Crete Bit Off More Than They Could Chew

Tip : I just read Friday that Alvin Wilkerson, the Crete driver from Florida will begin his trial in August. No evidence of drugs, plenty of visibility (over 1500 feet I think it said), he hadn't slept much in the prior 34 hours, and they found faint skid marks indicating he didn't really brake prior to the impact (I've wondered if that is because the trailer might have had ABS?).

Perry-411 : in fact I did tell my manager, " if I wanted to work for WalMart, I'd work for WalMart, AT BETTER PAY". So much for that line of attack, LOL! I actually just came off an extended vacation so don't think going back is in the cards - you lose your vaction time and have to reset the waiting period for insurance all over again anyway. And as I point out, my leaving isn't about this one incident, this is just the final straw after many years of my being dissatisfied with management style and dishonesty in the company.
I could start a whole new rant on how they handled changes in log book enforcement last year, LOL!

No, the only reason I wanted to post my situation, is that other drivers may not have been put in the position yet, and I want them to know they are up against the wall - if they can handle that and let it roll off their back for a week, cool, but for me it was too much.

Barney : what I posted originally was correct. I did not say that Crete threatened to fire me. I may not have been as clear when I said that a driver MUST QUIT. But he will be left with the choice, do it or be reprimanded for failure to accept a load, which is a violation that is not a firing offense. So left with that option, you pretty much HAVE to do it or quit. I repeated last night in a post that no one said "you will be fired". They just made it clear that I had no choice but to lose money for the following week. It was my manager who refused to offer a middle-ground that would allow me to continue running. Neither $150/day at WalMart nor a 5 day unpaid suspension is acceptable to me, so I skipped to the next step myself and notified them I would quit.
What YOU said was "I took a week there ...".
Now you say you are a Sterling Fleet driver? Which is it, did you get the 5 day assignment or are you a fleet driver? By the way, 4 months ago they did not tell us it was a 5 day assignment, just asked us to go help out for a few days. 4 months ago, you COULD refuse without repercussions.
I'm really curious why you appear to defend a program that even Crete wants out of and are quick to insult a fellow company driver by insinuating there are 'deeper issues' rather than what I have put.

Geargrinder - my quick 2 cents on the political leanings - I'm rather conservative in many issues but am liberal in social issues, and am an independent voter.
When Bush was voted into office with such strong support from truckers, I didn't see it as a political party thing, but truckers mistakenly thought that Bush, with his connections to Texas, Haliburton, and oil, would be friendly to the industry and even help bring prices down. I'm pretty sure that was it, truckers are often one issue voters, much like those that only vote depending on the candidates view on abortion and could care less about the whole package of economy, international relations, health, education, etc.
What truckers found out, what the other 51% of America is finding out, is that Bush is President of Texas, not the US. Everything he does is for the profit of he, his family, and his cronies. Oil, NAFTA, the 'superhighway', and of course, Iraq. And he can't make profits being nice or fair to the American trucker.

 

Tip, actually I don't think Crete has much responsibility for the accident at all as long as the truck was in working order. Alvin, as I understand it, is a Florida based driver with a dedicated route out of Jacksonville. He had gone home for a 34 hour restart and spent the time active instead of resting. I have hear rumors of partying, but have also heard reports of simple home errands, but in both, it is agreed that he admitted to not having had ample sleep before returning to duty.
I don't see how Crete or even BigBrother can prevent that scenario.

A result is that the rest of us Crete drivers have been screwed, because last year Crete initiated log book enforcement changes that incorporate full use of the GPS/Qcom system. Computer programs now monitor the truck's status and flag safety in several situations.
One is that the program recognizes the truck taking a 10 hour or more downtime, and when it moves (GPS) it begins monitoring for the 14 hour rule. If GPS monitors movement 14 hours later, safety will be alerted by the system and the driver contacted to shut down (and appropriate safety points assessed for the hours of service violation).
Secondly, they never used to use GPS for enforcement, now they do. If you log that you stopped at point A at the 11 hour mark, but actually had to travel more than 7 additional miles to point B, thus violating the hours of service, the GPS will show your location and in a logbook audit, you will be found out and points assessed.
Third case, if you park, and go to sleep, and have a WONDERFULLY deep sleep for 9 straight hours, and you awaken facing a known 11 hour driving day, you MUST sit on your hands for the completion of that 10 hour break, or the computer will recognize the long break and that it did not last a full 10 hours and will alert safety.
So Crete is now fully using audits and GPS to crack down on logbook violations/hours of service violations.
There is no leeway as there used to be (logging a fuel stop within 2 hours of the actual stop, for instance), everything must jibe with the GPS, location and time, within the 15 minute segments of the log book, pre-trips, fueling, tolls, start and stop times including any breaks longer than 7 minutes and traffic delays.
It is a very strict system, but not hard to adapt to - the problem was that Crete didn't TELL US they were cracking down, so most drivers learned the hard way, after the fact, when they got home and found safety audit reports in their mailbox (unless they were unlucky enough to get flagged and shut down at the time of the violation).
You know Crete's ad campaign?
THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS - they are talking about log book cheats, LOL!

Where were we? Oh yeah, as far as I know, Alviin had a legal logbook, was running legal in all regards, and with Crete, had a good safety record. There really wasn't anything the company could have done to change the outcome other than what they have now insitituted, the industry's toughest enforcement and strongest driver awareness training in regards to hours of service. If any Crete driver says he is forced to run or deliver against DOT rules, I would call him out. I have never been reproached when telling dispatch I can't make it to a pick-up, can't make a hot load delivery appointment, or that I woud have to shut down at a receiver due to the 14 hours rule. The opposite is true. Despite the company not being honest when initiating the new rules, they have always make a point of telling drivers that safety comes first.