New Job, driver unloading advice to make life easier?

I've been offered a much better paying account to drive for, but it requires me to unload the trailer. I am going into this aware that the trailers are often sloppily loaded, that the customers can be impolite, and that the backing is often hellish. So, I am wanting to hear from other drivers who have pr who currently do unload trailers. What do you use or recommend to make life easier? I've been told to stock up on baby wipes, ibprofen, and to get good gloves, a back brace, new steel toe shoes, a hat or bandana to help keep sweat out of my eyes, and plenty of bottled water. What else should I invest in? Please only comment if you're offering useful, helpful suggestions and stay on topic.

 

The advice you posted is spot-on. The back brace should be provided by the employer, but if not, invest in a good one. Mainly lower back.
The 8 Best Back Braces of 2023 | by Verywell Healt
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Also study proper lifting techniques. Your employer should show those with videos/YouTube videos, etc.
If not, look them up yourself.
I know, I've done that type of trucking for a few years.

 

Don't take any pain reliever with acetaminophen. That stuff will kill your liver.
I use Aleve because it doesn't contain acetaminophen.
Advil may be the same; research it and decide which is better.

 

Kinda depends on what type of trailer and what type of freight...?

 

Money isn't everything.

 

This (fortunately or unfortunately) is where the money is, I wish it was where longevity lived. I have drivers who have been doing this for years and I have drivers who have ran less than a load and quit. I have drivers who cannot and will not protect themselves and the company and strike buildings and other things and get themselves term`d. This is no fun unless you have the correct mindset. The stores are staffed by people who make peanuts managed by overworked and underpaid managers. The unloading is a huge part of the job, in fact it is THE job. Positioning the trailer to their liking usually in a strip mall or sometimes a solo building starts the show. The freight is loaded by hand and after a few hundred miles banging down the road can settle and or unsettle. The freight is generally under 40 pounds for the liquids and the heavier stuff is usually loaded on the bottom of the "walls". The boxes are all shapes and sizes and you load them onto "rollers" that you carry and set up in the back of the trailer to roll into the store or onto the store's section of rollers (if this is what I think you're referring to) each case has a label with a store number, when you get to the next store's boxes, you're off to the next store. The trailers have between 1-5 stops, average is three.

The unloading takes getting used to and you MUST start off slow, let your body adjust to the work, and through repetition. your speed will naturally increase. Strains and aches and pains are common, working around shifting freight is the biggest issue. You have to keep your work area clear from obstructions (rollers/crates/freight) so you have space to "escape" into. Right now, heat is the big enemy. Hydration and brakes are mandatory! A large fan (which you need to buy but the companies reimburse for) is a must! I have a few 50 somethings and a few females who do it right, and put a lot of the "studs" to shame. You have to work through the learning process and the heat and its VERY lucrative. My fleet's drivers on average are making 6 figures easy.

 

I used to do hand unload. Freight was light, rollers were set up in trailer and boxes rolled down the line. When things got backed up during the summer heat (Yuma, El Centro, Vegas) I would step out of the trailer into the air conditioned dock until I could start pushing again. We had Wabash dry vans, and they had those little port holes up near the roof line to let some light inside the trailer, well in the summer they would actually intensify the heat of the sun and make it hotter in the trailer. I would always cover them up with cardboard, as soon as I did you could feel the difference inside immediately. Can't say the hand unload ever really bothered me, the money was great. Eventually after a few years the stops did all go to pallet jack delivery.

 

Right. Can't eat them Ibuprofen's in moderation either. Bad news...

 

Is it Dollar General, Family Dollar etc?

 

Take pictures of poorly loaded trailers, and any damaged freight you observe. You want to document that you weren't responsible for these situations.