Dispatch threatening drivers for not driving on ice...

You have to be able to take the changes in weather in your days, you may start out in a blizzard pushing snow somedays while at the end of the day you are trying to figure out how to stay cool. This profession you have to be ready for anything.

 

Threaten truck drivers?

My company sent out qualcom messages warning of the storm asking us to shut down if conditions were bad.
I figured the safest spot was where the roads would be constantly treated for 24 hours..( highway).
Didn't want to stay 2 days in Missouri.
Find a real company.

 

This is an OTR drivers concern.

Consider this tho: I'm local / regional. A blizzard starts in Maine - I'm stuck in the same stuff in NH, MA, VT & Eastern CT. To drive out of or thru it is one thing. To spend 14 in it, is an entirely different matter.

 

Ok. But that would be none of his business. If he had been at a company longer than me, and he decided that conditions are unsafe, that's his call. But if I decide to take the load, thats MY call. If I can be bullied, I should not be driving. If I crash, its my fault.

My problem would be a veteran who was afraid of being shown up by a newer driver. If the road is open, I go. But that's my choice. Will that make the veteran look like a candy, YES, but if he truly believes the road is unsafe, he should stick to his guns.

I've had that stuff happen for years. The last time was when i was new at my current company, picked up an oversized in Pueblo going to DuffieldAB. Another driver was there going to the same place. Talked real big...grandiose things about his position in the company and the loads he pulled. So he takes it upon himself to show the rookie the ropes. I dont say a word. We ran into bad weather in Montana. He wants to pull over. I decide to keep going. He calls in telling the office jocks how bad the roads are. They call me. I tell them that there was nothing in my contract that says that i need to abide by a babysitter. If he needs to stop, he can stop. If i can drive, I am going to drive. Then they started telling me how long hes been there and all. "Afraid a rookie can outdrive one of your pet drivers?"

They backed off, I continued alone. Made it to Duffield, got empty, and as I was heading back to Montana, THEN...the weather got nasty. Guess who was still sitting in Shelby Montana?

Anyway, when and how you drive is your own business. If someone wants to pass, let them pass. off they want to stop, let them stop. But don't impede another driver with your decision. That driver should make his own choice.

 

And BTW, Reverend Bulldog, ive seen your videos. Your bread and butter is doing what others cant safely do.

 

If you are a company driver, file a complaint with Human Resources and safety about the threats.

 

I also have a spine and refuse to be pressured into doing things I don't think are safe. As an experienced hand, I can safely do things today that might be extremely unsafe for the next guy, and things I might've thought were unsafe for me to do 10 or 15 years ago, I've grown in my ability and now they aren't so unsafe. I'm guessing that even as a "rookie" at that company, you were vastly more experienced than the company pet, who may not have had ANY experience outside of the narrow scope of his employment there. When I heard the OP talking about rookie drivers, I assumed still wet behind the ears with a fresh off the presses CDL...perhaps still under contract, working for peanuts, afraid to be fired for disobeying. Maybe they aren't familiar with §392 and the protections it offers to the driver. If they've been in the game for any length of time and are free of any obligations to a company, there is no excuse for not knowing the rules that protect them or for not having grown a spine.

 

I want to know the route the OP was on when he refused to drive due to ice. I can’t say as I agree or disagree with his decision to not keep rolling until I know how bad the roads were. If there were closed roads, or lots of wrecks then it’s his call to stop. I personally never stop unless the gates are down. That rarely ever happens in Montana or Idaho. Always an alternate route.