ADM trucking: treat employees like crap

hey truck n tech thanks for the reply. after i took my road test i was walking across the lot with the trainer guy and one of the other drivers was mouthing to me "dont do it" so i guess you might be right. thank s for confirming what i thought was going on around there.

 

Winkjr, don't get me wrong. You can make good money at ADM, for what you do, but getting all the idiots to leave you alone so you can just work, is nearly impossible. If you get hired on, go ahead and work for them, but keep your options open. The one guy......lets just call him "Frosty the Snowman" will be your best friend one day, and fire you the next. No reason. He just felt like pizzing on someone, and you were the first to cross his path. Also, beware the Whacky PAKI duo in the loading area. They will smile in your face, then write a report on you. They are real low-lifes.

And oh, by the way.....I never talk behind anyone's back. I have told Frosty to his face he was a piece of crap. And the Paki guys, I have told them to keep clear of me, or they might get hurt.

The one shining star in the place, is ANDY in the shop, if he is still there. He is slow to accept you, but once he does, he is worth listening to. He has been doing this gig a long time. If you see ANDY, mention JIM SMITH, with the real long hair. He will know who I am. He will tell you some stories about me.

If you can do without working for ADM, I would advise it. But if you need a job, go ahead and work there, but wear a kevlar vest on your back.

Best of luck to you whatever you decide.

 

truck n tech thanks for the info i decided to stay away based on all the info that i gathered while at the interview and from this forum. I am in a pretty good spot right now compared to ADM. i would just like to find a local gig to make the same money but that might never happen.

 

I have drove for ADM trucking when I first started for everything was great the only complaint I had was off time. to this day they are notorius for calling you on your ten hour break just to say they had changed your load yet the load is due out at the same time safety wise they were fairly decent but they will make sure you run as close to the 70 hours as possible constanly calling during your 10 hour break. other then that they were fairly decent to work for

 

ADM is a good place to work. Treated good, great pay, equipment, benefits, home time, etc. That being said, Langhorne is NOT included in that statement. I'm out of Decatur (corporate/home terminal) and they are always trying to con us in to going out there and running for 2 or 3 weeks. NO ONE will willing do it. Those people out there are something else. If anyone has a chance to work for ADM, I'd highly recommend it, Langhorne being the exception. Don't let that hell hole skew your opinions of the rest of our terminals. I don't know why they wont do something about that place.

 

Thanks for your honesty, and clarity. That is why I am always sure to put out the fact that the money is good at ADM in Langhorne, PA., as much as I hate the guy running the facility. It's a shame that ADM would not realize the problem is the guy in charge, and get rid of him. If they did that, the place would be a better place to work almost instantly.

 

I currently work for ADM Trucking out of Mendota, IL. If you've got experience I wouldn't recommend working here. You can do better. It's a smaller outfit that runs seperate or as a subsidy from ADM Decatur. I appreciate that they hired me fresh out of truck driving school. They took a gamble on me and I feel it turned out to be a good one for them. Had a couple small incidents in my first few months but I've been a great driver for them ever since. I work hard, don't complain, and do what needs to be done. I appreciate they let me learn on their equipment. That being said our pay isn't up to par with other companies. I'm currently seeking other employment. I'm happy with my experience here but it's time to take another step. They were a good stepping stone to build experience. I brought up our pay to several managers. All to get blown off or flat out told to find something else if I want better pay. We have 14 trucks. All trucks that ADM Decatur put out of service. We buy them up cheap and finish them off. I went half of last winter using a 12v heat gun for a defroster and heat. No air conditioning. Broke down seat. My radio doesn't work. I don't believe it's a corporate wide thing. It could just be our management. It's not the best job but it has kept my family fed. There are more managers here than drivers so it can be tough sometimes. They have to explain repair costs to Decatur and guess who's fault it is. Lots of politics and I really try to stay out of it but I get pulled in the office a couple times a year for ### chewing. Some guys weekly if they get into the office stuff. I get my work and out of sight out of mind as much as I can. Dispatcher is great but he gets micromanaged like us. It's a good starter job just not a career.

 

In years past I talked with 2 of their drivers one was in IL somewhere other was around eastern NY or maybe NJ both seemed content and were in the teamsters union I am unsure if all barns are union or not but both seemed happy but that has been a few years back

 

The Mendota plant isn't union. Lots of others are. I've considered getting it organized but a lot of the guys are scared so not sure they'd join. The yard guys tried to go union about 3 years ago and they fired them one by one for silly stuff. A couple of them won lawsuits but I think it's time to just move on.

 

Mendota falls under the Ag Alliance, or Animanl Nutrition, or something like that, don't you all?