When I get dispatchers like this I have fun with them for awhile till they wake up.That puts both of us in a better mood.
....and these are the people we are trying to please all day long in order to keep a job. What a world ...... ........what a world no wonder they hand out anxiety meds like candy nowadays... .....this is messed up
The epitomized example of what is wrong with this industry. I would send those photos to upper management, from your load planner and dispatcher's direct supervisor all the way to the top of the food chain to the owner himself. No excuse for that garbage.
Luse, After sending the first message did you call dispatch? Normally if I don't get a response within 20-30 minutes for any critical message like this I'm on the phone. If you spend any time in a dispatch office you begin to understand their process. During dayshift at the Fontana terminal they have a flat screen TV with computer monitoring each dispatch, how long they have been on the phone and how many phone calls they've handled today. Another computer screen shows each dispatcher's average fleet miles per week. On many days they are fielding 100 phone calls and who knows how many Qualcomm messages. During nights and weekends there aren't as many dispatchers as during dayshift, so the problem of time for them is even more critical. The response you got from dispatch tells me that the dispatcher didn't read your messages, and was simply firing away any old response in order to get to the next driver in the queue. This seems to really be an issue with night shift and weekend staff. My DM told me that if I haven't received a response in a critical situation like yours (needing an empty trailer) you need to get on the phone and make sure a DM has messaged the planners. Once you are on the phone they have to work through the situation with you. If they are fielding calls AND multitasking trying to respond to drivers that only send QC messages, then you're apt to get a reply that is "less than complete" when staffing is short. I will say the biggest headaches I've ever had getting an empty was in Louisana, worst case I was directed to 4 different locations before getting to a customer's yard in the middle of the night with an open gate and NOBODY around. I ended up taking a flashlight and opening trailer doors and inspecting about a dozen trailers in the yard before I found one that was acceptable and hooked up to it... ... then freeform messaged the night staff to make sure they hooked me to that trailer number, only to be told I couldn't hook to that trailer because it was in Ohio.... ... yeah, the vaunted Trailer Track technology... ... "Nope, it is clearly not in Ohio. It is right here and hooked to my tractor." They "fixed" it and I was finally on my way, like you after a 10 hour break and several hours and miles of trying to find an empty.
Honestly I did not care it is a deadhead from Paris, TX to port Allen, LA. Was not going to go after one until my 10hr break is up. Did not feel like talking to them. Been with swift a long time so I would have been more proactive if it was not just a deadhead. Waited after 6am for day crew to come on in called and they told me where to pick up one.
