Picking operating hours (not HOS)

LOL 27 yrs 18 different companies..... and I thought I held the word record. Being funny not a smart ###. Glad I finally found my perfect job. I will be retarded here.. .. I I I mean retiring here

 

Yep yep I agree bet if you called several different companies and asked them what time of year they have the biggest turnover they will tell you starts around middle to end of Sept goes thru mid March/April

 

All companies are not like that. It's that mentality that causes drivers to think they have to be a dispatchers puppet. There are by far more driving jobs out there than drivers, and a driver with a good MVR won't have a problem getting into them. However a driver with a preventable accident on his record is going to have a much harder time landing a new job after he falls asleep rolls the truck and gets fired. You need to be the captain of your ship (truck) and if your company is going to force you to drive tired then it's time to start putting in apps. Safety is key and any company that can't realize that isn't worth your time or life.

 

Lol if my dispatcher or any other told me I was fired I'd laugh so hard I'd probably split open. Dispatchers don't have the authority to do anything.

 

Doesn't matter how many driving jobs there are point is its the drivers responsibility to accept loads and deliver them as long as the driver has the available hours to do so.If dispatchers let drivers decide on loads the company wouldn't be in business very long.Sure quit and drive for another company but you're sadly mistaken if you think that company is going to be different.If you
wanna pick your own hours then be an owner op.

 

I don't know what to tell you other than I dont need to run crazy hours. My loads are always able to be delivered during daylight hours, if not they split the load and have me pickup something else and stay moving. I dont waste time, I keep the truck moving with allowable hours, and I communicate with my dispatcher. Everyone's situation may vary.

 

If you are under a lease or owner operator that is one thing.

Company drivers dont have that defense. Dispatchers have the power to make a bad driver sit. Shut fuel off etc. Then wait. Bad driver quits soon enough.

 

I am not an O/O nor a lease driver. I know my dispatcher has limitations. If I am not getting a load, I can call the planner and get that resolved quickly. My dispatcher has no control over my fuel, our fuel dept does. I run my miles and do my job and they seem happy with that. I didn't think I was working for that great of a company, but if this nonsense is common with some other companies then I guess I'm doing pretty good

 

Then I guess you are doing well.

In my time it is what it is. I am not aware of any difference. There were several companies in which a dispatcher would explain themselves to the boss man who does the firing where necessary. Others the dispatcher IS the bossman. It depends.

I don't know why I brought it up. In my time companies were very tough on drivers, they were a dime a dozen and expendable. Two service failures (Late 10 minutes example) is enough to get one sent home.

 

One of the (very few) things that I liked about Knight, was their no forced dispatch policy. Also, while they certainly didn't prohibit it, they strongly urged you to not drive between the hours of midnight and six AM.
Of course, that was 13 years ago. No idea how they operate now.