My Experiences At Werner Enterprises (As a Student Driver)

Ok, here's the skinny on the last few weeks that I've been silent:


I finally finished my training period a few days ago, and was dropped off at the main terminal to test out and get my truck assigned to me.

From the day I was recruited, all the way to my truck assignment, I was told that I was going to be on a certain dedicated route out of a certain area of Florida, which just happened to be just 10 minutes or so away from my home town, and it would pay roughly $800-900 weekly, and would have me home on weekends - so I moved my family back down there in anticipation.

On the day of my truck assignment, my Fleet Manager calls me up at the hotel (5 hours before I needed to get up) and tells me that he doesn't need me, that they're downsizing the whole fleet for now, and to call recruiting/Driver Placement, and get a new route.

I was crushed. I spent two and a half weeks worth of my training salary in order to get my family moved, and I still haven't really met my daughter yet, and it's driving me nuts. missed birthdays and her birth, and I'm pissed about it. I never took any time off so that I would get the training completion bonus, and will find out whether or not they are good for it next Monday (not this one coming up).

The truck they gave me is a 2012 Cascadia, beautiful truck, handles like a dream, and makes me feel a little better. Wouldn't have been able to handle one of the other ones I've seen, though I preferred a Prostar. Now though, I am more than satisfied. Only downside is the lack of an APU. I've been getting decent miles for a new guy, and they're trying to route me home for some time off.

Most everybody I've met at Werner has been pretty cool, though there are a lot of Super Truckers and a number of disillusioned jerks who are just completely tired of the life and hate everybody.

My trainer eventually started to get WAY on my nerves, so i was happy to be rid of him, but he's still mostly a nice guy. His tantrums started to really piss me off near the end, and he got a little scary during those fits, but he did alright. He forgot to fill out a few of the papers they needed at the safety office for me, but he did fax them immediately when asked for them.

So far, I think I like Werner. Few things I dislike, but mostly, they're cool.

I have, however, been talking to Maverick, they have a route in my region I like, and nice equipment too.

 

Oh no, not planning on leaving yet. Looking towards the future, though.