Heartland Express posts record annual revenue

Hi joseph! HTLD/GTI didn't invent starving drivers out, dishonest recruiting, keeping drivers out on the road when promised and due hometime or any other exploitation (fleece leases come to mind) that hang OTR Truckload drivers out to dry. You know, it's just worthwhile to hear from 'the other side' how companies think and justify their treatment of drivers.

Hell, pushing drivers to run illegal (sure you've never done that) to deliver a load that doesn't have enough time on it is more than just reprehensible. It jeopardizes your family and friends on the road and everyone else's and puts the driver's job ticket--his CDL--on the line.

Companies don't care because it doesn't hurt THEM.

AK/81's telling us that HTLD's DMs are told that, for example, it's the driver's fault if not making miles despite that it's the DM who dispatches the driver!!

I'd like to hear more...

 

There are plenty of companies out there that starve drivers and keep them out promising home time on the next load. I think what Joseph is saying, is that heartland is no different.

 

No, of course not. The question becomes, how does a company hire two people, encourage one to take advantage of and exploit the other.

And figures out how to make it happen.

How does that happen? It's kind of remarkable if you think about it. How does a DM or dishonest car salesman or any other exploitation get justified. I once listened in on a conversation where a guy was bragging about how fast he was at the cash register when some little old gal in front of him would open her purse and wallet...

How he'd snatch those dollars so fast, so, so fast and race off.

He was proud of this, a perverted sense of bragging rights...

 

I'm not sure.

At my company I've seen things from both sides. Some guys think the dispatcher is screwing them over with changing their loads around but in reality the dispatcher is doing what he's required of to get loads delivered.

I'm sure some people are happy at heartland and some arent. I think all companies have good and bad, it's just which one do you hear more about.

 

Here's the difference: 100% turnover. It's proof positive of a 'structural' issue. Structural issues require structural changes and the public is unaware. AK/81's helping us understand how it is that companies justify to themselves the kind of conditions that create 100% turnover.

And drivers are typically the worst enemies of other drivers.

Sad, but true. Stockholm syndrome where hostages empathize with captors...

 

80% of college students change majors at least once (I changed mine 5 times).

75% of teenagers & 50% of those aged 20-24 have been with their current employer for under a year.




Not every country is like this -- folks don't change jobs/careers with such ease in say, Germany.

 

Thx, DY! Basically proves point that if 22% of all adults have been with employer for one year or less but one industry has 100% turnover, problem is in that industry, not the part of the population in that line of work. It's a job with lousy working conditions where people are treated poorly, paid poorly and quickly move on as soon as possible. We've got all these driver bashers who would tell you that drivers are idiots, bad people, the dregs of society, not entitled to the air they breathe, yada, yada.

No, the problem's in the INDUSTRY.

 

Nope. Problem is BOTH. Lots of scumbag companies AND scumbag drivers. The real deal is the majority of new drivers coming in will be gone in two years. The lifestyle isn't for them. Number two, the old hands are dying off and retiring. Unfortunately, dying off usually comes first out here. Third, there is lots of drivers that aren't worth the air they breath. That's a fact. Face it.

On to the companies. There are plenty of scumbag outfits out here. Heartland is one. Floyd Blinsky is another. Carolina Cargo, CR England, etc. starving guys out, dishonesty, etc. A smart driver knows what to look for. Unfortunatley, smart isn't always a common thing out here. No company is perfect, not even the godly Walmart (gag). The problem lies totally with the drivers. It always has, and it always will. Why? Two reasons. One I mentioned. Scumbag drivers. The second is the inability to put one's foot down to what goes on within the companies. In a time where most companies are paying a much better wage, Floyd Blinsky, the example I will use, is paying .34 a mile. Up from .30 last year. The guys have to run illegal. But they are lined up around the block. RedGo, out of Hamilton, MT, .34 a mile. AG Express, Billings, MT; .30 a mile. KKW of Pomona, CA. .34 a mile. And that's just a handful. And let's not forget CRE.

CRE is a shining example of such scumbag ######## that Mike Gerdin only dreams about. Talk about an unbelievable situation that CRE has created for themselves. The drivers are literally working for free. Here's one. TRI-HI transportation out of Wisconsin. Holy ####. They pay you ONCE a month, but give you $500 advances every week. Think about that. At the end of the month, according to the recruiter I spoke to, your check will be $1600. I made that this week and it's only Tuesday. But the drivers let these companies get away with this by continuing to work there. Who's fault is it really, now? The companies who see these suckers coming from a mile away, or the suckers themselves? We won't even get into lease purchase

 

Having now worked for both companies, if I had to go back to one of them it would be Heartland. I enjoyed working the Texas Regional and would still be there if we hadn't moved to Nevada. At Heartland you can at least talk to your dispatcher and get something done. At Gordon now all the dispatcher does is respond to their Planners requests. I hated Planners doing
dispatching.

And if anyone cares, I am pretty happy over at Jim Palmer now.

 

Just have to be careful because those two statistics might not be exclusive. A 3000-truck company can have 2400 long-term drivers, 100 drivers who stay a year or so, and 500 who cycle through every 2 months.