Decision,Decisions

Daniel55645 · Feb 20, 2018

TheyCallMeDave said: ↑

Correct, it is for a combo driver position.

Dave
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I've been through the Temple terminal 1 time. Seems very strange. I've never heard of doing anything like what you mention. Combo driver out of my terminal just does dock and city. comes in at the same time everyday. Are you looking for home daily only? They should have extra board where you're out for 5 days just driving terminal to terminal.

TheyCallMeDave · Feb 20, 2018

Daniel55645 said: ↑

I've been through the Temple terminal 1 time. Seems very strange. I've never heard of doing anything like what you mention. Combo driver out of my terminal just does dock and city. comes in at the same time everyday. Are you looking for home daily only? They should have extra board where you're out for 5 days just driving terminal to terminal.
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Yes I found it to be strange myself. I did some research before going in and I knew you might do some dock work here, city deliveries there and some line haul but I had no idea just how wildly it could fluctuate, and the out of state deal was a surprise as well.

Dave

HoustonTrucker · Feb 23, 2018

TheyCallMeDave said: ↑

No sir he did not. About the most that was covered was the cameras, and he did it with a tone and delivery, as if he's turned off several potential new hires when mentioning said driver facing cameras. He of course did the usual "Now, they're ONLY set to come on during hard braking, turning, acceleration etc. I can't just pull up your cam and watch you, and neither can corporate." I of course found that to probably not be the whole TRUTH after reading SEVERAL reviews of folks being written up for various petty things, that couldn't of been seen unless the cam was being watched by someone for no other reason than spying.

For instance, people being called and coached for doing things like touching the radio, taking a drink which requires you to remove a hand from the wheel, listening to podcasts and being accused of talking on the phone etc. All of which had nothing to do with an event that would "set off" the camera. Could some of it be embellishment? Sure. But could it be true with the current state of the industry? Absolutely.

I even saw a post on this forum from a few months ago regarding an employee from Saia being coached, because he was only 3 and half seconds behind the car in front of him. That right there about put the nail in the coffin for me, but I don't have all of the facts for that particular scenario. I did also see a photo an employee took at one of the terminals of a company email, stating that SAME policy in bold writing, stating you're supposed to count the number of seconds when following, and even gave a descriptive tutorial of how you're supposed to measure that. A bit overkill to me. I don't know how, or if they keep record of said "safety related events" but as I wrote in my original post, I sure don't want a negative safety review to be presented to a prospective employer in the event I move on, which is really just a bunch of petty crap that was NOT actually safety related, but merely an attempt at severe micromanagement.

Either way, it wont look good to a prospective employer. I'm all for being safe, but I'm not going to keep my hands at 10 & 2, ALL day and feel like a droid cruising down the highway, in constant paranoia that I'm being watched at any moment. That's NOT why I got my CDL. Being safe, and PUSHING safety is great, and I'm all for it, but there is a fine line, and it's easily crossed with many of these "policies". But that's just my opinion.

Speaking of the warning system, I drove a 2013 10 spd Volvo for my driving test, and I took it pretty easy compared to how I used to drive my last truck which was a hopped up 99 379, and the brakes were so touchy in that Volvo, the "alert system" went off about 4 or 5 times when coming to a stop, it went off a couple times when accelerating and I'm telling you, I was being pretty #### laid back with the brakes and throttle. I can act as if there's "an egg under the throttle" as my grandpa taught me, and I can brake and come to a stop without you even noticing, as I was grilled as a youngster about being "soft" etc when braking and accelerating. But I did read posts from past employees in regards to how SENSITIVE they have those alert systems. Example, average and small potholes triggering an event, etc, etc.

Although I didn't think much of it at the time, now it's all adding up. He did mention the no phones ever rule, he told me about how pay day falls on Wednesday, and he also mentioned the "cuts". The way HE explained it was, if things got slow, they'd call you and tell you not to come in for THAT day, then the next day, the guy above you would get cut and so on, until eventually the list rolled back around to you. How true or accurate that is, is beyond me. Regarding start times, he mentioned nothing of the sort. Are you saying on MONDAY specifically you come in earlier, then the rest of the week you come in later? Or is it totally up in the air for the new guy? Also, which terminal location are you working at? Do you know anything specific about the Hewitt/Waco terminal? Not sure how long the TM has been there but it's less than 5 years, as I spoke to a previous employee who left 5 years ago and during that time "Jay" was not the TM.

Thanks for the insight Bob. The fact I'd get to try different things does in fact interest me, but I know due to my previous driving experience, if I ever was offered a CHOICE, I'd go linehaul without thinking twice. That's just more my "style" but I could do P&D and make do for the time being. But at the same time, this "on call" position leaves me a bit worried about getting enough hours each week. I'm not sure how that works out? I hate to turn down decently "regular" hours, for something that is a big IF each week. Like I said, I'm not sure how that position works out hour wise each week. I did see a lot of folks saying Estes will work you right up to 54 hours, then cut you loose to avoid OT. That's one pro at SAIA, as their OT kicks in after 45, althought I'm not sure how often you get more than 45 hours, as the TM read me the previous weeks hours for the drivers, it went something like....54,51, 48,44, 46,45 etc. So who knows.

My wife would really have a good time with that (aka she'd be pissed if that ended up being the case and I was sitting on my ### at home waiting to get called in to work.) Over the last few weeks I've been a real stickler about potential employers. I got lucky and got on with a great O/O who treated me right, right after CDL school, but I'm definitely looking for something with benefits, and when I say benefits I mean AFFORDABLE benefits, and better pay, but I won't settle for just anything. She's getting pretty irritated at me being so selective, but if someone doesn't personally drive a truck, or has never dealt with any facet of the industry, it's hard to get them to understand just how shady it can be. One wrong decision and you can land at an outfit, and you'll be kicking yourself in the ### before your first week is done. Then you're back to the drawing board all over again, which is what I'm trying to avoid.

I've had 3 jobs in the last 12 years, with the only time gap being the month I attended CDL school. I know people tend to hop around a lot in the trucking industry, but I do try my best to spend some time researching and reading up on any company I have my eye on, as to avoid getting into a real cluster that I see so many drivers dealing with. But in the end, even with the uncertainty of the "on call" spot at Estes for lack of a better term, and the fact it's not 100% in the bag yet, still makes it hard for me to pass up being so close to home. If it all worked out, that'd be great considering the commute is so short. I know SAIA is only 30 minutes away, but with the heavy construction on both the North AND South bound sides of I-35 for at least half of the commute, 30 minutes could turn into an hour or more real quick. It's all luck of the draw.

I know plenty of guys that bust their ### for their 15 everyday here in TX and drive an hour or more each way, which leaves ZERO time for any type of home life. Which also brings me to question of "when they say combination/REGIONAL at Estes, do they mean regional in the sense you could be gone all week?"

Dave
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That terminal manager is straight up lying to you. They can and do watch the cameras and I'm positive that it's way more sensitive to recording and an alert being sent to safety than they let on. I've heard stories of drivers getting written up for reaching for a drink in the cup holder while driving.

Saia has gotten extremely bad with the micromanagment.

With Estes as I understand it with combo youre working mostly city and some dock. Youll ocassionaly cover linehaul runs when someone is on vacation or calls in sick. I don't think you'll be asked to stay out unless it's a lay down run, in which case you' come back the very next day.

HoustonTrucker · Feb 23, 2018

Hotplate said: ↑

No way I'd peddle city freight for Estes. Round here, they run 53' trailers on city routes. No thanks, no way, no how...that's a dealbreaker for me right there. 53' footers for switches or volume loads are ok, but that's about it. Linehaul might be a decent option over there, tho.

Now one little known fact about SAIA is that you can use your company seniority to transfer ANYWHERE in their system and you will dovetail in. So say you got 5 years in at Indy and you want to transfer to Tampa, FL to get out of the snow. You carry your 5 years with you down to Tampa!!!! This policy is fantastic and almost unheard of in LTL. You can have 20 years in at an outfit like FedEx Freight and if you transfer anywhere, you'll be working the dock and sitting by the phone at the terminal you transfer to. Guys who have 6 months in will have more seniority than you !!!

SAIA has their issues, but just look at their stock price over the past few years. It's ran-up like a frickin' computer stock, so they are doing alot of things right from a profit standpoint. Rick O'Dell, their CEO has done a fantastic job of running that company.

And don't sweat the cameras, all of these outfits will have driver-facing cameras in the not-too-distant future. "Oh, but my company told me they'll NEVER install driver-facing cameras" Hahah, want to know when a trucking exec is lying? It's when his lips are moving !!!
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At estes your seniority kicks in at the new terminal after 90 days......

Bob Dobalina · Feb 23, 2018

I had always heard utility/combo drivers at Estes wouldn't switch back and forth between days and nights in the same week, as it destroys your hours. Week to week is another story. But I could be wrong.

TheyCallMeDave · Feb 23, 2018

HoustonTrucker said: ↑

That terminal manager is straight up lying to you. They can and do watch the cameras and I'm positive that it's way more sensitive to recording and an alert being sent to safety than they let on. I've heard stories of drivers getting written up for reaching for a drink in the cup holder while driving.

Saia has gotten extremely bad with the micromanagment.

With Estes as I understand it with combo youre working mostly city and some dock. Youll ocassionaly cover linehaul runs when someone is on vacation or calls in sick. I don't think you'll be asked to stay out unless it's a lay down run, in which case you' come back the very next day.
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I don't doubt that for a second HoustonTrucker. Makes me paranoid as hell, and I don't like that feeling at all. Hard enough learning a type of driving that you're totally unfamiliar with, let alone being paranoid all day waiting to be coached for petty things. Speaking of coaching, I went in for orientation today, and when I sat down at TM's desk, sure enough there was a piece of paper with a drivers face, and it said something alone the lines of "did not stop at stop sign, and did not have both hands on the wheel."

About the only way I see that occurring is him realizing his mistake, and slamming on the brakes, which of course triggers the recording, so they burned him for not having both hands at 10-2, and obviously the front camera captured the stop sign. I'm not sure I'll be returning. My wife will probably be pissed becasue I need to work but ####. The whole video portion of orientation was "SAFETY,SAFETY,SAFETY" which is great, but at the same time, they've got the policies to the point where just about EVERYTHING can get you coached, and or fired. Smoke in the truck? Fired, both hands not on the wheel? You're getting "coached" Touching the radio, "you're getting coached" hell touch ANYTHING pretty much and you're getting coached if they catch you. You're not AT LEAST 6+ seconds behind the car in front of you? You're ### is getting "coached." That's what one of the drivers told me this morning when I asked him. None of which looked to thrilled. It's ridiculous.

Regarding the Estes position, that's the assumption I was under, although when I showed up to my interview, he was saying that it's not uncommon to be sent to Houston which is no biggie, as well as out of state to assit the terminal in Colorado, and one other state he mentioned that has slipped my mind. That kind of threw me for a loop.

Dave

KaoMinerva · Feb 23, 2018

I'll go Estes 100% lol

Dabrian · Feb 23, 2018

I'm a 12 year linehaul veteran at UPS Freight and if I lost my gig here I would try to get on at Estes or OD in no particular order. I would never consider Saia with their current rules of no cb usage, Bluetooth, etc....

TheyCallMeDave · Feb 23, 2018

Dabrian said: ↑

I'm a 12 year linehaul veteran at UPS Freight and if I lost my gig here I would try to get on at Estes or OD in no particular order. I would never consider Saia with their current rules of no cb usage, Bluetooth, etc....
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I hear ya. I've got a good friend who works at OD, but it's hard getting spots at his terminal. Hell he lucked out himself, but at some point I'd like to get on there. I've touched base with the TM at Estes, so I guess we'll see if the position is still open come Monday. If so, I think I'm going to take it and just hope something more permanent, in terms of a route opens up at some point.

Dave

KaoMinerva · Feb 24, 2018

Dabrian said: ↑

I'm a 12 year linehaul veteran at UPS Freight and if I lost my gig here I would try to get on at Estes or OD in no particular order. I would never consider Saia with their current rules of no cb usage, Bluetooth, etc....
Click to expand...

So... What's that top out looking like over there? I heard .82

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