Swift Transportation Company, Inc. - Phoenix, Az.

Wow, what an ordeal....Unfortunately I am going through the same crap with the same company...Took me all day to read the entire diary but well worth the time....Thanx TURBO

 

Well now that ole Jerry is back at Swift. ALL WILL BE ROSEY AGAIN!!!

 

" I am baffled as to why we need to hear your political opinions on A whats wrong with Swift page, other than to distrack people. "

We post these posts here because it pisses people off. People who worry about where a certain post should go...and where it shouldn't. Who cares what we talk about in this thread now? So much dirt has been slung on Swift it doesn't matter at this point.

 

swift alsways makes me mad. I study trucking and am thinking about going to but a 63 freightliner coe. I think i made it clear in my post erlier i dislike swift very much

 

This is my rookie post, i finished the Swift acadamy. I am new to this industry, so i dont really have much of an opinion. Im mostly looking for other's opinions. I drove OTR for 1 week with a mentor last week, What an experience that was. He is great as mentor and has basically been teaching me that swift wont hesitate to cheat me, and more importantly how to cheat them back. Up to this point Swift has been upfront with me and what they require. That doesnt mean everything was black and white. I just havent caught them directly lieing to me. I have a family and have already decided that Swift isnt the best place for me. Im trying to line up another job as we speak. My question is, when is the best time to cut the cord with swift. Keep in mind, i have no money (thanks acadamy) and i will probably move to another state during or around job transfers.

PS after reading this thread, Swift has changed alot of things, but it appears to have always been the same dirty company.

 

Wheremiat-I know you picked the wrong co.to start out with,but it sounds like you figured them out pretty quick.I think you should hang in there with Swift and get some experience before you jump ship.I would think about a year should do it.That way when you apply to another co.they will see you are a worker from your experience.Then when you get ready to look for another job,read the reports on this site,and decide which cos.are the best.Just my 2 cts.worth.

 

Swift has a new low. They are starting to advertise in a local paper that charges next to nothing to advertise and the papers are free to anyone that wants them. The paper Is called American Classifieds use to be the thrifty nickel. Just goes to show you that they must be really hurting for drivers when they do not advertise in the paid subscription papers or maybey they can not afford the better papers any longer.

 

Or maybe Swifty is trying to recruit from the ranks of those that read that paper regularly, people who can't afford a pricey pulp like the Salt Lake Tribune or Deseret News.

I wonder if the SLC Thrifty Nickel has a C.R. England ad as well?

 

Well, as I have read through these post's about Swift, I notice that there are a few people (most likely office staff that has no clue what it is like from a driver's point of view) and a **** load of bad!!! LMAO

I once worked for them myself and know first hand what the company is like.... and it is not a bed of roses by no means!!! They get you to go to there school (I went to Swift as an experienced driver, but I had taken 3 yrs from OTR and done local work due to health reason's) and have you sign a 1 or 2 yr contract to stay working for them or pay for the remainder of the school.

The next thing that the company does is after you have been there for 6 MONTHS (yes you read that right, 6 MONTHS!!!) and put the idea in your head that you can teach other drivers how to handle 80,000 lbs going down the road when you really don't have a clue yourself yet!! How rediculous is that?

Then once you are tired of the BS of dealing with them and go somewhere else (I myself ended up as an O/O and starved away from them and lost my truck!!! I sat a lot due to there cheap freight they could not afford to put on O/O!!) because you get tired of all the bad mouthing of the company everywhere and the fact that you have a bad reputation before you even say a word to anyone.

Here is what it boils down to; I went to Swift and was making good money, could get home or anywhere else I wanted to go with just a Q/C (Qual Comm for the lay person's) or a phone call. Then I got the bright idea and found a KW W900L and bought it, leased it on with Swift because I figured up with what they was paying per mile for O/O's that I would bank about another 7 to 12K per year after taxes if they ran me the same as they had been....

They couldn't run me the same miles because of the fact that the new CEO was having the freight bid to low to make a profit with putting it on an O/O, hell they was barely making any profit themselves to pay the overhead with!!! So I sold the truck (I barely broke even with having to do that) and left with intentions of not getting back into a truck again.

However, as those that have read my other post's have seen, I came back to driving a truck!! I could not get a local job making more than minimum wage because I was not a collage grad or had any cert's other than my CDL.

Swift is by far not the best company out here on the road's, but they are not the worst either.... Just go to work for LW Miller and you will see what I mean!!!LMAO

Anyway's, this is by no means sticking up for the company, ultimately I am agreement that the company is a worthless p.o.s. BUT there are some good people that.... well use to work there. Most of them that I know don't anymore. When the new CEO took over most of them lost there job's and were replaced with cheaper working people.... Hmmm, the guy really is a sorry sack of horse manure!!! LMMFAO

One more thing, the former ceo of Swift (Jerry) is actually a decent person as a person. I had the chance to talk to him several times, but as a business man.... well let's just say that I would never hire him to run my business!!! LMAO

 

I wonder how they are doing now, they were making a lot of improvements with their pay and I heard actually weekly settlements. My biggest problem was telling my wife I had no idea what trips I would get paid for and it caused problems with paying bills on time.
I swear there were people in the offices in Phoenix that just empty a bag of Trip envelopes onto their desk, and half of them fell into the trash can which they conviently left sitting out just right to catch them.