24 hours every other week? You MUST be kidding!

I saw a dedicated run with Schneider close to the house, so I said what the heck and put in my application for it.
Not being very oriented towards big companies, I was not prepared for how things went from there.
Four days after they checked things out (I assume) I got a phone call from a bubbly young lady telling me how great the company is and all the benefits would be. She took about 90 seconds to describe the job and right at the end of it, she slipped in..."but since this one is filled, we would be starting you out OTR." So, do you want to schedule orientation Mr XXXX?"
I should have known. They keep a nice dedicated run posted up there to get people in, then they do the old bait and switch with 2 days off per month.

I wish I had a recording of how the people tell a driver that they are going to "most likely" get home for two of their resets per month. However, since my home is 50 miles+ from the interstate, I could most likely only get home one time a month...for a Saturday afternoon, then out again on Sunday morning. How that is 34 hours, I do not know.

I said this to the recruiter.

"How do you get people who live in a truck for a month at a time, only getting home for 24 hours?"

She did NOT like me ask specific questions. Not one little bit. Can I bobtail to catch a movie now and then? NO
During my reset, can I use the tractor to go grocery shopping?
NO, you can not leave the trailer anywhere.
So you mean I would have to take a taxi into town?
Yes, after you "secured" the trailer.
"Mam, pardon me, but it sounds more like a reform school than a driving job."
She hung up.

A couple days later, another one called me.
This one, I toyed with.
"How far out of route can I run in order to get home?"
"We make every effort to get you home when you request it."

"Miss, please answer my question...how many miles can I run out of route to get home?"
Silence...

I see why so many fellas have poor attitudes about being a driver. It is one thing to stay out for a couple of months if you can get home for a solid week or more...but ####!
How do they expect a guy to have a life at all "maybe" making it home twice a month for 24, er, I mean, "34" hours?

 

Could I have a ***sy sandwich instead? I would not mind the the taste one little bit.

But seriously, I feel sorry for the guys who have to live this crap.
The small outfit I work for gets you home even if you drag a running refer 150 miles out of route. (They REALLY prefer not to) but if you have a deal to get home and it is important, you go. The owner feels it is just a cost of doing business.
Drivers seem to stay.
The benefits are crap, the pay is average and the trucks are old, but the drivers stay.
Dog in the cab with you? No problem. Want an inverter? The mechanic will install one for you...or once he sees how you do things, you are pretty much on your own if you want to put in whatever.
No governor, you will get tickets and be gone if you cannot govern your own right foot. (and you are able to clear those crowded jams on the flats)
No satellite watching you from space either. (But this one would not bother me really) The only thing is, from what I hear, if you go out of route, you get a penalty. I do not know how this works, but shouldn't they let the driver decide if the route ahead is cramped, safe, quick, stuck, whatever...and go the way he or she thinks is fastest?
I guess they might think about newbies who need the babysitter getting a training wheels truck and then open things up as the experience expands.
Bozos show their own colors soon enough.

(but all these are wasted words...)