Help for not getting miles

Couple of things that need to be brought to light. First of all, what type of freight is he hauling? Secondly, what company is he with?

These miles are WELL below industry standards for OTR driving. Shoot, I know some local drivers that put in more miles than that.

As to dealing with his FM, he just needs to explain in a diplomatic fashion that she needs to get him some more miles before y'all starve to death. A wise man once told me that being tactful will get you far in life. That same man also defined tact as being able to tell someone to go to hell, but enjoy the trip. Communication is key here. If he's not saying anything (BAD move), then his FM is assuming he likes sitting like that.

Also, which is where the additional information would be helpful, it could be that his company is in a financial mess and is losing customers right and left. That would make miles harder to get than a pack of cigarettes in a maximum security prison.

 

Ugh! US Xpress?? Man, I don't know what to say that won't get me another infraction. My step dad drove for them for a short while and he had the exact same kind of screwed up dispatching that your husband is experiencing. I tried coaching him along through all of this. Unfortunately the end result was him leaving after just a couple of months. I can appreciate that your husband is wanting to finish out his year (I'm assuming for school commitments/repayment), so leaving is not an attractive option for y'all.

I would just encourage him to hound his FM at every opportunity.

Share that definition of tact with him and encourage him to use it as such.

It's time for him to make himself known as a PITA driver if he doesn't get anything more than 2000 miles a week. I truly don't see the logic these companies use to justify running a truck only 900 miles or so. I can't see how they can afford to pay for the truck let alone anything else when it's not generating any real revenue.

 

HT - Its definitely a time for him to speak up. Yes indeed he needs to learn Crow's Tact Strategy. I'm just a young chick but I learned a few years back that you can not remain silent and take it as it comes in ANY work place. Remaining silent put you in a position to get ran over by everyone. In some sense when I finally learned to speak up, I got a lot more respect from the higher ups. If he talks to his FM and still doesn't get some miles, I'd be calling the terminal manager and finding out what's going on. That's another thing, never be afraid to go over heads. Some people have ego issues and won't stop until someone speaks up and puts them in their place.

Just by chance, when he is sitting is he in constant contact with the company? Hubby gives them one hour for trip info, after one hour he is sending a message through the Qualcom wanting answers. If nothing comes through then he calls and calls and calls. It might bug those sitting behind those desks but darn it, he needs to make some $$$ too and he sure isn't on an hourly wage here.

 

Well one of the things I use to do is ask my Dispatcher, what do "I" need to do in order to get more miles.... Don't make them feel like it is something they need to do but is there something you can do to get more miles.. I would ask is there something i need to be doing that I am not currently doing? is there something I need to be doing more of? can you let me know?

Seemed to work for me...

 

Excellent advice, Jo. I've also said that to dispatchers and it's worked pretty good. It's worth a shot, but with the situation being what it is right now I think something with a bit more aggression might be necessary. Then again, he's not said anything prior to his wife's posting of this thread so maybe that is what he needs to start off by saying.

 

How much experience does he have? Like I said, I can appreciate that he wants to establish some tenure, but a lot of companies (especially smaller ones) understand how these large companies tend to operate and generally don't look negatively on drivers who leave them after a short period of time.