Marten Transportation SUCKS!!!!!

Dont feel bad i did the same thing once i was on 287 headed to the Verizono Bridge when i failed to notice that 287 Split off to the right an if you stay straight you end up on the Belt Parkway. Luckly the one bridge i seen that was posted 11'4" was actually 13'6" in the middle.

 

I HATE when that happens!
Years ago, I came up to a bridge on eastbound North Avenue in Chicago that was marked 12'6"'. I had 13'6" so I went around the block, and came back out to North. I stared at the bridge for a few moments, pondering my next move, when I realized truck traffic was coming at me under that same bridge. I figured if they could make it, I could make it, not thinking maybe the westbound lane was lower. It wasn't, luckily, the bridge was mismarked.....

 

A lot of information here is pretty old.Marten used to be a great company to work for but since new management.Things are not the same now.I have worked for them for the last 4 years and for the most part it was positive.But things have changed,
There is mandatory per diem,there is a sliding scale on mileage pay,they have upped the layover pay to 100.00,As best I can see there is low driver satisfaction and high turnover,most people are getting at the most 2200-2500 miles per week if that.overall its not the worst but a far cry from the great company it was

 

Not located in a Right to Work state. Mondovi WS is the home of Marten and from this list on link you can see it's not:


http://www.nrtw.org/rtws.htm

Marten used to be one of the best larger companies in trucking to work for. You would never read about them on this bad trucking company thing until Knight got in on that place. It had very little turnover and now it's above industy average now. Wages are down and "fair pay" thing they are doing is a ripoff. All the Western State freight goes on rail now to. Junk company and I wouldn't piss on one of their trucks if it was on fire. 5 years ago damaging a tire wouldn't have been considered an accident today they just look for a reason to keep the drivers moving in and then on so benifits will not be paid out and wages stay low. Marten used to let you pick in City or place in America to take hometime if you wanted a vaction just drive for a month and say I want 5 days off in Vegas and you got it. It used to pay VERY well but not now.

 

I have considered Marten and many others. But I know right now, it is going to be hard to find any trucking company that has satisfied drivers.

 

you can still take hometime anywhere you wish.

 

Pros:
Nice Equipment
Pretty good with getting you home on time
Usualy have a load ready for you before you're empty.

Now you'd think that would be a pretty good company with those 3 thing going for them right? WRONG!

Cons:
The forced Per Diem: I Feel stupid allowing myself to get snookered on the whole per diem scam, which is what I call it. They make it sound like a benefit, but they're basicly taking 3 cents a mile off the top to do your payroll. Do the math: that's $30 dollars for every 1000 miles you drive. Say your getting 3000 miles a week (I wish), that would be 90 a week. x 52 weeks = $4690 a year to press a button that has a program figure out your payroll. It's not any more work. It sure isn't worth 90 a week or even 60 a week. It's not worth having at all. At my previous employer last year, I made 55k and was going to make over 60k this year , and I paid roughly 5k in taxes, and got about half back without filling perdiem. With their 3cent off the top pay structure, I would have to make 3600 miles a week to make what I did, and would be paying 120 a week to them. 120 times 52= 6240 which is more than I paid in taxes last year.
Their advertisements say nothing about the 3cent a mile fee, and are very vague. When you ask them in orientation, they are still more vague. When you ask a driver in the terminal at orientaion they too don't want to say anything, and lose their job I guess.
It should have been a clue to me that they have a policy of you having to pay back your hiring fees (Greyhound Bus, and Hotel costs) if you don't stay on with them for 6 months. I'm sure their turnover must be horrendous once people realize that Marten is taking 3 cent a mile.
What's insulting is that they call this mandatory program a benefit. Putting more in their pocket than I would pay in taxes without per diem, making it so they pay less in Social Security Empoyer contribtons, so I can pay a little less in taxes and as a result get less in social security when I retire. They are raking it in with this, and raking their drivers over the coals. Calling this a benefit is like pissing down my back and telling me it's raining. It makes me sick to my stomach.
The Low Miles
As mentioned before, I wish I was getting 3000 miles a week. I spend more time sitting at shippers and receivers getting loaded or unloaded. Many times it's so long (5-7 hours) that I'm better off waiting a couple more hours before leaving and turning into a 10 hour break so I can start a fresh 14. Other times I didn't have that option, and had to go to my next stop after sitting for 7, then drive 3, and had to sit another ten. Then they took the load from under me when I just started. I would have gone crazy if I had to sit a 3rd ten hour break. With only a couple hours of paid driving in between. I really wonder if my dispatcher is retarded sometimes.
The Low Pay
Take whatever they say you are going to make, and subract 3 cents a mile.
My top rate is 40 cents a mile, but that's if it's an ultra short run. Most of the time it's at 36 cents a mile, which they take 3 cents off the top so that's 33. Also just about every place I go to pays about 10% less in miles that the actual miles that it takes to do the run. In this day and age there is no excuse to pay Rand Mcnally miles, when anyone sitting at home can enter the 2 addresses and see how many miles they are apart. So you figure 10% off the top in miles, then about another 10% taken from you in that per diem, and it works out to where you are making about 75% of what you would make if they paid you the actual miles, and didn't take the per diem.
I'm getting squat for miles. I would run 800 miles a day if they would let me, but I probably got about 1300 this week. I didn't even make 675 on todays paycheck, and this is my biggest paycheck so far. I probably won't gross more than 450 on next weeks check. I've made so little that they don't even deduct my full child support sometimes because I make so little that they legally can't.
I put in a 14 hour shift yesterday, and probably made a lousy 90 bucks. Do the math. I think I want a raise to minimum wage. What frustrates me, is the fact that we could both make a lot of money. I like to work hard, be effecient. I have a O/O mentality having been one for 6 years, but my dispatcher doesn't have a clue. I don't see how Marten can make money running a new truck only 1300 miles in a week. Maybe they're just in the Perdiem business now, and the transportation side is just a write off.

The bottom Line:
I'm so disgusted that everytime I get a chance I'm online filling out applications. This is the lowest paying trucking job I've ever had. I couldn't afford to rent a room much less support a family working here. Nothing personal, it's just business. Lesson learned.. Top Pay carrier my butt!

 

Welcome to the next generation of trucking!

Per diem --------------- CHECK
Low miles -------------- CHECK
Assigned a DM with no knowledge in the trucking industry ------------- CHECK
Replace experienced drivers with younger drivers for less pay -------- CHECK
Establish a useless and clueless safety manager ------------------------ CHECK
Decrease the trailer to tractor ratio -------------------------------------- CHECK
Find an insurance company to worship and determine ground rules --- CHECK
Make sure that driver is satisfied with the company and their supervisors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SYSTEM ERROR. PARAMETERS GOES AGAINST COMMON SENSE. IMMEDIATE SHUTDOWN AND SELF TERMINATION IS ADVISED.............NOW INITIATING SELF EXPLODING SEQUENCE...........

 

Good luck, Jim!

/Mission Impossible reference...

 

That is too funny.But then on the other hand ,it's not funny at all is it?