Snackbar is chillin'....at Shaffer

Enjoying the work is good. While I enjoy my current job, I'd much prefer to be back OTR.

But my preferences became a moot point. Much like Snackbar, my company changed the pay structure which hurt me, and also had some operational changes which irritated me. I stuck it out while trying to advocate for changes and looking at my options - which sucked. Going to another OTR company wasn't going to be an improvement - a lot of folks like to rag on Schneider for low pay, but every where I looked I would make the same or less while not having the benefit of a company yard 5 minutes from the house. Local jobs day jobs that were hiring would have been a heck of a pay cut, or I could see would be a bad fit, or were bait and switch - in the case of Kwik Trip it was all three. Eventually, push came to shove. The pay structure changed again "due to driver feedback", the structure was better but the amounts were too low. They basically changed it from 3 + 2= 5 to 3 + 1 + 1 =5. I needed an equation that added up to 6 or above, so I decided to override my preference for running days and select a job that pays 10% more.

I miss the challenge of min/maxing a trip plan and being able to use my skills and effort to stand above the herd. The monotony of line haul does wear on a person - the last 30 miles into the barn every morning are PAINFUL. On the other hand, I don't miss truck stops and I very much don't miss having to help guys back into easy spots. In the last year I've found only one trailer with illegal tread - and when I do have a maintenance issue getting it fixed is easy because I'm almost always at a company shop. You take the good with the bad. However, no matter how bad it gets here there is no way I'd go back to Schneider. That would be a recipe for frustration and angst.

 

Is he though? He started talking about moving on from SPD in April of 2024, and the best he could come up with in a year was to return to a company that had him apoplecticly frustrated. He will be back in the same predicament soon - needing a new job and still needing to cover the meds. This is why he keeps getting the same advice over and over again - he keeps doing the same stuff over and over while expecting a different result.

 

We have to look at the big picture…walmart doesn’t and i doubt ever will have the amount of trucks and drivers to haul both inbound and outbound freight for them.. they’re going to need other carriers to del freight as well…

 

Contracts can be as short as 90 days. So it’s foolish to think cheap spot rates don’t affect contract rates. And, and, and just because you have a contract that doesn’t mean squat. It does not mean they have to give it to you or that you have to take it. So yeah 100% cheap spot rates affect your freight.

As much as I don’t love Walmart I have to give credit where it’s due. They are large enough with enough money to handle all freight if that’s what they want. But frankly it’s cheaper and less liability to farm it out. And they are notoriously ruthless on penny pinching. So you can bet that it’s the cheapest vendor that’s meets their requirements servicing them.

 

Trying to stay from commenting on this thread but.....
I disagree, OTR is mostly for his needs and not his wife. Sacrifice would be doing regional because one would be home every weekend, 4 consecutive days off 8 months of the year, and a full week in one of the other 4 months. And having more $ for an earlier/better retirement. But he does not want regional and that is his choice. Like they say about kids. They don't remember how clean the house was etc. They remember the family vacations and the time spent together. What works for 2 people may not work for others and is their choice. But don't expect any employer to cater to your needs.

 

Found out the exact location of the new lakeland terminal

 

I was gonna say just another id...err person posting stuff about something he knows nothing about but I dont want a timeout.