CRETE - A Year in Review

This week has actually been an amazingly busy one. I must admit, I never expected to be this busy in February this year after what we went through last year. The length of hauls have taken a hit, but there is rarely a wait for a load once empty and I have been able to be extremely efficient with my log this week. With the exception of two live unloads, everything else this week has been a drop and hook which has done wonders for keeping me moving instead of sitting at dock doors as I watch the time go by.

I did have a couple of stumbling blocks this week that have almost never happened to me before with this company. I was suppose to pickup a preloaded trailer in Baytown the other day, but when I got there Friday night the trailer was still in the dock door and the warehouse crew had gone home for the weekend. According to the guards, they would not be back until Monday so I was out of luck on that load. It was rather late in the evening by the time I got there and I assumed dispatch wouldn’t be all that busy. I must have been mistaken because I got zero response from them and when they finally did acknowledge my existence it was simply to ask for a phone number so that they could confirm.

I gave it to them and then stood in the guard shack for another half hour waiting to hear the phone ring. It never happened so I finally put in a call to dispatch only to sit on hold for another 15mins. It wouldn’t have been all that big of a deal if I wasn’t looking at my 14hr clock fading away. I made it very clear to dispatch on the Qcom that I was starting to get myself into a bad spot. All I needed was a direct, simple answer. “Do you want me to pull a different load out of here or find a place to park and wait until morning for a different load”. What ever they wanted me to do, I needed an answer. Once I got them on the phone it was quickly resolved and I just pulled a different load out. I don’t expect an immediate answer on the Qcom, but I think two hours is a little out of line.

In the end I got another load going to the same place in Kansas and was able to find a parking spot with 15mins to spare.

As frustrating as that was it happened to me again on the very next load. After delivering in Kansas I put in my MT call and after 30mins or so without hearing anything I sent in a message asking if there was any freight or if I needed to find a place to park. It was a Sunday and I wouldn’t have been all that surprised if nothing was moving. But even that message was ignored and I just assumed weekend dispatch was being grumpy today and decided to crawl into the bunk for a little nap. No sooner had I pulled the covers up than I heard the Beep. I figured I was finally getting an answer to my earlier inquiry and was being told to park it. Instead I found myself looking at a very strange sight. It was a TWO load offer. I had the option of going back to Texas or over to Denver.

I’ve been tring to get home for the last week or so without much luck and assumed the Denver load was the only thing going west from the area and their attempt at placating me. Problem there is that I have never pulled a Phoenix bound load from Denver and I felt I had a much better chance at a home load from Texas. So south bound it is and I headed up to KC to pickup my preloaded trailer. Not so fast they say when I get there. I’m then told that their system shows that particular load isn’t scheduled to ship out until 8am the following day and after 30mins of running around talking to whomever they told me to talk to I was told it would not be ready any sooner than that.

Another message goes off to dispatch to let them know that yet another load needs to be cancelled and I need something else. Preferably something headed to, through or near Phoenix so that I can go home. Thirty minutes later I am looking at a load offer going to Knoxville, TN. OK, stop it, I don’t live in that direction anymore. This is the first time I haven’t been home within a day or two of my requested day in months, but they are gonna miss it by a coon’s age this time around. In all fairness to them though, after every load in the last week plus I have sent in a message asking for a load going to Phoenix, but if nothing is available I’ll take what you have. So I can’t put too much blame on them. It’s hard to turn down good miles in February if you know what I mean.

So I’m off to TN after a very busy week. Again, a lot of short runs and a lot of drop and hooks. I even had a day last week where I was under three different trip numbers and had pulled 5 different trailers behind me before I shut down for the night. What I didn’t have to deal with this week was the multi-stop deliveries which has saved my log time over previous weeks. The odd thing is that even though I ran an extra 350 miles over last week, my gross pay is almost identical because I didn’t receive any drop pay. I guess it all evens itself out.

WEEK FIVE
Monday, February 1st through Sunday, February 7th
Miles include deadhead

Lima, OH to Beaver Dam, WI (last leg)……………………………………….467mi
Belvidere, IL to N. Kansas City, MO…………………………………………...589mi
Lawrence, KS to Plainview, TX……………………………………………….....692mi
Plainview, TX to Garland, TX………………………………………………….....354mi
Garland, TX to New Caney, TX……………………………………………….....251mi
Baytown, TX to Ottawa, KS………..…………………..…………………………822mi
Kansas City, MO to Newport, TN (first leg)…………………………………313mi

Total Paid Miles……………………………………….3488 Miles
Actual Miles……………………….3532 Miles

3488mi x .44 = $1534.72

 

They are slow because they are thorough. Unlike other companies, they spend the extra money to verify all of your information before they hire you.

This is very different from how the other companies “Pre-hire”. Because so many pre-hired drivers never show up for orientation, these companies save money by waiting until prospective drivers walk into the door before they begin to pull DMV records, criminal records and DAC records. They also wait until this time to confirm information on applications like employment histories, qualifications, medical histories, etc.

The end result can be attested to by anyone that has attended these kinds of “orientations”. By the time the survivors are assigned a truck well over half the class is gone. I’m sure these wide-eyes individuals with letters of “pre-hire” that where sent home for a laundry list of reasons would have been better of if the company they were interested in had told them that they did not qualify via phone in their own living rooms as opposed to their unceremonious bus ride home, if the company that sent them packing was generous enough to provide it, many don’t even do that.

Crete on the other hand does all of this before you walk into the door and these things take time. The difference is that when you walk into Crete’s door you have a job. (Pending driving tests, drug test and passing a physical). That's not saying a prospective Crete driver has never been sent home from orientation, but it the exception as opposed to the rule and based on my personal experience was the result of very poor attitude and general hygiene.

 

They have been asking me to go back to training, so based on that I would have to say they are still hiring students. So if they are hiring students I would have to assume they are hiring experienced drivers also. It only takes a phone call to the recruiting department to find out. Let us know what they tell you.

Miles have definitely picked up over last year. I have only had one layover day since the beginning of the year and that was in the first week when shippers were just getting revved up again after the holidays. The average length of haul seems to be falling, but as long as the miles at the end of the month add up I'm not going to let it bother me.

 

That's the golden rule. The new computer program seems to be working out great, but it is just a computer. There are times when you need to step in and add the human touch to it.

I even got a TWO load offer this week. I was stunned.

 

asphaltasylum wrote:

I suggest you get someone to scratch it for you before you do something stupid.

No holiday pay but they offer one of the best vacation pay packages out there for an OTR company.

It's the standard 1 week after 1 year and 2 weeks after 2 years (unless it has changed recently, but I don't think it has). But instead of the $350-$500 that most companies throw at you(those that still pay it that is), Crete pays you what your mileage pay averaged over the previous year. One year pay divided by 52 weeks. My last vacation paycheck was $1202 for one week. They also allow you to bank your vacation time. So you don't have to use it in the year you earn it. You can also take your vacation pay at any time and keep driving if you want to. Makes for a really big check.

I'm pretty sure it goes to 3weeks payed after 5years, but then again, maybe that doesn't happen till year ten. I'm sure someone on here can clear that one up for me.

 

wsteed wrote:

VERY VERY VERY bad idea. Not a good way to jump out of the gate. 100% legal means just that.

Every one goes through it at every company. It's their company, their truck, their freight, their rules. Attitude is so important in this business. I wish the best for you, but make sure you don't do that log thing again. You won't be around long if you can't deal with that. I don't like it anymore than you, but it is a law and Crete is insistent that you follow the laws.

"Drive safe" is more than just a parting remark.