good drivers and "production" numbers

delusions of grandeur.

No amount of production gives an employee the right to be an arrogant, subordinate, beligerent, malcontent PITA.

 

I suppose a lot has to do with who we are talking about. If you're speaking in general terms regarding the typical "OTR drivers" pool at they typical large mega dry van carrier, certain things will stand out
A lot of mega dry van carriers deal a lot with drop/hook accounts where you are simply given a delivery window that may be 12 hours wide. Many drivers are slackers if not pressed, and they'll drive 8 hours day then park. They have computer systems that analyze log data and they can quickly tell who gets out there and get the freight from point A to point B in a tiny manner, and who doesn't. i.e they can tell who knows how to manage time well, and they can tell who likes to piddle-fart around as the norm rather then the exception.

In the same vein, they don't like drivers who sleep until 9am, 13 hours into their 10 before they get going. Things change, load status' change, and keeping the load always 4-8 hours behind where it -could- be is not good business.

That's the main thing. There are other things like griping incessantly wanting to go by home or not here or not there or. Nobody wants to have to "parent" a driver as if they were a 10 year-old kid who did not want to get motivated to go to school. They want drivers who they know is self-motivated and can be counted on to move freight in a timely manner, good times and bad, good weather or fowl weather.

Drivers who provide no fewer then 6 excuses each week why they were late here, or late there, (got lost, had to wait on shower line, overslept, traffic jam, accident, windy, etc) will find themselves on the crap list sooner rather then later.

 

I have found that companies will reward the good drivers and the slackers will get crappy loads,,bad hours and poor equipment, I used to give bonuses to my good drivers and when the situation presented it self I would fire the slackers.

 

But then you also have to consider that you don't want to make yourself appear as the guy who can be abused and will take any/every crap load that comes along [that nobody else wants] and them not have to worry about your giving them crap.

It's a delicate balancing act to demonstrate you are a "company man", but will not stand for ongoing abuse, either. But especially in trucking, it is (or should be) a give and take relationship between the driver managers (planners, dispatchers, etc). It can't all be gravy (just not going to happen, anywhere, all the time), but it can't all be gristle either.

 

I agree whole heartedly with STexan.... and it has not been my experience that the slackers get better loads or favoratism.... I drove for a small carrier and then went to a mega.. Werner... and at both, being a good productive safe driver paid off...

at werner.. I had to creatively color... I always did a good posttrip... I wanted to deal with things on my 10 hour reset rather then during my 14 hours... I did my actual physical pretrip off duty before I even started my 14 hour clock... and usually I was in the driver seat ready to roll just waiting for my 10 hour reset to be done... and as soon as it was.. I took off... that gave me the whole 14 hours to earn what I could..

when I was on the dollar general I cheated the clock alot.. I loved the 4 am deliveries.. cause I would be parked there at the store and would start unloading and getting my rolltainers out and toppers on u boats or in empty rolltainers... then when 4am came and they opened the dock door I would just hustle and roll the rolltainers inside.. usually taking onlh 20 minutes.. then I would log in pretrip.. load the dunnage.. and be ready to roll... many times I would have time to get the 2nd stores toppers into the empty rolltainers before it was time to roll to the 2nd store...

now.. yes, a lot of drivers would tell me I was dumb for working for free... but.. I wasnt.. they would complain abojt there $500 to $600 checks and I was brining in twice as much.. because I was able to do more loads then them...

now.. I am no longer with Werner... I just started a HazMat Tanker gig.. where I am paid hourly... but.. I am confident that the same holds true where my being a good productive safe driver will be rewarded....

also... werner gave me a great review.. my fleet manager and the safety department gave me a nice letter of recommendation... which I am sure helped me get this gig...

Now.. I was raised by mh parents to have a good work ethic.. and do always do my best... I think too many people fall into a trap of negative thinking.. and then dont realize they are not actually doing as good a job as they think they are...

even if where you are now.. the slackers are treated better.. do you really want to be a slacker... cause that may only be setting you up for failure in the future if you develope bad hard to break work habits..

and one final thing... there is more than just your company watching... I was often approached and recruited by O/Os or other drivers when I was with werner... they saw a driver who was clean, dressed appropriately and working hard... whether I was fueling, or at the shippers and recievers... so, another reason to be on your toes.. be ause if your current employer doesnt appreciate you and hour hard work... your next one may be right there at the dock next to you...

 

BrenYodda. You are right on all counts.I was on DG before the roll offs. One thing that you mentioned was you were ready to roll after 10 hrs. How did you avoid a log violation? You would need to wait 10hrs 15 minutes otherwise your pretrip defaults onto line 4 for the previous 15 minutes,meaning you did not take a full 10 hr break but 9hrs 45 minutes. You must have a friend in logs. Lol

 

My company tracks our productivity and I don't have any problem with it. In fact it can give you leverage in negotiating a raise. "So and so makes $3 more per hour but is less productive than me"... Productivity rankings only make the bums look bad and that's a good thing, the whole company shouldn't suffer or move to a pay by the load system just because a few drivers are milking the clock.

 

Frankly, as in regards to trucking in all my years, I never heard anyone mention "production" as a driver.

You either drive or not, you either deliver or pick up, or you don't.

Then if you are considered dead wood, you are let go. but then again, given the situations some companies face on hiring a driver, firing's are not what I have seen in my years. It takes a lot for some companies to fire a driver, at the very least, this is what I have been a witness to.

Now production numbers, I have seen, when I was very young, working in a factory. Which when I was able to go to automotive school I did, and became a mechanic for many years, then got into trucking. And even as a mechanic, I did not see production numbers, as many times repairs take longer due to rusted nuts/bolts. waiting for parts,. waiting for the customer to ok the repair, or extended repairs.

I just do not see how any boss wants "production" out of a truck driver,. when he should know all to well, our work day (or night) is highly dependent on weather, traffic, and other variables.

 

Don't compare your worth to others because it will drive you bonkers. Focus on yourself.