil made me do it.

__________________

Does Gainey hire student drivers. I thought they did a few months ago. Just wondering if they still do. Also im wondering what is their equipment like. Is the transmission manual, how fast the trucks run, and do they run anywhere and everywhere. Thanks and be safe.

I am sure the truck washes are not broken at ALL terminals, but cannot say for sure. The one is Dallas is. They pay for trailer washes. I wiped the door handle area down for the time being lol. The truck must have NEVER seen a SINGLE rain storm or something.

The trucks are Manual. 10 speeds. They have Kenworths mostly T660s, a few T2000, a few Centuries, and I saw one volvo drive into the terminal but it MAY have been a lease truck. They run between 65-78 mph.

The truck we were in was bad, but the other two trucks we saw from other classmates were not too bad. PM every 25000 miles. They say they run 48 states, but unless you are team you will not see much west of 35, their words not mine. There were no trainees in our group, all had experience most had 2+ years, we had one with 45 years, and I was the least experienced at 18 months.

__________________


I am a Camaro Girl because IROC!

You have unlimited chances to go too slow, but only one to go too fast.