My FFE experience

WPMCLAM;

Did you happen to say you already had a CDL-A but lacked the necessary driving experience for most companies?
If so, I'm in the same position. Your post's sound like with FFE you could just go to orientation and in the truck with a trainer, am I right about that?

 

i question ffe and going working for them good info

 

I was leased on to FFE way back in 2003 with my own truck . Just be sure you don't let them talk you into signing into their "fleece purchase" program. I was only there for 6 months and saw so many guys get screwed on trucks. They'd get blinded by chrome and new paint ... never look under the hood, never look at a ECM printout of that motors history..

Just sign here..... and some didn't even amke it to Waco (their FIRST RUN) before stuff like .. one guys radiator went out, anothers A/C quit... I got up close and started polking around.. NO WAY would I have anything to do with those trucks.. They litteraly threw lipstick on a PIG...

Students that FFE took on were scarey! I had to back their trailers in for them on more than 1 occasion. (Or let them hit MY truck because they were trying to park allong side ME!!) I'd get in and man, their mirrors wern't adjusted even close to where they needed to be for one, two, their windows were filthy, second, their mirrors were even filthier!! put that combo together.. they were blind as the proverbial bat! (no kidding here...) SO when I got them semi straightened out.. One guy couldn't even straight back!!!!

I only lasted 6 months w/ FFE. They ticked me off. Charging me a $38 "pool charge" for picking up a preloaded trailer.. I had to always be sure to drop any trailer I had clean, washed out, and FULL of fuel.. You think I got the same in return...NOT a chance.. I'd get a dam trailer w/ 1/2 a tank of fuel, full of chicken blood and grease, 2 flat tires, lights that didn't work, and I'd have to fix it...... Oh they gave me a P.O.# but I'd loose a day sometimes for all that time screwing around with it... No $$ for me...Shall I continue.. Okay.. I sat for 3 1/2 days waiting on a load in Friona, TX.. The load needed a ecoli inspection (hamburger load) all I got was $500 layover, I could not come off the load, I had to keep it.. I said I was loosing $500 a day sitting.. well, $500 was their max layover pay they said... That pissed me off, I paid what .. $35 a week for their "drivers association fee".. what the heck this is I never found out..Q-comm rental fee's, I had to buy my own reefer fuel, pay for my own trailer wash outs.. (on their trailers).. that's enough about FFE...

 

There is more to my story but as I stated in the end of my last post that was a long story made short. I'm not here to BS anyone any it wouldn't make any sense to do so like some people do anyway, but those who do, all it end's up in is argument and debate because of fictional stories with nothing to back it up but this is just a handful of many thing's bad about this company along with the other guy's here who are also currently with them or been with thenm in the past are having problems.

I will say that everything was good and kept me content for about the first 3 week's then it started going to hell in a hand basket. There were about 20-25 people in my class all middle aged and older some fresh out of school but I was the only one to get a new truck. White 09' Century with only 70k miles on it. Only thing I liked about the truck was that it was clean and nothing was tore up. Though like a lot of the older truck's spent just as much time in the shop with problems. Some of the guy's I was in class with I ran across at the yard some time later told me about the truck(s) they had to go pick up that was either so nastythey couldn't get in it, wouldn't start or broke down 30 miles down the road from where it was picked up.

Other driver's that I have talked to that have been there some year's say they didn't even like it and it really went to hell when Conwell Corp. combined all three companies and they were only sticking with it because of how bad times were getting. Personally, I don't care how bad time's are getting but there is no way I'm going to stick with any company that is head strong in screwing their driver's. I'll work for my earning's but I don't work for free.

Something else to watch for is their "flat rate pay" for load's to/from Lancaster around the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Not trying to sound like an ### hole, just sharing my poor experiance with them.

Here is a biggie to keep in mind if you do go to work for them. You need to have at least enough money in your pocket to hold you over for two week's for meal's and what not instead of just enough for the 3 day's of class because they don't pay orientation. Breakfast at the hotel... Joke! Lunch... Ehhh, could be better but could be worse. Dinner... More than likey won't be provided but we got dinner one night and it was the same thing we had for lunch. When I went my fund's were exhausted so I went in with nothing but $60 I barrowed to eat on but I sat on the yard 3 day's after getting my truck waiting to get in the shop because of a QC issue then the rest of the time waiting on my first load. Finally get rolling and my first check finally came after the the second week and got my ### chewed for using the $80 advances to live on and not have anything to scale load's or anything else it was supposed to be for.

 

Yea, even as a company driver, you can't use your QC while the truck is in motion. You must write down your routing on paper and customer directions because of that BS. Then when you have a dispatcher sending you messages every 10-15 minutes or fleet wide messages you have to stop and pull over and check the #### thing other wise the beeping will drive you insane after a short time, because you can turn down the "key" volume but you can't turn down or turn off the incoming message alert.

Night and weekend's this tended to be really bad with after hour dispatcher's hounding you for "favor's". I don't care what you do, don't except them. You asking for big trouble doing that at FFE. and for god's sake don't dare even think about parking on the side of the road or on a entry/exit ramp! Had another driver snitch on me for stopping to check that #### QC and got my ### chewed.

 

WPM, I will say this much for FFE it's been a freakin rollercoaster. One week I will get 13-1800 miles, the next week I will be running to the point I have to begin creatively logging. I think they do this in order to screw people over and keep them thinking it will get better. My prison sentence was up yesterday, now I am just out here a couple of more weeks waiting to get some money put in the bank.

 

Yea there were a fair share of dime droppers there in Lancaster as well as on the road. I thought it was ridiculous that I as a O/O had to get a "gate pass" to get out of the gate with MY truck... "what the heck??" It's mine not yours.... I could see if I was pulling one of your trailers.. but it was just one of those political things that made NO sence. Since they never refused me a pass I never screemed at them..

Qcomm was mandatory, I made sure I was there to tell them where to mount the thing.. No drilling holes anywhere they dam well pleased. They required a "ignition kill switch", and that I purchase some lock thing-a-ma-jig that would cover my trailer and tractor maxi buttons inside the cab, as a anti theft devise. I remember them saying I would save soo much $$ by using their shop, & that their rates were soo much cheaper than outside shops.. (What they fail to mention is they do not stock parts for any other motor other than what is in their fleet.. Detroit series 60's... They didn't so much as have a fan belt for my truck.. Not to mention I would have to wait for like 10 hours for a simple oil change..IF I was lucky.. hahaha yeah, right, cheaper..)

So to put it simply, like any training company, you use them for the experiance.. DO NOT let them talk you into leasing anything!! PERIOD! They use you for cheap labor. You both know the arrangement going in.. keep it simple and as short as possible, get a P.O.# or a person's name for everything "extra" you do. (for detention, out of route miles, short shuttles, spotting trailers, picking up 1 trlr and putting another in a dock.. stuff like that.)

Get your experiance and look for someplace else to go.. Noone stats at these places and retires... just forget about it.. move on after you pay your dues..