Well Snowman - how is that training going for ya. You have been awfully quiet since you started training. Update us please.

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Charlie

Be nice, poor boy is probably waiting for the wrecker to pull him out a ditch right now.

apparently he got banned from this site.

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And it's official: I Start school in Lewiston, ID - 15 Oct 08

There were so many good posts in this thread, I just wanted to highlight some key points:

As a flatbed regional driver, I don't have nearly as many hometime issues that most of the OTR van/reefer drivers do/will have. You do have your 24 hour shippers and receivers, but most steel flatbed is 8-4 m-f and very, very occasional saturdays. But what you say about getting your load there as quickly as possible is key. Now me personally, I never kill myself. My trainer told me you'll never be forced to run illegal at Builders. It's just a matter of what matters more: getting your miles, or running legal. And I'm not afraid to mark "no" in the qualcomm marco block that says "I can make the next stop on-time".

There are some people that trucking is just in their blood and they can do 3500 a week and still pass through the house. (That's including loading and unloading and deadhead). I'm not one of them. If I get 24-2600 mi, I'm ok. I want to start working their scalehouse bonus program, which is anywhere between $100-250 for each passing DOT inspection (I will cover this in a separate thread). Then I can really start working smart and not hard (my trainer said work smart and hard).


This is what you use DriversDailyLog and a printer for. Very easy to edit mistakes and reprint . Those are some of the straightest lines drawn.

This is interesting. Never though about temp agencies for OTR or regional work. Maybe local work? Anyway, another avenue to get into a company of choice, take it.

Not even so much that, but you often need to recoup your initial investment of the tuition! That and they need to start gaining some experience. I did my best to stick with one company for a minimum of 6 months. 3 months if you absolutely hate them. 1 year is ideal. So brand new drivers should try to pick a company that you wouldn't mind putting up with for 6 months. Notice I didn't say "...that you wanted to stay with."




Okay maybe not 5 years. It seems like once you get that 1 year in (maybe 2 years for some specialties), preferably at the same company, with no major preventable accidents and ur driving record is decent, you can go just about anywhere. You could even bail at the 3-6 month mark if you can get something lined up with another company. But I think getting that 6 months to a 1 year in at one company just looks better on your part when u apply to the next company. vs. having to list 10 different trucking companies on your application with only 12 months total driving time under your belt.

And yes, make those mistakes with the starter company especially flatbed. consignees can get real claim-happy if they detect that their load wasn't secured right or was wet or they want something for free or a cheaper price. Add to that your driving skills you may hit something unknowingly. Hopefully on private property or no one was looking .

Emphasis added.

It seems like the union and doubles companies are like this (near 100% legal). And you get paid for the breakdown/docktime/waiting, etc. Also ones where u get paid by the hour and may have to do short haul every now and then. So yeah, no worries about even if they keep you out all weekend (unless u had something planned).

Then there are some companies who "fake legal selectively" (or 'selectively fake legal' may sound better)" to drivers who they want to get rid of. For example, (this is based on a true story now) they may give a driver a load that they know for a fact cannot be done legally. Then the same company will have someone from the safety dept waiting at the scales. Regardless of if you are green-lighted, the company wants u to pull over to get company-inspected. They conclude that your logs do not match up and you are fired or disciplined. Funny thing is, that same company wasn't complaining when the freight mysteriously got to the consignee all those other times when they used to 'like' you.

Another example of faking legal selectively is when they pit the safety dept against the load planner/dispatcher dept. In other words, the dispatcher assigns loads with times they KNOW you couldn't accomplish legally. And then u see the safety dept coming down your throat for not matching up ur logbook with fuel or hos or engine time.

One of the realities of this trucking game is that there is no loyalty from either side, and unless you get with a "good" company, then the advice that you get what you have to and move on is not cold at all, but a wise adage to adhere to. Once you get that paycheck, the company's obligation is pretty much over. And that's just about true of all companies. So you have to also make sure that you got what you wanted as well. Every company is going to offer something that makes it a good company...just depends on what matters to the drivers the most.

Of course we all want all of the flexibility as often as possible. A "better" company would be perceived as having as many perks (great pay, max home time, rider/pet policy, inverters, roomy truck, etc.) with the least amount of headaches (sit-time, low-miles, breakdowns, missed hometime, etc). Those companies usually do not advertise heavily and turnover is usually below industry average. And unless they have a trainer program, most certainly will not hire student drivers right off the bat.

Adding to an earlier quote, there comes a point where u just have to put the time in, regardless of the company, to get the driving experience under your belt.

**The advantage I had mentally is that I came into this industry knowing that I better walk out with my year or so experience, even if it turns out trucking is not for me.

Talk to drivers on the CB and at the truckstop subways and other food chains and also at pickup and delivery points. It's a good way to find out about those unadvertised companies.

Wow, I got this done while still waiting on a load to take to Thomas and Betts. I got here around 130p and it is now 6:30p. There was another guy from Western Express who came after me and has left because his stuff was ready. They are still bundling some more rods as I type.

Looks like they finished. I only got about 230 miles or so. I can do this tonight. Can I request detention pay? sure. Will I get paid it?.................What's bad about it is that builders is one of the "better" flatbed companies.

My pms are not working and i dont know why. maybe a moderator can help on that one.

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Builders Transportation, BTC Part 1 - Orientation inside scoop | BTC Take 2 (coming soon)
---
World Conflict/Confusion: The Global need for a Grand Unified Theorem. [YouTube search: "Uniting Waves" or "Grand Unified Theorem"]

Except some of us figured it out years ago, even more than a decade ago, and have posted much about the subject here.

If they've help wanted ads
In the papers ever' day
Ya don't wanna work fer 'em
Ain't no damn way...

Remember that, dear readers? Sure ya do...from like March 2006.

You're welcome.

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--Paved Dudley--

Yeah I drive a Swift truck
And that means one thing
It means she's slow
It's a typical company truck
It's just all show and no go

I'm gettin' passed by Yella
And even Overnite
I'm gettin' passed by ever' body in sight
46 days on the road
And I'm not gettin' home tonight

No, my hometown's nowhere in sight
And if you think I'm pissed off
You're right
46 days on the road
And I'm not gettin' home tonight


Love pissing off those trucking company insiders.

Then the same company will have someone from the safety dept waiting at the scales. Regardless of if you are green-lighted, the company wants u to pull over to get company-inspected. They conclude that your logs do not match up and you are fired or disciplined. Funny thing is, that same company wasn't complaining when the freight mysteriously got to the consignee all those other times when they used to 'like' you.

I can still remember what my instructor at the Voc tech said in response to my question about logging legal.

My question was what do I do if I am given a load that I can't do legally but the company still wants me to do it? His response? There is no easy answer to your question because all the answers have a potential cost to you as a driver. I can only tell you what the Law is and what can happen if you break those laws. I can not tell you what will happen to the relationship between you and the company. That would only be speculation.

USX tracked the habits of drivers on selected runs. They would have a vehicle follow you around for a couple of days to report on your driving habits. Don't know if they still do it, but my guess is they probably do.

It's funny to me. The original poster said that any company that advertises in truckstop magazines are the ones to be avoided. Look at all of the posts since then. Do people not read this. It is really simple. Wake up people.

bduke,

Yes I posted as a warning to others. The problem is that there are thousands that don't even know about this site. The ones that do know, I hope took the time to read my opinion. It is only my opinion but judging by the posts on here, I think I am right. Of course there are those that are happy where they are. Some could even say that they are the exception and they are probably correct.

Unfortunately, the recruiters for these companies are very smart as well as deceptive. Everyone knows the old adage about things being to good to be true. I wonder if legally, you got the recruiters promises on paper with a signature, would that hold up in a court of law? It's a shame that it would even need to come to this.

The few items that I belive are paramount when trying to avoid a bad company are as follows:

FYI. Items in bold are my reasons why.

1 - Any company that offers a hire-on bonus. Why would a company need to pay drivers to work for them? It seems to me that if it was such a great company, no one would leave. Unless they retire or were terminated for a valid reason thru progressive discipline. Maybe drivers willing to pay to work there but not the other way around. I have never driven for a company that had to pay me to work there. I wonder why?

2 - Any company that has bonuses in the following areas: Longevity, haz- mat, NYC, miles ran, recruiting, on time etc. Again, why does a company feel the need to do this? Remember, it's a good company that is supposed to compensate their drivers properly. They do their job and you do yours.

3 - Any company that does not provide medical, dental, vision and retirement at little or no cost. I don't think this really needs an answer from me. Do you? Notice that I didn't even bother to include paid vacation, sick days, holidays and paid jury service. I'm trying to keep it simple for the time being.

4 - Any company that has a large turnover rate. If they claim to be the best place to work, there should be little to no turnover. That makes perfect sence to me. How about you? Take a look at the average for any given company on this site. Not to pretty is it?

5- Any company that does not compensate you for all of your on-duty time. Why would anyone want to work where they are not paid for all of their time? To me, thats just dumb! I don't know about you but when I start my day at work, I expect to be paid until my day ends. Anything else is unacceptable.

6 - Any company that makes you sit waiting for a load without being compensated. Please see above. Unless you are at home or have hit you max hours and need a restart, you should be paid for that time.

7 - Any company that does not compensate you while the tractor/trailer is being repaired (unless you are at your home). I am talking about breakdowns on the road and service at other terminals. That should have been obvious.

8 - Any company that does not reimburse you for all of your out of pocket expense to get the load delivered/picked up. I am talking about tolls, scales, phone calls, lumpers etc. In other words, any amount of money that comes out of your pocket for the company. I not talking about food. I am still not sure how drivers afford to have a good healthy meal three times a day on most OTR wages. Notice I said healthy. Although there are companies out there who pay for it on a layover.

9 - Any company that expects you to give up ANY amount of time for ANY reason before being compensated. Again, does this require a comment? I didn't think so.

There are more but these should keep you busy for a while. If anyone disagrees with any part, just let me know which ones. I look forward to debating them with you.

Drive safe

What's funny is I just got an OOS for a logbook violation last month. I got my logbook score today and it was the usual 100%.

ROFLMAO

The way I read into this is that drivers should be paid by the hour. I agree. anything less is foolish on the part of the driver. No offense to others. Why don't you people want to be paid for your time. I have no arguments to any of your questions. I don't think there are any drivers out there who would challenge you. Lets give it a week just to make sure. Im not going to hold my breath.