Carstensen & Sons Trucking reviews

Used to be a great company to work for that took care of the equipment and drivers, wish the same could still be said. Used to be when something on the truck or trailer needed to be fixed it would get done in a reasonably timely manner, now they push it off for a long as they can get away with. It's very hard to get ahead and make money here since dispatching is pretty inefficient, which is funny considering that they are constantly talking about limiting dead head miles but yet they'll bounce you across the state and not even think twice about it. It's also hard to make money since they dispatch loads based on how much you make so that way pay can be equal. Definitely not a company where more work equals more pay. They also expect you to do a lot of work for free, they do not see our time a valuable, and will try to avoid paying anymore then they have to whenever they can. When I first started here this place felt like family, but that has since changed. Driver morale is extremely low, causing drivers, myself included, to start looking for new employment. There is a wedge between the people in the office and the drivers and it's only getting bigger. As for management (shop or general), they're best friends with the owner, as in they go on vacation with each other, etc. Which really drives in the "us vs them" mentality. If you have a problem with either manager, you can't go to the general manager because she is married to the shop manager, and you can't go to the owner because they're all friends. It creates a very conflicting situation with no protection to the driver from retaliation. The further south you live the less they care about you, if you live close enough to the metro you'll get treated better than if you're "just an iowa guy." Overall this could still be a great company, I thought this was going to be the last I ever worked for but unfortunately things have gone downhill and that's no longer the case. This company could save itself with different management and better more efficient dispatching that would make money instead of lose money. I hate to say it but this company is falling into the "first generation built it, second generation ruined it" category. I honestly hope that things change soon, because not only myself but other drivers don't want to leave because we know what the company has too offer but we've also lost a lot of faith and trust in the company.

Bout best you will find, no better owner, office and shop personal out there. These people are top of line people..

Very enjoyable smaller company to work for. Has a family type atmosphere. I plan on staying with them for a long time