SHOULD mentors pay for their students food?

I have paid for and have had trainers purchase food in the past for myself or others who have no money due to a variety of reasons.

A better question would be to flip this onto the company and have them pay the trainee better so that the trainer does not have to have the problem of feeding. It is generally not a problem per se, but a generosity because it is good to have someone who is hungry eat a little regardless of where the money might come from for that meal.

It's not often. There are way too many people deliberately going to orientation with a ten in the pocket and a hope to make it to the pay day a week later. The last time I went to one, I had 1200 on hand seperate from the house budget ready to go for the purpose of not borrowing against payroll or having to beg food. This usually provides for at least a month, sometimes two or more if you are careful what you paid to put on your table in times of thin miles.

 

My trainer ate nothing but canned soup and pb&j. He always insisted that I was welcome to whatever food he carried. However I am also of the mindset that you should be taking care of yourself and I already had a bunch of cheap food and never needed his.

Where I'm at now the last truck I had had a double bunk and they said if a new hire needed some finishing they might send him with me. It never happened but if it did and he was starving I'd provide cheap food. It's an investment that can save your life when he's driving. I also planned on making sure he had an atlas and truckstop book before getting off the truck, with points of course.

Luckily I have a single bunk now so I wouldn't take anyone anyways.

 

SHOULD. No. If a trainer wants to help out they can, but if it was policy the company would have to pay. Who says what they eat, ribeye steaks every night or 1 eggroll?
What happens when the trainee quits after crying on the phone to his girlfriend, Does the trainer get payed back?

 

Have the company pay for food? That's a laugh!
Companies act like you're breaking their bank when they stick a package of green bologna and loaf of day old white bread on the lunch table during orientation.

 

I had a good trainer. We always stopped at Flying J/Pilot and got the team showers that way it was free for me & he didn't have to worry about his credits. As far as food, I took $300 cash with me but my trainer liked to eat out every meal. So I asked him if I could use some space in his fridge for sandwich stuff, he said no problem. If I had a good day, he'd treat me to dinner somewhere. I also insisted he didn't have to but he insisted. Overall it was a good experience. We bumped heads hard a couple times but always talked our differences out. That way we understood each other. I always listened to him & he always answered all my questions. It was rough at 1st but he was very patient with me. I have a tremendous amount of respect for all the good trainers out there that give up their time,living space & experience to help new guys enter this field. I personally thank you myself. I,however, couldn't do it. I know it pays well but sometimes the money ain't worth it.

 

isnt 450-500 dlls a week that a trainee gets paid enough?

 

Never been a trainer. Never had a trainer. So i guess i don't really get the dynamic. As far as im concerned They are co workers nothing more. I would no sooner expect a trainer to buy the students food anymore than i would expect one fork lift operator to buy another fork lift operator food. And if a student showed up with out a warm coat or sleeping bag then i guess he is gonna be cold.

 

I don't understand that mentality at all. Why in hell should a "trainer pay for a student's food?" Who is the adult in the situation?

If you can't handle you budget enough to feed your self when you got income coming in, maybe you are not responsible enough to be given the keys to a truck!

For pete sake, a trainer and a training company should be providing a service for you, by training you in a trade. On top of that they pay you. But some fools think it is acceptable to ask for room and board too, from a trainer that is already providing a service to you. Come on, get real.

Mentors typically make 30% more miles. So they make a little more then 30% bigger pay check, with retention bonuses and team miles. That is not a lot for doing almost twice as much work and sharing your truck with someone.

Since when? I never read that in the Swift manual. When did Swift make the mentor your Daddy? I know Swift runs a nanny state, but I never heard of them making the mentor responsible for cleaning up the student.

 

This is one reason why people who are broke should not be hired because it is bad enough that they are housed for nothing, but to feed them is expected?

 

I have so many shower credits, I never pay take two showers a day. No hot racking for this ex sailor lol