What makes this trucker tick.....

You have to have a no bs sign on your door. Then follow through with it. Nothing will make a good driver run faster than being told one thing only to have the oposite be the norm. Lumping? Naw 95 % no touch, only to find out its the other way round and lumper fees are comming out of my pocket. Honesty! And oh yea. Honesty! If its a fact say it. I have run plenty of #### runs, i knew they were tho, i took them to do a (favor) for dispatch. And when i get an extra 100 bucks here and there with a note thanks for the help with so and so, go get some beers on me. I know im aprecated and oddly enough thats important. Not all the time, were not kids, just nice to know they realize we are important.

 

Exactly what they said with some twists. Carriers put the driver last on the list when it comes to everything. They lie, they steal and just a disgusting group as a whole. I have lost all respect for anyone above dispatch.

Point: A new carrier came to town. Under bid a large slab of business from another. Knows he can't get drivers for the prevailing area package so over inflates his pay to attract and pick . ( Area is $15 to $17 / hr no o/t ) He's paying $23. Everyone who knows anything about business knows he can't keep that up, he's losing his butt so experts say he'll do this for 6 month, cut wages and lose 30% drivers...acceptable losses and carrier games.

Point: Another carrier is losing drivers so he bumps his package by a dollar an hour..ok fine BUT now audit driver hours like this, "that run, load usually takes 2 hrs, you took 3 so were docking you one". Carrier games! Up a buck and now down $19. Carrier games.

Point: As a co. driver I did a special project ( cryogenic ) for my guy whom was new to the business. I ran a purge job for him and earned over $3000 in a week. I got a negative $45.00 check....as a co. driver. My pay was intercepted at corporate as too much to pay a driver, must be a mistake ! THEN they offered to LOAN me 70% of my earnings....loan me my wages....4q's buddy!

These are but a very few of the abuses we have taken over the years.....and this is why my attitude is so hard. As long as you folks think you can put a quarter in the slot and pop out another driver then you'll have recruiting and retention problems.

What ? You don't need me? Ok...one of your 25 cent newbie recruits ignored a sign and ended up on THE FRONT LAWN of the corporate office of Ethyl Corporation. On the front lawn with a loaded tank trying to dig themselves out, during regular business hours........you do indeed get what you pay for bud. I'm positive the carriers sales dept. enjoyed that one, I did.

How about the Swift butt heads on you tube.......seems they encountered a low bridge.....check that one out and then decide if an experienced driver is worth the money and respect they deserve.

Good hunting

 

Boy, nail on head there. I could go on a rant about accountants running freight, or why you always seem to be a couple hundred miles from home on friday, but . Respect will always get a few more miles out of me. And I don't mean false respect from some university executive.

 

You want to find an approach to get better recruits. Be honest. Pay a percentage of the load. Make the driver a partner in the venture and not just an employee. As to no forced NY, no dispatch is forced. I enjoy going to NY but I ain't going anywhere I don't want to. The Driver is the only employee that brings in revenue for the company. The driver should be treated as such.

You should advertise that your company does not use hire right and does not report to DAC. Safety should be a learning experience with the company and not a tool of fear.

If your company needs recruiters there is a problem. Drivers word of mouth should be enough to keep the good companies full.

 

how fast does truck run,money,rules

 

Decent wage, company FIXES any issues with equipment, zero BS...I like it simple.

 

Personally, If I were just starting out in trucking. I would stay away from the companies that have their on motels for trainees. Having to room with some slob. Or companies that have trainers that look unprofessional and hardly ever take a shower.
If you want to give a first bad impression of your company. That would be the way.
Basically, if your company is one that's not preferred by drivers. Your company either could care less about the drivers or management has no concept of what it's like to be a driver.
Throw the company manual out the window. And take time to meet with your drivers and get to know them. You'll learn over time that their ideas might help the company run more efficient. They might actually feel better about working for the company and not have animosity towards the company.
If you really want to know why some drivers pick one company over another. Pull up a chair and start reading this forum more often.

 

no disrespect to you for trying what you wrote at the beginning of your thread but facts are: whoever owns or runs that company you work for will tell you what miles to give drivers. There is nothing you can do. Miles is money that pays the bills. IMO this thread is a waste of time cause your position doesn't dictate the rules being applied to make drivers happy. But you can relay info to your greedy owner. Just my opinion.

 

We the trucker "me" has never been very good at planning for the long term. Benefits are good, a pension plan that would transfer through companies, better. How about a savings plan, deducted before my check is written that is matched by the company? How about a free pair of gloves once a month? Just a few thoughts.

 

keep your drivers loaded and rolling, make sure your get paid what they earned, get your drivers home when they ask to be home, show your drivers respect not just as a driver but as a person. I could probably fill a screen up but I think that after reading these post that you get the point. also keep in mind what chalupa said, you get what you pay for......