mercer transportation

Yeah I had talked to another Mercer Driver last year from over there and he said he wished he did not live in California..

 

Anything west of the Mississippi is discouraging. We have drivers that wait a week in SoCal beforr they get out.

 

Has anyone noticed an increase in the number of loads that say "Shipper (or consignee) does not pay detention"? I recently had a "must be there at 0700 to load or the world will end" shipment. At 1030 they brought me in to load and I left at 1500. Had to fight for ANY detention, and then only 'promised' $100 which I still have not seen. I think this is still one of our biggest issues in the industry. Of course I logged this entire time on duty. Then they were upset that the load didn't deliver at 0600 the next day, 550 miles away. If my time isn't important to them, then theirs isn't important to me either. With increasing pressure for drivers to be legal on HOS, shippers/receivers still don't give a hoot how long they delay us or whether their loading and unloading schedules are legal or not. I think the only way to change this is for drivers to insist on staying legal and let the shipper/receiver suffer the consequences of not getting their loads delivered on time. Does anyone else think agents and the rest of the sales force need to be held responsible and accountable to educate customers on HOS?

 

Thanks for your post.

 

I have been with Mercer as a contracted carrier with my own authority and they have treated me so good that i am in the processe of parking my authority to pull for them exclusively!

I am just tired of all the time away from driving to keep FMCSA happy.

I believe that Mercer is fair and for the piece of the pie they require i just can't afford to run my own company!

Thanks for your post.

 

Not gonna go in to the details of it but i picked up my truck for a great price. Its got a few small things that need to be done but nothing we cant handle. Currently in the process of going over it top to bottom to try to prevent as much as possible, but yeah i do understand there will be things that i wont see coming. As far as 20k, i wish i had that in the bank. Hell, if i had 20k in the bank after buying my truck i would prolly just keep doin what ever i did to be able to save 20k. So no i dont have the cash avail, but i do have well over 20k between the cash i do have and other finacial resourses(not credit cards either). So fingers crossed i dont need it, but its there for me when i do. Far as not taking a loan out for it, i guess i couldve, and still could take a loan against its equity, but if i dont need to now i wont. Im only planning on running this one til i have enough saved to put down on a newer truck, and then ill take a loan out and build business credit(personal credit is already fine). Basically, doin what i can to cover my ### and plan for the worst and hope for the best.

Now if only i could figure out where i want to lease to!

 

That's the million dollar question. For all of us. It is easy to rule out a lot of companies, probably the majority of them. To choose from those that remain, that's tough.

 

Well im really interested in mercer bc you guys all seem to agree on what a good company they are, and you all seem to be treated very well. But this first in first out loading priority really has me worried. Could someone please elaborate a bit more on this? Some guys claim they book themselves 2-3 loads out, whereas others cite this first in first out system. Im mildly confused on this.

 

Many companies use first in first out, usually if you decline the ONE load they offer you then you go to the end of the line. Mercer is first in first offered, you can refuse as many loads as you want, with no explanation necessary, and no penalty. There are drivers that let their coordinator do all the load searching for them and sit waiting for the phone to ring, and there are others that watch the company load board (or have wife watch for them) and develop a working relationship with agents to help get loads. There is not just one way to find loads, each persons preferences and methodology are different. I think most drivers that have been here for a year or more will agree that it takes time to learn how to work within the system. Working for a non forced dispatch company like Mercer, Landstar, and a few others, is completely different than how the majority drivers have worked before, and is not suited for everyone. While we are afforded a much greater degree of freedom, we also have the responsibility to ourselves to keep working, no one is going to hold your hand here.

 

When I signed on in 1989. We would run to the west coast, always figured on sitting one weekend, sometimes we would sit two. Some times you get lucky and load right out, but always plan on at least one weekend. It has always been that way. I always say if you can't sit Mercer is not the place for you. If you are patient and learn, you can make as much here as you can most other places that can keep you loaded all the time. We cant control the economy, we have to roll with it. Some years are good some bad. I have been with companies that lie, cheat, and steal. I will stick it out with this one.