Missing a Gear: Pulling the Hills of Western PA

So I’ve wanted to post some things that I wish I’d known or been told when I was looking into Schneider (and going back to driving in general), but just haven’t gotten to it. Then @SingingWolf started his own thread asking questions about SNI and about the Walmart accounts in particular. I decided to put my thoughts here rather than there, because this thread is my own experience, and what I have to offer comes from that limited knowledge and thus probably belongs over here.

Let’s start with how I made my decision to come here. In my case, I had to take a CDL refresher course, because while I already had the CDL, I didn’t have any experience in the past three years. That ruled out a number of companies who would require me to repeat the entire course before starting. Schneider said they’d take me as an inexperienced driver, but wouldn’t require the full course. The refresher course, by the way, was 20 hours classroom and 20 hours driving – and for me, the time behind the wheel was the most important.

Having looked at a number of options, I was interested in the Schneider Walmart account near me. So I did two things: First, I got in touch with a recruiter, and second, I posted my questions on here. Both were helpful, but you can’t blindly accept everything you hear. I asked the recruiter how much I could expect to make on the account, and he pulled up the profile from the Schneider Jobs website and said, “Well, it says here you can make up to $80,000.” And I said, “Come on now, what are guys REALLY making on that account?” He hesitated and then admitted, “Well, most experienced guys are probably doing between $60 and $70k.”

As an aside, I don’t think he was trying to snow me at all, and I never felt like he wasn’t honest with me when I asked very specific questions. Further, now that I’ve been here for a while, I’ve found that the information I got from him and from my recruiter in Green Bay once I applied was accurate. I’ve heard others claim very different experiences with recruiters, and I believe them, but I can’t really speak to that. I just know that my experience was positive.

Anyway, I took that “60-70k” number, posted it on this forum asking if anyone could verify whether this was reasonable. The responses were mixed. Some knew what they were talking about but didn’t really know this particular account, some had experience with the account but hadn’t been on it for a few years and what they knew was out of date, a couple of guys were actually on the account now, and some were just blowing smoke with their opinions. But hey, this is a forum where everyone gets to share what they think, right? And through that, I did connect with a couple of guys who really knew what they were talking about – at least one was currently on the account – and got some good info.

The point is, you’ve got to figure out what you need to know, ask the questions, and then sift through the sources who give you answers and figure out which ones are helpful and which ones aren’t.

And the “60-70k” number? It’s actually not unreasonable. But that leads to my take on the pay that gets listed on the Schneider Jobs site. I think right now, it lists the Wintersville account as “up to $72,000 per year.” When I was looking late last fall, it was listed as “up to $80,000 per year.” A lot of people dismiss those numbers. You shouldn’t, because they’re significant. And also insignificant. Here’s what I mean. Schneider doesn’t make those numbers up. What they post comes from drivers’ previous-year W-2 forms. So when I was looking, somebody really had grossed $80k the previous year, and this past year, somebody apparently grossed $72k. It’s significant, because it can be done, and it’s helpful to see that. But it’s also insignificant, because if you’re starting out as a new driver, that 72k or 80k will NOT be you.

I obviously don’t know for sure, but this is my educated guess: The driver making that listed amount is experienced, meaning he’s been on the account for a good while, he knows the routes, he’d good at trip-planning, he understands how the account works and how to slot himself for when he’s most needed, he works hard and he works smart, he doesn’t waste time, he’s sitting at the top of the pay scale, and – this is important – he’s earned the trust of his dispatchers and DBL. When they give him an assignment, they know they won’t have to think about it ever again. It takes time to get to that point, and it’s unreasonable to think that you’ll do it from the start, or even after a year or two.

And this, too: When I drove back in Florida at my first trucking job, I remember thinking a few months in that driving isn’t a difficult job. There are really only two rules: 1) Show up on time, and 2) Don’t hit anything. And if you can do those things, you can be employee of the month! But it is surprisingly difficult to find workers who can do those two things. There is tremendous turnover in this industry. A couple of the experienced guys on this account have estimated that of the 200 or so drivers, 30% are long-time, steady employees. The other 70% turns over regularly. I don’t know how close those percentages are, but I'd bet pretty close. So if you’re trying to manage those drivers? If it was me, I’d give it a few months before I’d really trust a guy, just because most likely he won’t stick around longer than that, and in the meantime, I may be paying to replace some yellow poles at Walmart or a front bumper that mysteriously keeps falling off the truck. So if after a few months you’re still there and doing your job? You’ll get into a rhythm. You may get some assignments that wouldn’t go to a brand new driver. You’ll probably get assigned a nicer truck. Management will be willing to work with you when you need them to. In other words, if you find it hard and frustrating when you start out, hang in there. It really does get better.

Probably enough ranting for now. I’ll try to add some posts on the nuts & bolts of this account as I have time…

 

Hey there! To the previous couple of posts, now from a while back: the answer is yes, I'm still around! I went through a short flurry of posts there on a week when I was running some outside loads that required a decent amount of sitting while I was being loaded/unloaded. Then the next week things went back to "normal"- running up against my 14 hours each day, crashing hard at night (and by "crashing," I mean "sleeping" - perhaps a poor choice of words there. Oops), and than going home at the end of my week to recover a bit before doing it all over again. And that's not at all a complaint - I'd much rather be busy than sitting. So why I am (finally!) posting now? Because when I came in from a load late yesterday afternoon, I sat for a couple hours before getting assigned a "next day" load with a backhaul attached to it - I drove to my first stop and shut down for the night, with a somewhat longer than 10-hour break because I couldn't deliver before 9:00am. There was an Applebee's there, which was good, because I could get something to eat and maybe even see some of the presidential debate on TV. But the restaurant - wisely, I think - chose to show only Dodgers-Cubs.

Anyway, I made two stops, the first being a quick unload and the second being an even quicker drop and hook, before picking up a load of potato chips bound back to Wintersville. That place is always fast to get in and out, and the paperwork always includes a sheet that warns of carrier liability if the load is transported above 6,000 feet, as the drop in air pressure might cause the potato chip bags to explode. So today I asked the guy about the likelihood of that happening between their warehouse and Wintersville. He said, "Probably pretty low, unless maybe you take a ramp really, really fast," and I had a brief vision of Evel Kneivel as a semi-truck driver.

But wait, where was I? Oh yeah - the reason I'm posting now: because after the potato chips, there were no assignments ready, so I'm once again sitting and waiting. Hopefully not too long. But after a few really good (and busy) weeks, this one is shaping up to be a bit slower.