Are things really this bad?

There are still quite a few students coming out of Phoenix. There are a few mentors on our fleet and they haven't had any trouble getting students. *shrug*

 

i called swift just for the heck of it and was told they are not hiring as of now

 

It is as though as they say. I work for a concrete company hauling powder cement in a tanker. Usually we are hopping, right now with work. Last yr I worked almost 14hr days 6 days a week, and brought home any where between $750-$1100 depending on where I was delivering. No we haven't done squat in months.. Today went into work for 2hrs then send home. Most of the guys I work with are going to Monticello to pick up flyash, and bring it back to the yard, drop the trailer then head home.. ya the rain has been a pain, but it is mostly the economy, and no one pouring any mud.

Swift isn't all that bad of a company to work for. I drove for them a yr before going local. Just stick it out, and things will get better over time. If anyone of the big companies, Swift will ride the storm better than most IMO..

 

Swift, thus far, has been good to me. I have gotten out of it everything that I have put into it. Also, I have to agree that Swift will still be around even if all of the smaller companies were to close up shop, that is one safe bet that I would put money on.

The best advice I can give you is don't listen to the negative comments, just take them as advice for things to watch out for and keep on keepin' on. Take them with the knowledge that the company today isn't what it was even a year ago, and honestly things have been moving up as far as I can tell, and I'm glad to be along for the ride at this point.

 

I read on another site that their schools and training practices are under investigation, thats just what I read not sure of validity. May be reason for no trainees.

 

I don't want to be disrespectful, but I feel I should say this. Are you really sure that with 0-1 year as a driver that you are in the position to be training or even mentoring new drivers. You just don't have the windsheild time to be telling a guy what to do in situations. If you want to train somebody just for the extra money than you need to work for a company that pays more and just solo (no training). Like I said I don't want to upset anybody, but these things need to be said and these practices at companies need to be stopped. This is the reason we have so many steering wheel holders on the road anymore.

 

well I've only been looking for a replacemnt job because things are really slow here... I'm surprised you havnt noticed the lack of freight let alone students. Id be more worried abt the former.

 

yep, rookies training rookies isn't going to result in very good rookies.

Kinda like hiring a kid who just graduated 8th grade to teach the next years class.

 

I realize I'm inexperienced as of yet, and by no means do I think I know everything, but it really doesn't take experience to see that less experienced people are doing it because so many seasoned drivers who did this years ago either; they want to make more money (yes, I will say this up front), won't be trainers because they think they are better than that, don't pay attention to the rules, complain about everything when change occurs, disagree with logging legally, turn down loads because of empty miles (and yes, some company drivers think that this matters for them once solo, even though they get paid the same), they don't like new drivers tearing up their trucks (as most are owner operators), expect him/her to know how to shift even though the person has less than 20 hours on the road with an instructor (and yes, the mentors know this), and they generally have a distorted and sour view of trucking in general. I do know this isn't always the case, but I have heard way too many drivers complaining about the position they were in, and all I can do is think to myself "But you put yourself in it, no one did it for you."

Put a 20+ year vet with a newb right out of trucking school and very likely he is going to complain about how much harder it was for him, have an overbearing attitude, scream at the newb for making mistakes, and it will warp the person's mind if he isn't just plain terrified of the trainer. I guess that's cool if you are looking for things to stay the same, but not for people who want it to change. Negativity just breeds more of the same, and it's extremely unprofessional.

Now, to the exceptions to the rule? Bravo. I love seeing good trainers who have been around for a long time, in fact I have more respect for a respectful and knowledgeable trainer (luckily my trainer was both) than I have for anyone in the industry, especially the Swift mentors (the good ones), as they have had to put up with a lot of flack most likely to get to where they are, which usually takes a person who enjoys what they do and wants to make a difference.

I talked with a person who was kicked off his mentor's truck after the mentor (a 20+ year vet) was sitting in the jump seat while he was backing and instructed him to not get out and look even though the trainee wanted to, that "he had been doing this for 20 years and he knew that the guy wouldn't hit the trailer on the blind side and to back up anyway".

What happened? He hit the trailer. The guy still had a job, but the mentor blamed it entirely on him and kicked him off the truck, which sucks for the guy since it's on his DAC now. This is just one example...