New to Prime INC - What to expect (Springfield edition)

Discussion in 'Prime' started by silenteagle, Dec 6, 2012.

  1. Chucktaylor

    Chucktaylor Road Train Member

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    Those numbers are a few years old. 40k training miles (team) minimum. There has to be a good reason to keep you beyond that. Accident, ticket, or screw ups while training can get more miles tacked on before they will allow you to upgrade.
     
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  3. Freckles

    Freckles Bobtail Member

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    That's what we were thinking too. But that's the numbers the recruiter is saying. I mean I understand you wanna make sure a person is trained but 80k....that's a little overkill.
     
  4. DenaliDad

    DenaliDad Retired Wheel Dog

    I'm not a Prime Inc driver so I'll just answer in general. The more OTR training a driver can get, the better the driver will be. OTR training is not mileage-based just to drive. It's experiential and many experiences don't happen very often. For example, I recall one night while I was enroute from shipper to receiver. My plan was to stop at a convenient Interstate rest area but when I got there, I found that a million other drivers had the same plan! There were plenty of spaces but all of them were taken up by a CMV (and one or two POV's - grrrrrr) and there were trucks parked along the sides, in front and behind others and there was just one space...a parallel park on the blind side. I can tell you putting my truck in that space, at night, while tired, with parking lot lights pointed in my direction made me glad I'd done it once before. I never had to do it again - yet.

    And conversely, imagine being one of the drivers who got a parking space early. Would the driver get out without sharing paint with another truck? All those experiences are what one can hopefully experience while doing however many miles of OTR training.

    The driver should not be in such a rush to get out on his/her own that training suffers; one stormy night, the driver will be happy to have done the miles and experienced the wonders of OTR trucking.
     
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  5. Freckles

    Freckles Bobtail Member

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    Agreed but as I said there is a such thing as overkill. The learning curve shouldn't be based on the slowest person to learn. Especially when the company is basically the one benefitting by having basically a team running but only paying one driver good wages while the newby is getting 500-600/wk. I agree training is essential.
     
  6. Chucktaylor

    Chucktaylor Road Train Member

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    Stick to what you know. This ain't it. I did 60k and was still scared my first load solo.

    Actually the benefit falls to the trainer. Company trainers are paid the team rate minus the trainees wage, just as Leass Op trainers pocket the extra revenue minus the wages. So the company pockets the same amount, whether its a lease or company team hauling the load, or a trainer trainee.

    Money seems to be your main concern, so maybe he should move on to someplace with less training, ... like Watkins Shepard where he can be off on his own in about 10 days.
     
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  7. Freckles

    Freckles Bobtail Member

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    Wow I thought this was a friendly forum. Guess I was wrong. And if you say money isn't your main objective you are full of it. Just forget I ask y'all anything. Have a nice life ��
     
  8. Chucktaylor

    Chucktaylor Road Train Member

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    Climb down off your cross.

    My impression is that you somehow think your husband or boyfriend is the exception to the requirements.

    Your post has thinly veiled criticism of Prime's trainee pay policies, and time requirements. There aren't very many companies out there that pay trainees ### good as Prime, and it is certainly not taking advantage of them. Your chances are even less to find a better paying company than Prime who upgrades their trainees to solo drivers starting at .41/mile in a lightweight truck.

    Your post smell of money concerns, and frankly there are alot of students and trainees that are jumping into this career that think its easy or this is their last or only hope for a better future. More often than not the trainee and their families end up disappointed by either the pay or the time away from home, and the rest of the majority can't cut it. It's the minority that sticks around and puts the time and effort into a successful career.
     
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  9. Freckles

    Freckles Bobtail Member

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    I'm sorry if I came across that I have money issues. As I stated I just think 80k miles is slight overkill. You make assumptions where there are none. But I do appreciate the little info you were able to supply me with. Good luck in your travels.
     
  10. ironpony

    ironpony Road Train Member

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    It's not 80,000 miles... that was the old training requirement from a number of years ago. The new one is 40,000 miles (or about 8 or so weeks) - and in my opinion, that's not enough. Especially without having some time with an instructor in severe winter conditions.

    Money... make sure hubby takes a canceled check to a joint account that you both have debit cards to. Get the settlement check on direct deposit so you both have access to the cash on Fridays. Make sure ya both communicate on what happens to the money. Best thing for him is to have some money for the road deducted from his settlement, and placed on the personal account side of his fuel card. That way he has some money to survive on, no matter what. Try to do purchases only on the debit cards, and if you need cash plan your withdrawals on the debit cards so you only incur one service charge per week.

    Advances... avoid them like the plague! It's really easy to get into a trap where you're living on advances and have absolutely no money on your check. Many of the people who claim "Prime screwed 'em" just don't remember the hundreds of dollars they blow in the truck stops. Everything in there has the price jacked up double or quadruple!
     
  11. superpet39

    superpet39 Road Train Member

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    If you drove ma'am you wouldn't say that (I don't think)
     
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