Mclane Grocery Suneast (Kissimmee)

Yea I went last night, I'm currently sending applications out. Maybe it'll grow on me, the work is not impossible, I am getting faster but its just not my thing. I feel like a mobile lumber/warehouse lol much respect to the foodservice guys.

 

Got through my fourth night yesterday, my trainers tell me that I am much better than the trainees they have been having and they say I am doing really good and on track to get picked up by a senior driver. I go in each day with a positive attitude and think of the money lol but in the end I still am not feeling it. I have been filling out applications and have even contemplated calling my old job. The drive to and from work alone is killing me, in the afternoon to start work it can take me up to 1 hour and 45 minutes to get there, and after working 14 hours it takes me 1 hour and 15 minutes to get home in the morning. My fiancee is a full time student and we only have one car at the moment and its tough having to come home to sleep a bit and then take her to school and worry about me making it to work on time after dropping her off. Don't mean to be a negative nancy but I am glad I got to take on this opportunity, Mclane is an awesome company and everyone at my DC is really friendly and amicable, but I flat out don't like it lol. I will be staying here until I find something else.

My pops always told me the same thing. At this place that quote can't be anymore true lol, its all about finding a technique and rhythm for everything. I have this really ###### hand truck too, brake hardly works and it has a really small base plate, my trainers hand truck has rubber tires and this huge grip I told him with that Cadillac of a hand truck I can see why its so easy for them lol. I have these two Jamaican guys for trainers, they are a trip, but man do they hustle!! I try keeping up with them because they have everything down to a T! It's sometimes hard for me to understand them because of their accent and they are all about getting everything done in less than 5 minutes. I get frustrated sometimes because I am trying to figure out what goes where and what I need to sign or scan and they are already done bringing everything off the cooler and rushing me to hurry up lol its ridiculous. After the second day of work I was no longer sore, just really exhausted and drained, I will keep this thread updated the best I can!

 

Thanks for the responses, I am still here. Its my day off today and I am coming down with what feels like the flu, the last couple of stops were brutal last night! We were down in the Ft. Lauderdale area with 15 stops when it started to get cold and drizzle, I managed to finish the night ok and here I am at home resting up or trying to at least lol. Mclane has an upcoming bid coming up and from what I keep hearing they switched up I guess the pay on some routes and its got a lot of senior drivers really pissed off because they are losing out on money and their weekends. One of my trainers was talking to me the other night and indirectly told me that its going to suck and that he might be finding something else. I should be done with training this Friday then I hit the extra board, where you literally are on call 24/7. I was told you have to call everyday from 5-7 AM to see if there is anything for you, if not you have to wait on a call that can come at any time even at 3 AM while your sleeping for you to come into work. I am waiting to see what my first check is like though lol everyones told me it might just be my motivation, we shall see Friday lol. For now I am gonna try to break this fever and hopefully get better for work tomorrow, I will keep you guys posted!

 

Got my first check! I started mid week on Jan 15 so I missed a pay period but for 7 days of work I got $1,1xx after deductions. My next check won't be that great since I had to call out 2 days from when I was sick. My first day back from being sick I went out with another driver, told me to be at the yard at 4PM. Get there at 3:45 just to be told that paperwork was not ready, and we sat for 2 hours waiting. During that time you are not "logged in" to PeopleNet so it doesn't go against your 14, but you are in the trailer securing the boxes, pre tripping, etc. We drove to Ft.Myers with about 15+stops. I was put on "sleeper berth" to cover my 30 min break but was told that they all work through it because they don't want one guy to work alone plus to finish the route faster. After all the stops were done I drove my sleepy ##### back to the yard, slapping my face around and killing roaches that were coming out of the dashboard just to stay awake. Yes, some of the trucks have roaches, I was told managment just gave up on trying to get rid of them. Apparently management and or the shop also gave up on some of the maintenance too. This poor S60 had over 600k and had some sort of fuel problem (Injectors maybe?) because it would jerk and lug its way up the rpm's (felt like fuel was cutting off) and you had to shift it like a drag racer otherwise the revs would plummet and you'd miss the gear. I ended up finishing the day at 11 AM, drove an hour and change through lunch hour traffic and knocked out at home. The next couple of days I went back out with my trainers again and although they made me take my 30 minutes off they also would put me on sleeper berth or log me out when riding back to the yard that way I can come back to work and on paper meet my 10 hours off...

So in essence from what I get is, yes you can make good money, your gonna run illegal even with e logs because of the whole being logged in "sleeper berth" and working through it, 10 hour restarts and 30 minute breaks do not apply here and if you live 45-60 min+ away your gonna hate life, some of the trucks are in rough shape and have roaches. Oh and your gonna wait for loads/paperwork to be ready (normal trucking industry bs/not an hourly job) but your still gonna be tossing stuff around in the trailer, etc. all while not technically being clocked in.
On days off like this weekend, I just try to catch up on sleep, from what it looks like their aren't many if any shifts that are early morning, everything seems to be late evening so you will be breaking and working throughout the night.

My purpose in writing all this is to give my opinion and experience on this place, I honestly don't think Mclane is a bad company at all! They have great benefits that start on day 1 for drivers, everyone so far has been really nice and helpful. But like all places it has its pros and cons, just because I feel the job isn't for me doesn't mean I will bash the place. If any prospective drivers have any questions I will answer them to the best of my ability. I just don't think I will take on another foodservice job lol I miss pallets and docks, I've gotten pretty tired of ramps and hand trucks already