I love fuel hauling

Advantage is slashing rates in my neck of the woods. Some of their rates are just stupid low. And some of the stores they deliver to don’t really care if they ran out of gas. Thortons private fleet just got sold , they got gobbled up by BP. Not good for their drivers.

 

$17-$19 per hour was a thing in the years following the recession but that’s gone. Probation pay is mid 20s and full time pay is high 20s low 30s everywhere.

Ultimately, rates and pay is set by the driver labor market. If there are more qualified drivers than seats, carriers can lower their pay, and then bid a lower rate for contracts because they have lower operating expenses. It’s like a positive feedback loop for low pay. Then when the labor market tightens up like it has in the last couple of years with 3% unemployment, pay and rates go up.

 

It’s well known that KAG will haul for free just to get a contract and drive other companies out

 

I take it your in the chicagoland area. I don't know why BP and the others bought thorntons. BP got out of the station ownership,trucks and terminals quite a few yrs ago.

 

I’m in Ohio and I know BP don’t have their trucks anymore. But they do own large portion of one of the terminals here and somehow bought out Thortons. Beside Advantage cutting rates bigger problem is big retailers ( Kroger, Meijer etc.)don’t care they want it done cheap. Even if it means poor customer service (stores running out of fuel and cross drops).

 

If there's any indication you're trying to leave, the HR and even supervisors will do everything in their power to try and get you stay. That's why I think it's better to just bounce once you've been there longer than a year or so without notice.

 

If BP is in the works you drivers that have any thing to do with them just beware. After they took over at ARCO they said relax you're safe in your job. Then in 6 months every ARCO driver was not working for ARCO any longer because they closed the terminal and pulled the trucks.

They lie and swindle their way through items. Look at the spill they had down in the Gulf. There are people that have to sue the company ( BP) just to get back what they lost. You want to get skinned, just go down to the Gulf and say you work for BP.

 

Corporate will only put up with so many runouts and crossdrops. They will find a different carrier. Its happened here. Alot of these large corporations will say YOU will haul it for this amount. Their is almost no bidding anymore for work. Especially if their are runouts and crossdrops. When contract is up they bring up all the mistakes. Oh you still want to haul for us(yes) well we(kroger,meier,speedway,wfs)are going to drop the rate 10,20,30,50 bucks a load. Carrier ok where do I sign.

 

######## race to the bottom. These oil companies make billions and trickle down peanuts.

 

"These oil companies" aren't the ones who negotiate the rates, the jobbers are.