I worked for them and they got rid of me for a scratch on a trailer, and I knocked down about 5 ft of small round pipe with my trailer.! My dispatcher didn't even have the balls to face me when I went back into the terminal. I asked him straight out if I was terminated, I was lied too and told no. But when I went to the termainal he ran like a scared kitten. To me knight is a chicken company!



http://www.knighttrans.com/images/Truckmainnew.jpg



Knight is a large Phoenix, Az based outfit with terminals throughout the US. They have several divisions and most recently cranked up a stand alone reefer division. They seem to be well regarded and all of their equipment I have ever seen seems to be well maintained. They do govern their trucks at 67 mph but you shouldn't let that bother you. The time you save with ezpass, prepass, etc make up for it. I've considered them in the past myself. Rumor has it that there was some connection between their founder and Swift many moons ago, but he broke off the arrangement and began Knight Transportation. I have no proof of that and am only repeating a rumor I heard sometime ago. I've never really heard anything bad about them. Take care & good luck!
__________________
The dream arose from the dusty farms of Plain City, Utah. Randy, Keith, Gary, and Kevin Knight had a vision of establishing a short to medium-haul truckload carrier and becoming a major player in the industry. They channeled their desires. They honed their skills. Then, with more than 80 years of trucking experience between the four of them, they were ready to do it better than anyone else. Knight Transportation was created on the basis of achieving growth and profitability through an intensive management style and the creation of a simplified, cost-effective operation. From Plain City to Wall Street, the Knight evolution has come full circle. Knight continues its aggressive business growth plan and has become a "major player" in the trucking industry.
K N I G H T H I S T O R Y
1989 1991 1993

Company Incorporated
Over $13 million in revenue for the year
Over 200 trucks in operation

Knight's first truck & trailer

1994 1995 1996

Went public with an opening stock price of $8 a share

Initiated the Owner Operator program
Reached 492 employees



Knight's first billboard to recruit in Phoenix, AZ
Opened Katy, TX terminal - February

Opened Indianapolis, IN terminal - April

By summer, operating 500 tractors company-wide

1997 1998 1999

Started KMS (Knight Mgmt. Services - a consulting group)
Reached over 1,000 employees

3:2 Stock Split - May 18
Acquired Action Express of Corsicana, TX

Opened Charlotte, NC terminal - June


Randy Knight retired in July.

Investment in the creation of Concentrek Logistics

Opened Salt Lake City, UT terminal - November

Over $150 million in revenue and reached over 1,200 trucks

2000 2001 2002

10 years in business

Acquired Fayard - John Fayard, Fastway Systems of Gulfport, MS
Opened Kansas City, MO terminal. - May

3:2 Stock Split - June 1

3:2 Stock Split - Dec. 28
Opened Portland, OR terminal. - March

Opened Memphis, TN terminal. - July

Listed on S&P SmallCap 600. - OctoberR

2003 2004 2005

Opened Atlanta, GA terminal

Opened Denver, CO terminal
Opened Las Vegas, NV terminal

Opened Carlisle, PA terminal

Opened Lakeland, FL terminal

Announced opening of Knight Refrigerated, LLC
Announced opening of Knight Brokerage, LLC

Opened El Paso, TX terminal

Opened Reno, NV terminal

Acquired Edwards Brothers, Inc. of Idaho Falls, ID


[LINK POSTED BY MEMBER] Only Members Can View This Truck Forum Link. [/quote]

you have to have 6 mths under your belt. even though every time i go to the phoenix yard i sit for a day or so knight still is not so bad. just like every other company with alot of trucks and dispatchers, there are people who will tell you things just to get there jobs done so they can go home. no matter what company you work for you will have to sit at shippers and receivers, you will get short changed on miles and pay, you will run into not so bright type of people. but in all and all knight is not as bad as some of the others. if you really want to work for a sorry company try out Stevens transport or jb hunt. and if you do decide knight is for ya i would avoid the Atlanta terminal as being you main terminal.

Not saying much if all you are hoping for is to not be treated as bad as others may treat you. But I guess thats all you will get with even the best OTR carriers, not treated so bad you will puke has become a plus it seems. How sad.

I got pre-hired with them but haven't called to do the next steps. The website doesn't go into explaining pay and raises, breakdown/layover, miles, anything really. I'd appreciate any of the latest info if you have it. According to the polls it's a pretty good company. I just graduated from a 3rd party CDL school btw.

because Knight, C.R. England and Jerry Moyes (swift ) were all childhood friends. their families knew each other when they were young and they lived relatively close to each other in Utah. But who the hell cares anyway. They're probably all in cahoots with each other anyway.

Quote:

The website doesn't go into explaining pay and raises, breakdown/layover, miles, anything really. I'd appreciate any of the latest info if you have it. According to the polls it's a pretty good company. I just graduated from a 3rd party CDL school btw.

4 months experience is required.

Pay starts at $.34 to $.47 on a sliding scale based on length of haul and longevity at company.

They drive Volvo's and Pete's and hire contractors

They have medical and dental which cost around $25 bucks a week for a single and you can opt out or sign ion for one or the other. The family plan is around $80 a week.

Most drivers get home weekly for a restart and drive regional routes and they also have casual which is 7 on and 7 off which is slip seating.

Each terminal operates separately and has their own fleet and budget.

They have a Idle policy which mean no Idling between 34 & 70 degrees and the trucks have heaters.

There is a raise after the 90 day probationary period how much? I don't know and a performance raise each year if you average 10,800miles with no accident or service failures. The terminal I called wants each driver to run no less then 2,750 miles per week and average 6.75mpg doing it.

They do not pay for local work. If you drop a load and are asked to deliver a local it is for free since each driver is responsible to deliver their load or someone else's. Yep thats what they told me.

Vacation is 1 week after 1 year and 2 weeks after 3 years

They pay lumper or pay for full unloads. The amount paid depends on the load.

They do not have forced dp but do have load select.

They do not route trips or fuel but want you to fuel at terminals and not fuel elsewhere unless needed.

Extra drops are payed at $15 a stop except origin and destination.

They pay $50 for orientation and it is 3-4 days and consists of a drive test- UA test- a Physical & Fitness tests (Big people may have trouble)- Written tests on company procedures- and log and qualcomm training if needed.

This is all I was able to get becuase the recruiter got tired of my questions and had to do something else.

How can these companies offer one week off after one year? It's the law here you MUST give an employee two weeks off or 4% of their GROSS income per year. No exceptions. No way to get out of it.

You can give more, of course.

Is the law different in the USA?

Yes, Big time different, a-lot of places you don't get two weeks until five yrs of service some three yrs. but their not big on giving employees time off.

Really? Wow... glad I live in Canada... again...

Companies in the US are not required to give you any vacation at all if they so desire.