So after several years I have decided to call it quits with Werner. I had been having some good luck with teaming for some time, really loved it actually. But when my co-driver retired after 30 years, I decided to train a new co-drive. Major mistake.
After 2.5 months, I simply could not get any sleep and Werner was not willing to allow me to. No matter what I did, not even calling a lawyer could stop them from attempting to ruin each and every break I had. I was not getting any sleep, and it was just driving me crazy. A person can only go so long without a proper night's rest.
So I started shutting down after warning them that I would need a break after the load was finished, which was usually a 12-24 hour warning. If they didnt allow me to have a 10 hour break every 2-3000 MILES, I would simply let them know I wasnt taking the next load, and I would shut down. I was getting like 4-6 hours a sleep a night for a few nights in a row, then a 10 hour break on the 3rd day usually. Then going back out for 2-3000 miles until taking another 10 hour break. It was AWFUL. Two real 10 hour breaks a week. No more than 6 hours of sleep on other "nights".
One day I had two extra hours and I needed to let my student get some laundry and a shower. So we let them know and they didnt respond. We got the load delivered early, AND GUESS WHAT? They used up our time and tried to force us to take another load instead of shower and laundry. I dont ask for much. Its only human for a trainer to need sleep and shower. Im still driving 5000 plus miles a week, in 2000-3000 mile increments. There is no slacking going on. Let me have two hours off so my student can take a shower. Are they out of their minds?
If I cant even get a few hours off to do laundry, if I cant sleep and they ignore messages that Im going to need a 10 hour break after the load... Im not going to work for a company like that. They can keep their $1500 a week. I dont care, Im not a machine, I cannot work indefinitely on 4-6 hours of sleep WHILE WORKING THE OVERNIGHT SHIFT AS WELL. Are these people really just out of their minds? They dont seem to understand how human beings work inside. Perhaps that is not a part of Business school any more, despite something they should have learned as a child.
I was offered some other positions, but I declined to take them. Because even if they solved my own problem, I know in the back of my mind that they are still treating other people poorly. They make life a living hell for trainers, and therefore for the innocent students. And I simply cannot be part of a company that treats people like that. Regardless of what they pay, or if I am doing well myself. I just cant work for a company that is mistreating other workers so blatantly, regardless of if it involves myself.
I have decided to call it quits at Werner. After several years, it became unbearable.
Discussion in 'Werner' started by Davezilla, Jul 14, 2015.
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AllBidness, rabbiporkchop, ted williams and 5 others Thank this.
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Good luck finding a better place brother
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They have to give you a ten hour break. I mean under pedestrian laws they can make you work over your 14, but before you can drive again you must be off duty or sleeping for ten hours. You can be off duty for ten hours, but a state trooper will look at your sleep, and if they feel you have not had enough of it, they will write you a ticket under driver fitness.
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You could ask for a dedicated,3M or Cabelas. In my early yrs they tried to do that with me....and I let them !! Finally decided I would shower when I wanted,,,,get my A/C fixed when I wanted,,,,the key is to state your intentions on the QC and don't give in. They came around.
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They basically would say "But you have hours!" and even if I logged line 4 to show I was up with the student, they would still give me loads that required me to drive over hours.
I would try and get the loads there on time and then take a full break, but they would keep trying to pile them on me. They would give me JIT loads and other important loads to pressure me to keep driving. It was insane.
I would say I needed sleep, and then I would get a 2000 mile conway load or something else. And eventually I just started ignoring them if I had already given them proper notice that I needed sleep between loads.
I would specifically say in the loaded message that I needed sleep after the load was done, and they would send me pre assigned loads completely ignoring that I needed sleep. If I responded by sending another message saying my availability was 10 hours after delivery, they would often send back obnoxious messages like:
"You are a trainer team, are you rejecting this load?"
or
"You have hours, why cant you take this load"
Which completely ignore that I already filled out the proper macro to tell them I needed sleep. THE COMPANY TELLS US TO DO THIS. Then they ignore it. They send us several messages every day at noon, and several times a month it tells us to use the proper macro to communicate if we are unavailable. But if we use that macro... we are completely ignored by the load planners.
Teaming was great, but training was an absolute nightmare. I trained for years doing 4500-5000 miles a week, but on 48 state they expect you to run both the student and trainer clock completely out. So I was getting 7000 miles some weeks, but then shutting down for 2 or 3 days because I was absolutely exhausted.
And the entire time they are spamming me with loads, despite knowing I am off duty. -
They offered me a dedicated after I told them FIVE TIMES That I quit. Too late, should have done something before. -
After my first six months with Werner 10 years ago as a newbie I had it. lol
rabbiporkchop and tucker Thank this. -
The you THE Legendary Werner trainer?!?!
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/threads/werner-trainer-craps-himself.39618/
Anyways here we go again where "Training" is actually just teaming.
Log yourself on duty.. under remarks put "training" (which you are) and use up all your hours during the trainee's time behind the wheel and then taada your 14 hour clock started when his did and you both can go to sleep at the same time.
That's the way it should be done not of this pretend training while lying my logs so I can drive exhausted on no sleep endangering myself and others.
I don't wanna hear none of this "but they still have me loads that required" crap.
Reject it and if they ask why say due to hours. Period.
Remember you're the one running the show, not Werner or your trainee.
If you get into an accident and it's found out you were BSing on your logs and not getting enough sleep that's on you that's screwed not much Werner.stevez57305 Thanks this. -
The bizarre thing is that the executives have gone WAY out of their way to make things better, and the lower level management is seemingly obsessed with destroying the company.
Ive been called by the heads of several departments and at least two executives in the last 3.5 years. Somehow even if the head of a department tells dispatch to stop doing something, theyll basically just ignore it. Where in the heck do they find so very many people who have so very little respect for others or even their own employers? -
Joetro and The Patriot Thank this.
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