Yep, a bobtail u-turn and safety is all over me about it.

Hey y’all. Been trucking 4+ years.
I just got out of a mandatory safety talk here at Stevens transport. I’ve got an equal amount of good and bad things to say about the company.
In any case, I was on us75 north of Tulsa about a month or so ago. I was delivering to wal mart the previous night with a drop and hook. No empty trailers to take with me and less than 30 minutes on my clock. Went 3 miles up to the mom and pop stop bobtailing to rest up for the night.
I got up to go check for an empty, and well, there was a lane marked specifically for u turns on that fairly desolate stretch of highway. Factoring in that I was bobtailing, I took the uturn and didn’t think much about it till about an hour ago.
Now they’re making me jump through a bunch of hoops which is totally fine. What’s got me posting here is I have to jump through these hoops only to then go talk to big safety man about whether they’re going to fire me or not.
I want to stay positive but I’m sure you all know how it is. I’ve got bills to pay. I really don’t want to take any chances, doing all of this work to show up in another four days to be told I’m fired.
I’m based out of Dallas Texas but I’ll literally go anywhere to not be treated like this. My mvr is clean and my dac has a couple minor “accidents” not involving another driver or requiring a tow from years ago.
What I’m mostly concerned about is what they call the “Xpress report”, tenstreet provides this service and it has, again, about 5 minor accidents I had while I was doing yard jockey work a couple years ago. Stuff like clipping off a hood mirror. These reports don’t provide for much nuance or explanation but simply put, the yard jockey job was at a poorly run paper plant that lacked space for all of the product they were pumping out.
Is there any chance for me in this industry still? Last time I was hunting for a job I made the mistake of using “intelliapp” for ease of use which is a tenstreet service so of course any company that utilizes intelliapp is gonna pull up that report. I remember getting calls left and right, going into like…3 or 4 UA’s a day, scheduling orientation and then when that report is pulled, being turned away.

I am trying my best to be open minded about the fact that maybe I am a bad truck driver, but….no. I see the state of skills and safety from the “office” everyday. I think I’m fairly good at what I do. I figure I’d ask here about any leads about companies that are, for lack of a better phrase, a little more down to earth than these mega carriers. I also don’t want to lowball myself either, I know I am a valuable employee who has just had bad luck with employers in my career.

many leads are appreciated and thank you for your time.

**edit: should go without saying that I haven’t failed a drug test or anything either. I do have a misdemeanor possession of marijuana charge from 13 years ago that I should mention for posterity but I kind of assume that shouldn’t be much of an issue.

 

I guess they never send drivers to Michigan where you often can’t make a left turn but have to go past the intersection and make a u turn?
Wild.
I wish you the best luck, maybe take some crayons and draw a picture for them?

 

If you were at that little fuel stop just north of the Walmart that u-turn lane is clearly visible on google earth. I think I’d raise a big stink if they want to fire you over doing something completely legal.

 

Nope I go to Michigan all the time, done plenty of Michigan lefts with no issues. This was in Oklahoma where there are potential turn arounds. I really should have known better but thought it was okay. This just isn’t the first time I’ve been on the chopping block at this company for pretty bad reasons.
Anyway when I go to talk to big safety guy I’m going to play it calm and collected, not argue but just tell him I was bobtailing and my mind blanked. Get chewed out real good, hopefully, but not fired.

 

It is that exact spot. The town has a really hard to pronounce name. Oppelaika or something like that? Even tho that’s in Alabama.
But apparently Stevens doesn’t give a ####. I used to do run their orientation class and they word it pretty bluntly: no I turns ever or fired and then they put some pretty heinous stuff on your dac.

 

Yeah. I’ve worked for other companies where they don’t care. I still never attempted a u turn while hooked to a trailer. I know better than that at least. But did what was practical. I don’t think arguing with safety in any form will do me any favors. Never had in my experience

 

Yup friend of mine claims he got fired when the state troopers were making people do U-turns to go to a detour due to a wreck. Turn got flagged in a computer and right to termination with a black mark on his DAC when he raised a stink.

Stevens has a bad rep for that kinda crap

@op though. Personally id not take that #### and throw my keys in their face so hard their grandkids would be crapping them out. There are SO many better options. Burn thst particular bridge with prejudice and malice in MY opinion anyway.