EPES TRANSPORT-Greensboro, NC

You could do a lot worse that's for sure.

.25 during training then .30 with 90 day increases off your trainers truck to .34 by first year + the northeast bonus when you run up there equals some good starting pay and decent miles. A penny bump each year to .41

Outstanding trainers, no team training.

One of the other guys described it as a starter company you can retire from. That has a lot of truth to it given the number of 10,15 and 20 year+ drivers we have as a percentage of total drivers. Our turnover is only 38% which speaks for itself.

Like anywhere else we have our issues. There is no perfect company. But they're minor compared to most places.

 

Sounds about right

 

And this is one REASON why im joining EPES when I come out of Driving school. A good company, and good people as well. Flyingmusician and sdaniel have helped me with valuable information about the company, and the driving school !!!!!

 

Just. 30 doesn't seem not lot of pay. Then. 34 by a year. How that vs cargo transport . 38 or transport America. 34 to start and. 36 for hazmat. How does that compare and your opinion pls.

 

Just for me personally......

The cargo recruiter had a really snotty elitist attitude when he came to my school. Turned me off immediately. Most of the people here are laid back good folks. I didn't get that vibe from cargo from the very first word out of their mouths. Kinda put me in mind of those 'image means more than anything' companies like averitt, ups, od and tmc. Not the environment where I thrive or the type of people I want to be around. Value my work, my customer service, and my performance, not what I look like or the 'image' you demand I conform to.

Cameras in their trucks. Deal breaker. I've got a dash am that's the only cam I need.

They have primarily an auto fleet if not entirely. At the time I was in school it was entirely. Deal breaker. I drove one here for 92k. Hated every mile I was in it. I prefer a stick and had a choice.

I will not team train with students. I've seen that mentioned more than once in the cargo thread. Number one deal breaker. It isn't allowed here not should it be anywhere. I'm on duty in the jumpseat when I have a student. I will under no circumstances sleep while a fresh noob drives and/or use their log to pad my check.

The first year money really isn't as bad as it sounds. They run us. Accessoral pay items are enough and no issues in getting them. We run the NE plenty and that 25% bump on those trips adds up quick. Mid 40's first year isn't bad for a student in a van gig and very easily attainable. I did 43,890 first year at that progressive pay scale. Subsequent years show acceptable increases / progression.

All of that said, money isn't everything. For a lot of us anyway. It it all depends on what works for you, your personality, and where you feel comfortable. These guys have been good to me. I've learned to work within their system and doing well here.

Based on first impressions from their recruiters I wouldn't have lasted a year at cargo and I know it lol

transport America I can't speak to other than talking to some of their drivers at customers we have in common. They seem content for the most part but not getting home weekly. I am.

 

Averitt, the, and ups did not seem like a environment I would want to be in. Camera are my problem with cargo, invading your privacy but I just want to get my my year in some where because if I choose cargo I would only give it a year. Then how should students be trained or get there training If not want a trainer. I guess I'm looking for decent cents and good milage and company to try to stay with over time. What you think about us express or Arnold transport. Does a sliding pay scale really mess with your pay.

 

Averitt, tmc, and ups

 

one thing to consider when looking at that 30-34 first year progression starting rate while it seems low is it's also just a BASE rate. even right off your trainer's truck, doing northeast trips with the bonus you're going to be at 40-44 right out of the gate. and you'll run up there a lot. it adds up quickly. just a thought.

as far as sliding pay scales I have no experience with them so I can't give good information on them. seems it would be a wash either way as the higher rate applies to short trips and then lower rate the longer trips from what I've read. still doesn't do much good if the miles aren't there. with shorter trips there's usually more of a wasted day once you include the downtime for loading/unloading or d/h work that comes with it on each end. just my opinion based on what research and reading I've been able to do with it. you'd have to talk to guys actually being paid that way to get the real scoop on it.

with regard to usx/Arnold.....many many threads on them here that say basically the same thing. I had one student who did 4 months with them before coming to us and what he told me about them mirrors what has been said here in many places......very good for teams, not so good for solos. he called them u sit express. said he sat more than he ran, was out weeks at a time, and ended up handing over good runs to teams and picking up the scraps. he showed me pay stubs that averaged 1500 miles/week and the average pay he was getting there was around 300/week +/- a little. that's just one guys experience, but he did show me pay stubs to back up what he said and it mirrored what many have said on the forum in those threads, other than that I have no experience with them to say for sure

 

Yeah I that sliding pay scale is a bummer, I ask around about that even if your with a team at us express that sliding pay scale will trip you up as far as pay. Recruiting from another job say stay away from that.

 

I am new at this so I am not sure if I am replying in the right place. Zephex replied to a question I had on Epes Transport and I want to thank him.