Swift drivers, sound off

Discussion in 'Swift' started by BigShrek72, Apr 1, 2011.

  1. BigShrek72

    BigShrek72 Light Load Member

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    So I am curious: what are your major issues with Swift? Your complaints? What would you like to see Swift, as your company, do for you? Be realistic, a hot tub would be nice, but probably wont happen, however, surely there is something.

    You have a chance now to voice your complaints, express what you feel drivers want or need.

    I will not address these issues in this thread or respond, unless it goes off-topic. Please, lets not get a discussion started in here, lets just speak out.

    I will take what I learn here to the company. I am in a position at this time to be a voice for you, the Driver. I can tell you that Swift will listen. I cannot promise that everything will be fixed right away, but your voice will be heard.

    So, lets begin.
     
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  3. bluebonn

    bluebonn Road Train Member

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    Better fuel routes. Don't make me go 50 miles out of the way when there are plenty of pilots.loves and so on my route. Also give me a fuel stop I can actually make


    Enforcement of drivers cleaning out trailers before leaving at terminals. I am getting tired of cleaning someones mess up.
     
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  4. JustSonny

    JustSonny Big Dummy

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    Troutman NC
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    This is freakin' awesome BigShrek. Thanks for stepping up.:biggrin_25514:
     
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  5. blsqueak

    blsqueak Road Train Member

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    buckeye lake, oh
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    Better communication between DM and drivers. Actually reply to QC messages so that the drivers know that they actually received them.
     
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  6. crackhead

    crackhead Bobtail Member

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    Oct 25, 2010
    missouri
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    Well I a new driver here with not much experience but I think this company is a ticking time bomb. I have alot of problems but will just touch on them. Currently I am broke down with a new truck I got and went two miles with. Went threw the shop before I got it yet truck still had a flat tire. Get out on the hwy with it and it wont go. Found an oil covered rag laying on the turbo which was about to catch on fire. They are just throwoing parts at it now. Before this yesterday they gave me a load that was preloaded in an out of service trailer.

    Also problems dealing with memphis on weekends and talking to 5 people at a time. So I have to send 4-6 messages to get something done. I am sure the next guy doesnt read the messages just the last one sent. Then i have mutiple people messing stuff up instead of one.

    The empty chase is unreal I have had whole days looking for an empty and not paid a dime. If this happens again I am quiting.

    Getting money back for items you buy or scale tickets is a joke also. I have to call payroll almost once every week.

    Hub miles WTF
     
  7. JustSonny

    JustSonny Big Dummy

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    Troutman NC
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    Clean up the terminals.

    Swift hired the slobs that make the messes so, IMHO, Swift has be responsible for cleaning up after them. I go to terminals only if I have to....they're depressing and DO NOT foster an attitude of professionalism.
     
  8. popmartian

    popmartian Road Train Member

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    From your Handle, BigShrek72, I get the impression you wear a XXL - T when watching your favs at home on the tube and 72 was a great year for your parents! Ho Ho Ho, Pop! you must have just Popped out wearing a big grin because you seem darn happy!

    You have a lot of guts, walking into the Lions Den, the corp. suits are usually looked at by Drivers as the enemy on the TTR. They Say Corporate Dingle Berries always roll down hill. I see you care enough to open yourself up to be the bullseye for many disgruntled ex-swift drivers.

    I think most people are good and the same for companies like Swift. I think Swift has good intentions and wants to be a good company. The company has a mission. It the same as most other carriers and built around a model that has been used by the industry for years. One thing makes a company standout from the crowd, how it treats it's Drivers. Swift has a bad reputation, and not only among season veterans pounding the pavement. Can you change the way Swift is percieved by the "good ole boys". The word on the street is you Swift only hires Trainees to haul cheap freightand will not pay top dollar to seasoned veteran professional drivers,unlessthey lease and train. The Irony is you Swift needs good drivers to continue to being a profitable Trucking company.

    Swift is huge, Swift is everywhere, and that makes Swift more Dangerous. If you multiply the incident rate of 1 out of 100 X the number of drivers at Swift, then Safety has got to be the oppurtunity for Swift as a whole to improve on. Safety is important to the profitability. Driver Training and Road Skills are the key to operating a Fleet the size of Swift, But you and the Industry knows the majority of accidents occur when drivers are not on a long stretch of flat road. Skills are developed and being a professional driver takes time. First year rookies are not as skilled at operating a CMV as a veteran with 5 to 10 plus.

    The TTR is filled with wannabe truckers starting out at Swift who think its "BJ and the Bear or Smokey and the Bandit" and easy out here on the road. They are mistaken. We need to rise above the knuckle dragging chimps and stand Tall and Proud. As a Corporation it is your Trainers responsibility to teach Newbies the most important rule of the road. Respect! Respect for the other Drivers (4 wheelers), The Equipment, and Each Other! I know that is a tall order, We all benefit when we have the Attitude that we are all the same doing the same thing , trying to make a living and not injure someone or destroy something. So it is important that your training includes a positive mental attitude. A drivers PMA can make the difference between a good day and a bad day.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2011
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  9. Palazon

    Palazon Road Train Member

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    I'm no longer with the company, but maintenance was a major reason I left. It seemed to be unimportant to the entire company. A couple examples.

    My 1st DM upgraded me from 3 axle to 4 axle, telling me my new truck was ready and to swap asap. When I went to examine the truck, it's B- service was due in 400 miles (not yet scheduled) and it had a laundry list of problems to include barely legal tires in September.

    During December, I scheduled my truck for needed repairs. Had my repair time cancelled by the DM so he could keep it running loads. 2 days later, it had a brake failure on a steer tire (internal part broke). He tried to get me to keep running it.

    My 2nd DM swapped me into a truck with a bad tranny. She would get mad if I scheduled repairs. She tried to get me to keep running on a leaking exhaust.

    I had a truck blow an air valve (3 pounds per min air loss) as I was pulling in for a 34 hr reset at home terminal (Sumner). The air system could barely keep up. Put the truck into shop line, Flagged it on qualcomm as broke down both via breakdown Mac (to flagg the computer) and via direct message. Signed truck into shop status, and placed a red "do not use" tag on the steering wheel. I then went home for a 34. When I came back, my truck was in Spokane. Someone had borrowed it to go home for his 34. 5 days without a truck and my personal gear was still on board.

    The 1st thing Sumner cut when the economy turned bad was shop hours for the grease monkeys. The 2nd thing was parts supply. We had 2-3 day waits for simple stuff like headlights. This was on the common trucks like Freightliners and Volvos. The Kenns even had longer waits.

    It seemed the company didn't believe in getting the problems fixed until it caused a roadside breakdown or an accident. This needs to change badly.
     
  10. Luse

    Luse Medium Load Member

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    HMmmm well lets see,

    1.. I understand why they want to keep truck idle low.
    Why cant they implament some sorta incentive bouns
    For the ones that do try and keep it low like monthly or
    quarterly. Honestly why should I try when I get nothing
    for sweating my fat a@# off.

    2.. It has all ready been said but sweet jesus in heaven
    why do I have to clean trailers out at termanil that some
    one droped them lazy sob.

    3.. It has all ready been said but ect on weekend is about
    usefull as tits on a male boar hog. When I send a msg, can
    they at least acknowledge it.
     
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  11. Injun

    Injun Road Train Member

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    K. Here's my experience with breakdown. Last night, I picked a trailer up four miles away at a Walmart DC. The center, rear marker light was out. I brought it over here to Sapp Bros and sent a Macro 55. (I would have changed the light myself, but I'm not tall enough.) In less than 10 minutes, I had a phone call from OnRoad telling me to take it on into the shop. 20 minutes later, I was parked in my same spot with a working marker light. OnRoad did not give me a hard time about it or ask me to "limp" the trailer anywhere. Thus has been my experience with OnRoad for the majority of times I've dealt with them.

    Four years ago, I received the keys to my first Swift company truck. It had over 660K miles on it when I got it. It was a 2003 Columbia. During the first three weeks, as I drove it, I wrote down everything that was not working on it. When I arrived in Phoenix, I took the truck and my grocery list to the shop. I stayed at the motel for two nights, collecting break-down pay and got that truck back completely fixed. My only complaint was the greasy boot print on my white blanket from when the bunk latch was fixed. The boot print washed out. And I got an apology from the body shop manager.



    There are a few issues I believe should be addressed:

    On the company side, we really need to monitor our mentors closely to be sure students are getting the knowledge necessary for the job...and not being placed in objectionable situations.

    The hot water heaters and plumbing needs to be fixed so the showers actually get hot...not just a teaser piss-warm that almost warms you up. Showers should have enough water pressure and flow to rinse all the soap off.

    Get rid of the barriers between office staff and drivers. Drivers are often treated as servants to the office staff in certain notorious terminals: Decatur, Mira Loma and Otay Mesa come immediately to mind. Tear out that wall in Oklahoma City and bring the window down from chin level. I can understand the doors and windows, but I shouldn't have to talk through a hole in the window. I should be able to open the window and have real interaction with the person I'm dealing with. My arse is the same as any other woman's arse. So why can't I use the same bathroom? If office staff want their own bathrooms and lock up bathrooms in common areas in order to maintain this, it is an image of separation. Give the office staff port-a-potties if they want their own bathrooms.

    Drivers:

    A dress code. We don't need ragamuffins, science projects and Borg working here. Drivers are the face of the company. How can anyone take a company seriously when its representative goes to a customer with more hardware poking through his face than I have under my hood? I don't care if men want long hair and beards. In fact, most of the men I know at least have long hair. But it shouldn't house 75% of the species catalog of the rodent family. Take a d*** shower and wash your clothes! While you're at it, re-introduce that hole under your nose to oral hygiene.

    Clean your own trash out of that trailer before you drop it...and send in a report of any problems with it so it can be fixed...or so the next sorry soul to pick it up can be notified by OnRoad that they know about it and where to take it for repair.


    I'll think up more stuff later, but I need to roll now. Cheers!
     
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