Link America .BAD

Not upset, just don't like story tellers... Like I said, show the black and white and I will eat every word. Until then...

I agree, truck drivers should get paid more, but there are way too many greedy companies out there that will ever allow that to happen. Saying the average driver makes $80k/year at .40/mile is a joke! Any company driver making that right now in today's economy is NOT being truthful. Sorry, but it is my opinion.

Really? Lol! I can make mine show that I'm legal as well. The other 5 or 6 won't, but the one in that DOT officers hands will be. It doesn't mean that I was legal, does it.

 

Do NOT go to work for Link America, especially their Lakeland terminal. I was involved in an accident where an 81 year old woman went into diabetic shock and ran into my truck. I was not issued a citation and no one was injured. They screwed around with me after the accident. Sent someone to pick up my truck the week following the accident. The following week I returned to work and was sent to recover a truck. The truck wouldn't start and required new batteries. The inside of the truck was trashed!! L/A put me up in a hotel and paid for my meals while the inside of the truck was being detailed. Think that was nice of them? Read on!!!! After being at the Lakeland terminal, the terminal manager came out to me and provoked an altercation. Turned around to find a cab waiting to take me to the bus station. Did I resign? No!!! Did they terminate me? I don't know!!!

They still owed me 2 paychecks. Still waiting for the second to the last paycheck. Upon going into the driver settlement, I found out that my final paycheck is considerably lower that what it should be. They charged me for the hotel/meals plus deducted the orientation and drug test fees!!!!!!

DO NOT go to work for this company!!!!!! They don't care about their drivers or the drivers families!!!!

Do your homework and ask a lot of questions before taking a driving position with any company. Look on this forum as well. There are plenty of drivers who are willing to give their advice. Hope you don't get screwed like I did!!!!

 

I agree with the post here-experienced drivers with 3 or more years should not make less than 40 cents a mile. As I stated previously here-I made 30 cents a mile for Carretta Trucking out of Paramus, NJ back in 1992-that's 20 years ago, and some carriers are starting drivers today at 25-28 cents a mile today. Utterly ridiculous to say the least. The whole system is a scam and infected with people who care nothing about drivers well-being.

Part of the problem is; insurance companies dictate hiring procedures to companies and how much experience is needed to drive for them. The only companies that will hire new drivers (for the most part) are the mega carriers who are self-insured. Thus, driving schools generate new drivers (45,000 this year) who have no choice but to go to a mega-carrier who is subsidized by the government for training them. Thus, these mega-carriers have an influx of new students each month (and usually over-book the numbers to make sure they are full classes) whom they make around $2,500 off just for training-then run these new drivers at peanut rates not caring if they stay or go. Ex: Stevens has just over 2000 trucks-they hire over 2000 drivers each year (direct from the manager of Stevens recruiting spoken at Great Lakes Truck Driving School, Columbia Station, Ohio in June 2012). This indicates that they cannot retain drivers-even new ones fresh out of school. However, they churn-out new graduates from their own school each month and collect money for training them. Owner greed and nothing else.
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Now, the companies keep coming up with new scams; many smaller companies do not withhold taxes and want to 'contract' drivers-and there are many going this route. Drivers for these companies now have the responsibility of paying their own SS and taxes, and buying their own insurance. This seems the new wave of scams to hit drivers.

Companies also got a 'click' going in that they say; "We don't count any experience past 10 years". What the H***! That means your experience older than that is forgotten? This never used to be, but the clamps on driver pay and driver freedom are tightening more and more. Especially with the new HOS which are trying to make OTR driving into a Monday-Friday 9-5 job.

Driver pay is only good in a few companies, but most are way behind the times for rates. If the economy was booming and not as many people entering the industry-it might help. But for now, the thousands that come out of schools each day draw the rate down as mega carriers get new applicants each day. Trucking is not as it used to be. When I was young, if you mentioned you were a truck driver-everyone knew you made money. But today, if you mention that you are a truck driver, many people just say "Oh-I see". Which really translates into; you are a low-life and not making any money and have no education. One only wonders where this industry will be in 10 years, and who or what can do something to turn around driver pay and retention.

 

After reading this thread, seems like Link is just a stereotypical corporate raider, buying up smaller companies, milking out all the assets (which includes the drivers unfortunately), then moving on. Will probably end up being sold themselves to a mega, and a few people will reitire to a beach somewhere. I hate corporate mentality (read GREED), especially publicly owned. The only loyalty these companies show is to stockholders.

 

That is interesting that you mention some of the things that you did. When I applied for my first technician job, I was told that all my driving experience wasn't considered "real employment." There are a lot of companies like this where they do not consider truck driving as a job. Nearly every one of them consider it as unskilled. Even the department of labor considers truck driving as a unskilled job. They don't even classify it as a profession anymore. Sad...

 

Lots of good info on link. Thanks I would never ever work for this company.

 

samo-samo

http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS/Data/carrier.aspx?enc=J+C6f3JqlUPaRneGnCzjNA==

 

They've gotten a citation for nearly every inspection for equipment issues. Not surprised... Then they will blame it on the driver which a lot of the reasons for citations is mechanic errors. Kinked air lines is on the mechanic for not properly inspecting the equipment. Drivers are to do visual inspections, but Link will say the driver was supposed to crawl under the truck and check the line, even if it was twisted at the fitting in the center of the frame from the repair that was made that isn't part of a normal driver inspection. Smh...

I wrote stuff up all the time that was never fixed. I had to fix it on the road 99% of the time.

 

I'm not understanding why u insist on putting words in my mouth and twisting what I have obviously stated which u quoted so let me go over it again so u might be able to understand.
1.) any company that pays a driver less than .40 per mile with experience and a good record is a joke.

2.)Those companies haul garbage freight or they bid annual contracts and the large companies can low ball all the other carriers. The only way they can make a profit is lowering driver pay hence all the larger to medium companies paying slave wages to the drivers. I work for a small company we have 10 trucks Otr flatbed/heavy haul and 5 "local" grain hoppers. Flatbed loads get 26-28%(depends on what the load pays and length of haul) of linehaul. All heavy haul loads get 32% of linehaul. Grain hoppers get .46 per mile or 850 a week which ever is greater per week. I don't deal with dispatchers load planners etc i book all my own loads through freight agents that I know, the Internet Truckstop, get loaded.com, Landstar loadboard, DAT loadboard, etc. I don't haul cheap garbage freight if it won't pay 2.15 per mile to the truck I won't haul it. Some people I guess are just lazy I get paid very well so I work very hard to find only the best loads.

3.) on average per mile to the truck is 2.68 the last 7 days I have rolled off 2418 miles according to the odometer that's 6480.24 to the truck and 1684.86 to me ( before taxes, insurance, retirement, and savings.) this was a good week not every week is this good but 47 weeks of working per year at 1684.86 is 79188.42. Like I said before I do a lot and go above and beyond for my boss and I'm am very well taken care off. Not only am I the driver, I do my load planning , dispatching, and handle minor road repairs.

4.) yes your right 80,000 per year at .40 per mile for being a steering wheel holder is far fetched.

 

I don't think you are just a company driver Truckenstein.