Swift - New Pay Scale complete details

I am making about $600-$700 per week, but still getting used to it and figuring out how to get more miles. Hopefully that number will go up soon.

Training was very difficult - that they pay trainees by the hour and not by the mile is very bad. I would've made well over $1000 every week of training as my trainer ran me for upwards of 500, 600 miles per day but instead my checks were not much at all, no more than $400.

Overall, my experience with Swift has been mostly negative. I can get into details, if anyone wants to hear. I am going to try to get on with another company as soon as I can.

 

Bring it on.

 

The worst thing so far has been that I had my boots, gym shoes, and a hat stolen out of my truck by workers at the shop in I think Albuquerque, maybe West Valley City.

I started out in a Volvo, which I thought was fine, but they switched and put me in an automatic Freightliner. I can live with that it is automatic, what makes it very difficult is that it has almost no power and can't seem to go up a hill more than 30 mph - also governing it at 62 mph is a bad idea when we regularly drive on 65 mph one-lane roads, such as Route 191. I'll be getting a new truck soon anyways, I am now on home time and they made me get all of my stuff out - and they gave me a hard time about going home, I'm getting fewer days than I am owed.

The stability control alert messages are on the verge of getting me fired, if I get another one I might be done, even though 2 of the 4 that I have had were when I was parked or just driving down the road fine - the sensor was broken. I explained this and wanted to have them removed and they said no. It's a similar problem to all of the governors - I can drive the truck fine, I would like some trust, I don't need all of these electronics interrupting me.

I was supposed to get $95 of detention pay a month ago, still fighting for that.

Also, little things, like having to wait 10-15 minutes every time I call them, making me get reimbursed for taxis and hotels instead of just paying them directly - and coin laundry - are adding up. There have been some positives, but like I said, I'm already wondering what working for another company would be like.

 

Don't jump sideways. If you decide to leave Swift, then make sure that you go with a better company. Do your research.

Probably your best move would be to get at least 6 months or a year experience before leaving. That way you will be qualified for better jobs.

 

Sorry things haven't been going well for you so far, and that really stinks about getting your boots and stuff stolen. That is just really low.

You probably won't want to hear what I have to say, but I'm gonna offer up my advice anyway. You can do with it what you want.

You said you wonder what working for another company would be like. It's gonna be just like working for Swift. No matter where you go, you have to deal with company bureaucracy. Maybe some places are better than others. Maybe not. I'm not going to talk you out of leaving Swift, that is entirely your choice. But I agree with Lepton, stick around for a year and get some experience and make sure you aren't making a lateral move to another company just like Swift.

I think a lot of your problems is it appears you are out of California. I have never heard anything good about the California terminals and in my limited dealings with them, they are a bunch of nazis. If you can, try to get transferred to another terminal farther east. You can have your home terminal anywhere, not just where you live. I live in Ohio and my home terminal is Gary, IN.

About your detention, I'm betting youve only talked to your DM about getting paid for that. Good luck with that. You need to call tha payroll dept in Phoenix directly and talk to them about it. Anytime you have a payroll problem, go directly to payroll. Don't talk to your DM. He has other things to do. Also, did you send in all of the detention messages while you were waiting? If you don't reply to those as they come in, you won't get detention. Even if you just reply with "still waiting to get loaded/unloaded", you have to send those messages.

And every company driver out here will agree with you 100%. Driving a 62 mph truck sucks, but it is what it is...retarded. All we can do is deal with it and be glad we don't drive for a 55mph company.

 

Actually, dodgeram440rt, your post was very helpful. Thank you for explaining all of that to me.

Ya, jumping sideways wouldn't look good on my resume...it's not all bad, I'm OK with them in a lot of ways. Really the only other company I have looked into recently is Lynden (really love the idea of going to Alaska) but I would wait until spring for that.

I'm from California but my home terminal is Troutdale, Oregon. I've been to the Lathrop and Jurupa Valley terminals though and yes, they are pretty tough. Sumner and Troutdale have been fine, though.

About the detention pay...I was at the shipper (Jeld-Wen Windows & Doors in Klamath Falls, Oregon) and they had me wait overnight to get me loaded, talked to their boss and he said I'll be fine for detention pay. I did send all the Qualcomm messages, but what I did not do was write the exact in and out times on the Bill of Lading. I wrote the appointment time (which was when I first got there) and the out time. The first time when I scanned my trip sheet and BoL, the payroll department sent it into review and denied it, so I called them and told them that my in time was the appointment time - hopefully that will be enough.

 

The times I was in the Troutdale terminal I was impressed with their positive attitude toward drivers. I was based out of Jurupa Valley and they were very good as well.

A couple of things I can recommend for you: first, achieve Platinum status. It isn't that hard to do. Some of my trainees got there within three months of going solo. Quarterly bonuses can really boost your income. It can add $4K to $8K per year. It's also a good thing to have on your resume. Being Platinum also gives you access to Mac-30, giving you up to three loads to select from.

Second, whenever possible meet and greet with driver managers and planners at the terminals. See if they have a "bubble map" and pay attention to where freight is hot (more loads than available trucks). Use Mac-30 to select loads that get you to the action.

Third, don't turn down loads because you think the times aren't possible. Instead when you get a load offer and question the times call your DM and ask for the windows for pickup and delivery. The times on the load offer are generated by the "Plus One" computer program, and aren't the real times for customer requirements.

Lastly, communicate your status with Mac-22 if you will be late. I forget the Mac for if you will be early, but make sure the planners know your projected status. The key is to try to have loads stacked on you, meaning you will have at least one more load dispatched on you before you deliver the load you are on.

 

Wow, Lepton1, thank you very much for all that info. I'll keep that all in mind.

My trainer told me that the most difficult part of the job is the "politics", gotta get used to that

 

When I first ran solo I had something like 16% load rejections because I was using the Mac-9 to tell the computer system what times I COULD manage for pickup and delivery. Usually that resulted in an automatic message that my times "did not meet customer requirements" and the load was pulled. Often the SAME load would be sent back to me.

That's when I had a discussion with my DM, who let me know these messages and pulling the loads were all part of the Plus One system, which is a major PITA for drivers, DM's, and planners. Especially when the driver doesn't know that these are computer generated times and use Mac-9 to advise the times they CAN make (as instructed in orientation).

Toward the end of my tenure if I got a load offer with times that couldn't be met I just called my DM (or whoever answered the phone) and asked for the pickup and delivery windows. If the customer needs it there by midnight tomorrow but the Plus One system says I have to deliver it by 9:00 am, the DM will let me know that. Then I would simply accept the load offer "as is" so it would be assigned to me. AFTER making the pickup I would THEN advise my actual ETA and the system would kick back a message noting either that my PTA was updated or that I needed to send a Mac-22.

I ran 100% on time running in this manner. The key is communication. Keep the DM, planners, CR's, and customers in the loop on your schedule.

 

The Plus-1 system works within the actual time windows.
If you send the Mac 9 with new times, and your times are within the actual windows, it will be kicked right back to you with your times.

Live load and unload times are often set in stone. Preloaded and drops usually have a good window.
If you see FCFS (First Come First Served) anywhere in the load origin or destination, there will be a window of time.