Top 5 or 10 Driver Complaints & Desires

People with no morals tend to push the honesty thing, being a driver doesn't have anything to do with it. Bernie Madoff was not a driver. You shouldn't have preconceived ideas about someone because of thier occupation. Honesty is a value and a moral either someone has it or they don't.

 

Drivers want what most everyone wants. Recognition for a job well done. To be treated with dignity and respect. The best dispatcher I have had would say, "If you say you can get it done that's all I need to hear." In other words, he respected my judgment as a professional - both ways. This job is not "dispatch versus stupid drivers who are seeing what they can get by with." We are all supposed to be on the same team. I resent the implication that drivers (stereotyped) push the honesty thing. What about a dispatcher who implies that if you do the right type of "editing" in your logbook you can still get it done? Drivers need you to respect their need for sleep, HOME TIME, family, etc. This one guy in question is questionable, not drivers in general. If you really feel that way about drivers, perhaps you should find a different line of work - or descend into a never ending spiral of doubt and cynicism.

 

If he's overweight, he will tell them to cut the order so he can make weight. And if the shipper got rowdy, you would back your driver. Problem solved...if that was the problem. Your driver is skipping the weigh stations because he cant work a logbook. Sounds like a top notch driver.

The guy says he has receipts and you say you trust him, yet you are docking him $150 until he gets a receipt into your hands. Sounds like a top notch trucking company.

$150... you cant get a roadside service tech to fart for $150. I understand that you cant allow con artists to rip you off, but you said yourself that you trust people until they give you a reason not to trust them. This particular driver must have already given you that reason.

Heres what you do: Go to the trucking jobs sections and start this thread there. Ask the drivers looking for a job what they need from a trucking company. You will instantly find a couple that you like. Go back under their profiles and read all of their comments (its not that hard to find out why someone is an unemployed truck driver...they will spill the beans really soon). Next tell them what you have to offer and what kind of equipment you have and what you expect from a ClassA CDL driver.

Find a couple that you like, then get their contact info. Your driver comes back without a receipt, fire him on the spot. Call your new contact and put him to work.

If you are a decent small fleet operation, I am certain that you should have no troubles getting decent drivers aboard. While you are at it, you should try to pull some owner ops. Then you can cut your worries in half.

 

How about...Getting paid for working, Not being lied to, Not being blamed for a dispatchers failure to communicate with a customer, Not being treated like an idiot because the guy you talked to before me was an idiot, Being given the benefit of the doubt that I really blew a tire and wait till I'm in the yard before you assume that I'm conning you...Etc,etc,

Now I'll be the first to admit that there are a LOT of bad drivers out here that probably deserve to be mistrusted. There are FAR MORE drivers out here that are just bustin'butt to make a livin' and are sick and tired of being treated like the lowest common denominator out here.


Man am I happy not to be working for some big carrier...It sounds like a miserable existence to me!

 

I might point out that a sheet of blank paper, some clear tape, and $2 at most truck stops will get you that receipt a lot quicker. Expenses should be turned in with the weekly Fed-Ex and you can scan in receipts with Tri-pack if you're using that. Something is fishy there.

Having run a service truck I can tell you that $150 (installed) for a used tire they just happened to have, and they don't have them often, is a good deal. That was close to the price of just showing up when I was doing it if I remember right and that price is constantly climbing.

 

Hi Freeway Trucking,

I'm speculating that you are a small operator, and I think I read into your words that your question is being asked in the interest of becoming a better manager and doing the right things to grow your business?

If I am on the right track, I don't think there is an easy answer to your question. As a manager, I'm sure you are plenty buried trying to manage your business. But if you possibly can, I would suggest that you spend a LOT of your spare time browsing this forum. I'm just returning to the industry after having been out of it for some 18 years or so. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I have devoted over 30 hours to combing through the threads. After all this reading, it feels like I never left. There is a LOT of information you can get from here that will answer your question very thoroughly. And best yet, a lot of the threads are real interesting (not to mention that many of them are well written) and read like a short story. Obviously, these are all posts that tell only one side of the story, but there are so many that do such a great job of describing very legitimate issues. In your case, and this assumes I am reading you right, the payoff will be huge. It will be an excellent way to survey what the drivers have to say about their jobs, as well as a chance to figure out how other companies treat their drivers (and why so many of those (large) companies feel the need to continue recruiting even though the economy is in the pits and they have no miles to offer - ie their drivers keep quitting because, contrary to popular belief, we are not animals).

Especially pay attention to the few threads that are in journal form and describe some of the hardships drivers encounter during a bad day in their life (most of the days on the road are good, it is the bad days when office support, respect, and compassion are needed).

Again, without my knowing the intricacies of your business, and without knowing the personalities of your drivers, and without knowing you and you personality, I will toss this thought onto the table. All business is about relationships. You have relationships with your customers and some of those are better than others. You have relationships with whoever it is that does the maintenance work on your trucks, and you have relationships with your drivers.

So if you are able to look yourself in the mirror and say that you are being fair and reasonable, and if you can get to a point that you have a good grasp on what a bad day in the life is for a driver, then the next question is if the driver is also being fair and reasonable with you? And yes, the driver has to accept that there are hardships out there and that s/he has a role in getting through them (afterall, there is a reason they call it work - if it were fun, then we would do it on the weekends for free). If not, there are a lot of drivers, myself included, who would love to work for a small operator. But none of them will stick around unless you are fulfilling your half of the deal. And you don't need to keep any that don't fullfill there half of it.

This bad economy is both an opportunity and a threat to the small operator. It is an opportunity to take advantage of the labor market and get your staffing right so that you can profit if and/or when the economy gets back on track. If you can possibly swing it, now is the time to be building your team so that everyone can be happy if and when the riches return. There are a lot of good drivers and team players out there that would love to talk to you right now. If you take my advice and devote time to reading this forum, you will see that.

If you are good to your good drivers now, then you will be in a position to keep them when the tables turn back to the industry begging for drivers. Of course, the drivers half of the deal needs to at least be able to comprehend that things are really, really, really, tough right now. They need to understand that you can't fix that and that the industry is in survival mode right now. And if they can't understand that, then they will jump ship - but that may be just as well for you.

Lastly, I'll state the obvious. You can make a few phone calls to a few shops to get an estimate and validate the tire repair charge. I do understand that you are wondering if the flat tire truly did happen, or did the driver have a "special friend" in that city? Assuming it did happen, my thinking is consistent with an earlier post. I'd guess that $150 was a bargain. It makes me wonder if the driver might have even taken the trouble to make a few calls to get you the best price? Not saying he did or didn't, but do make sure you have all the facts before you pass final judgement on him.

Believe me when I say he didn't want to have a flat tire - it cost him money too. He might be a great team player who is just poor at his paperwork skills? Even if so, the onus is on him to provide you with a receipt. Every driver who is anywhere close to being a true professional knows that, and in my opinion, you are completely reasonable to expect that of him. I'm sure there is a lot more to both sides of the story because there always is. So that is just an outsiders first thoughts.

Sorry if I answered a question you didn't ask. Just my two cents worth that unintentionally became an essay.

Good luck to you during these tough times. I know it is hard, especially for the small business person.