Driver facing camera

Tracking devices are one thing, a camera staring into the cab and recording 24/7 is quite another.
And it IS 24/7. They have made that fact perfectly clear.
And while we can cover the camera in off duty time, the audio can not be stopped.

 

Remember what happened to Donald Sterling?
You can't even have a private conversation in your own truck. Just think of all of how much that simply sucks.
I'd be to nervous too read off my credit card number over the phone placing an order when someone I don't know could be listening in and taking down my personal info.

 

I know.
We have no idea who is on the other end listening, or what they will do with anything they hear.

 

If they paid me .60 a mile as a company driver I still would leave and tell them to shove that camera

 

I completely agree, and for all these companies that one install these driver facing cams my advice to you is stop hiring the bottom of the barrel trash and start actually hiring people that know what the heck they're doing and know how to drive and then you won't have to worry about what's happening in your equipment.... and another thing for all these bottom of the barrel trash companies that think these cameras will solve these problems that they constantly have.... Wrong again... So start hiring more professional drivers and actually having a more professional training program to train these drivers that are coming into this industry instead of running team operations with a trainer truck so that you can achieve more revenue with cheap labor... Like the old saying goes... You get what you pay for.

 

I honestly think that I drive OK enough to be ok with the Drivecam, but I think that I'm immature enough to set it off every day while telling a totally inappropriate joke.



But most every word doesn't offend me, heck, I don't mind the words #### #### ######

 

Okay here's the story with Crete, I would know a bit being I worked there and hate cameras.
Pretty much exactly one year ago I started working there. I joined because they put in writing I'd earn .43 with me having less than one year experience.
Back a year ago I did lots of research and .43 was pretty good for me still being a noob lol

In orientation they made a big deal about cameras, sat through multiple videos describing them AND Crete specifically told us ALL new trucks will have them.
They said currently they're testing them out on some trucks but it's only a matter of time until it's fleet wide.

Now one little negative was they made me go out with a trainer again which sucked but I did become friends with my trainer whom had many connections and we still talk and remain friends.
Eventually oh 3-4 months down the road Crete mandated that ALL trainer trucks have cameras in them. Well my old ex trainer then become a well ex Crete trainer because he refused to have a camera in his truck.
Crete did lose a lot of trainers over it and they do pay well.
At Crete you can see your paycheck via qualcomm and when I was in teaming aka "training" lol I saw him get $2500-$2700 paychecks.
A trainer at Crete gets paid ALL miles the truck moves plus a bonus for training which I can't totally remember but I think it was $300 a week.

Anyway after some time of them losing trainers and drivers going nuts over cameras they didn't order the new trucks with Cameras and they then said having a camera in your truck is now voluntary (except if you're a trainer).

Crete is anal about a lot but they're not stupid like Swift and or perhaps respect their drivers unlike Swift.
They saw them losing drivers, trainers etc and well money talks so they changed their mind about cameras.
A good driver is more important to them than a camera, they really don't like losing drivers. Even after I left they tried multiple times to get me back and still even recently sent me a happy birthday card lol.
Swift is a driver mill, they care more about spying on their cheap drivers than keeping good experienced drivers happy and feeling respected.
I don't agree with driver facing Cameras at all however I can understand putting them in trucks with trainees and noobs because as we all know there's some people that shouldn't be behind the wheel lol. HOWEVER an experienced driver with a spotless record shouldn't be getting no driver facing camera in their truck. You would think a driver with clean experience would earn some respect, at Swift that's not the case.
The new Swift motto should be "The very best choose... to leave Swift".

 

right on freight whipper... Swift will see an exodus of drivers over the next month and a half to two months as they install these cameras because only the clueless minions who don't mind being spied on will stay there... Now like you statedI could see them having a good reason to put it in the truck of a driver who's having multiple incidents and or trainer trucks but still the way I look at it and I'm sure the majority of this industry sees the same way if you got to have cameras in your vehicles to spy on your drivers 24 7 then maybe they should rethink their hiring process.

 

So it seems Crete has already done this and learned from it, and now Swift is the next big ticket.
Maybe Swift thinks they can do it better?

 

Kinda but not exactly..

Swift came out and said it's coming fleet wide.
Crete tested them out first on a few trucks.. felt it was a good idea and SAID it's in the works for everybody down the road.
As time went on they put them on all trainer trucks.
They eventually realized it was a bad idea because too many drivers were getting pissed and leaving. They lost many good trainers over it.
It's not like Werner or Swift lol a Crete trainer is required to have 3 years experience and follow things by the book.
You know that huge arrow that points at the Crete drivers butts.. here let me remind you:




Yeah Crete SHOWED it's drivers that they're more valuable to them than a stupid Camera.
I might crack jokes about Crete but they did got me all the miles I could ever want, always got me home on time and went out of their way to show they at least somewhat care.
If all I ever wanted to be was an OTR company driver I would have never left.