prime hometime

Well for those of us that need to start somewhere (newbies) we don't have alot of options. Unless we have 6k for schooling and the time to actually take the schooling, and then your still looking for a Co that accepts recent grads. Granted alot of schools have contracts with Co's to hire grads, but your still not able to pick from just any Company.

We have to start somewhere, after a year we can try to find something different if Prime isn't working out. But even some of the local Co's here in Winchester require 3 years exp or at least the ones that pay 45 to 60k a year do.

Only thing I'm saying is, Prime or anyother Co (CRE, Wer, Schi, JB, Stevens, Central Air & all the others) are all possible starter companies that newbies can choose that train newbies and give them some experience, wether it be good or bad, it's experience never the less.

I looked up Mercer and it seems like a nice small Company to work for. I didn't see the experience requirement or what they pay. But for me to get a job like that I'd need experience, so I need a starter Company for that, then try to find a nice company that perhaps pays more, more home time and good benefits.

I live 1 mile from I81 and 3 miles from I66 (exit 300 of I81 in Va) and so I feel that even if I don't get alot of home time, my home being so close to 2 fairly busy interstates that I would be able to stop by the house even if it's just to takea shower and nap, so I'm probably lucky in that more so than other's.

I just feel that every Company has good and bad points and obviously Notarps you've had a bad experience with Prime and I'm sure your not the only one. IP and U2 and a few other's have had good experience so far. The L/O and trainee I talked to at the truck stop yesterday both said Prime was a decent company.

So who know's...

 

Notarps and cactusjack feel they got a bad deal. Boo Hoo.

They can't stand to see anyone say anything good about a company that didn't kowtow to what they feel should be placed at their feet.

That's the deal. I'm not "sticking up for Prime," just relating my experience as it has happened to me. I suppose it could have not turned out this way. So when these guys come on here and paint everything Prime as being bad with a broad brush, I reply, "well it hasn't been that way for me."

They can't deal with it.

I66 and I81? Pretty part of the world. Plenty of places in that neck of the woods we deliver to, so getting a load home for TAH shouldn't be a problem at all. Just get hired on somewhere and get your experience. I'd warn you away from CRE, Werner, JB, Stevens and Swift. But you can check out this site and others.

Get the list of questions from the newbies section on this site, ask the recruiters the same set of questions, and compare. Make sure you ask what happens if you leave the company before your tuition agreement is satisfied.

I think Prime is a decent company - they've always treated me ok. I run hard on the reefer side and make good money.

 

He is right if you are willing to settle for this. How many co's has he been with? One. Like I said they program these guys into this is normal in trucking. Co's like this will hire year around when freight is good or bad. You want options? Wait till a good co will hire you. When freight gets slow good co's quit hiring. One it helps feed their current drivers (meaning they care about thier drivers) 2 they are not expecting a big turnover.
If you are willing or in such a big hurry to get on the road and home time means nothing and you have no family or few bills to pay, then this might work for you.

A couple years ago maverick was taking guys with no CDL and sending them to school. They dropped that when freight stated slowing down. They are a training co. They would take you if you had a CDL and no exp.. Then they had a hiring freeze. ( sign of a good co) then they required 6 months recent.

Here is what schools and some co's thrive on. Talk it up. Get you in, knowing most will bail. It is a lot cheaper to pay a guy 20 some cents a mile than 42 cpm. A newbie can be pushed and bullied around. Pressured to respond. Trucking is a fast paced industry. Here is the kicker. Co's like you to feel that you have no options, no choices. You have to settle for less to get your foot in the door. They get you in, now if you leave or threaten too they will say go ahead we will ding your DAC you will never drive again.

I am not saying primes training is bad. It sounds like the training is actually decent. What I am saying is that the ones that come up thru this tend to have all the little coin phrases programed in them. As I have said many times why is it the veteran drivers never buck up to my posts? Because they know the difference in co's. They been around. They have something to compare apples to apples with.

Look at U2 posts on here. I think that U2 posts some very good posts. I don't feel like U2 is trying to sale me a box of goods when I read his posts. He has read my posts. He knows my outlook at prime. Does he get offended? Does he come charging in here like I threatened his mama? U2 started at prime. Sure U2 gets burned reading about replies to prime, but any time you have a co that has a lot of issues in the past drivers are going to be hostile towards the co and thier drivers.

Look at swift and the flack they take? Why is that? Because of the history of the co and what drivers have seen them do out here. Are all of them bad drivers? Answer is no, but you need to be thick skinned to work for a co with a shakey past. Heck; look at pony posting about how bad swift is... Yet he gets all fired up about drivers that talk prime down. What is his first reply? Have you actually worked for prime??/ OH has he worked for swift???

The only thing I am doing is stating to me how I got jacked around and lied to a lot at prime. I get tired of reading all these how great thou art posts about prime. How it is normal to have to be out months on end, pay for equipment that you should not have to pay for.

When someone speaks out rest assured ask the ones that come charging to the battle defending prime.. ask them how many trucking co's they been with and you will get one, but what does that matter. My friend what it matters is it proves what I have been saying all along.

 

Thanks for the reply Notarps.

I don't have a choice to wait around for the ideal company to accept me at this point.

The company (not trucking) that I am currently a Partner/Owner in is going in the crapper quickly. I really should have left 6 months ago, but I waited too long... and now I am in emergency evacuation mode!

I need to get some income coming in quickly because I have been in this mess too long... we (me and the other partners) can't even afford to pay ourselves squat right now. And all of this because one of my partners defaulted on putting a large chunk of money into the company to get it off the ground when we started it 2 years ago. A word of advice for anyone who is reading this... DON'T EVER GET INTO BUSINESS WITH FAMILY!

Anyway, I am ready to put it all behind and get into my new career. I appreciate all of your advice Notarps.

 

You are welcome! Good luck I hope it works out for you!

 

Yup... been with one company. Prime. Haven't had problems with them. Want quite a bit more experience before I'd think of jumping, and certainly not in this economic environment. If you look at the industry projections, it'll be well into 2010 or even 2011 before things pick up.

Notarps talks about "a big turnover." I don't see it here at Prime - we did loose a lot of the weaker lease ops over the last year, but this has been an extraordinary year too. I know something about training, since that's one of the things I did in the military - you have to recruit and run many more through the whole process than you need to end up with the people you want and need in the available slots. In every orientation group I've heard of, a number go home due to medical problems, legal issues with their driving record, inability to shift, inability to drive one of these rigs and the inability to pass the written permit test - to name a few. Knocks out a lot of individuals.

I've got bills... they get paid. I ask for hometime, I get it. Heard a CRE driver talking in Bosselman's in Big Springs NE last month... been trying to get home for 4 months, and everytime he gets close, they give him another load going a different direction, and tell him to quit complaining. Now that's jacked - but I wouldn't expect notarps to understand what the true meaning of that word is.

Actually, that's a sign of not enough business to keep the doors open.

Good thing Prime's not that way - because if they were, I'd have been gone a long time ago. If you want 20-some cpm, you'll have to go to Werner for 26 and split it with someone you don't know. If you want to be coerced into running when its unsafe try Swift.

Yup, because in the opinion of guys like U2 and myself, Prime has one of the best training programs running. I know it is, because U2 is training.

Plenty of vets at Prime... most of them don't want to deal with the Bravo Sierra I'm putting up with here.

Wah Wah Wah. Can't take it can you?

[/QUOTE]
Look at swift and the flack they take? Why is that? Because of the history of the co and what drivers have seen them do out here. Are all of them bad drivers? Answer is no, but you need to be thick skinned to work for a co with a shakey past. Heck; look at pony posting about how bad swift is... Yet he gets all fired up about drivers that talk prime down. What is his first reply? Have you actually worked for prime??/ OH has he worked for swift???
[/QUOTE]

Talk to plenty of Swift drivers. Few have anything good to say about them. They don't really seem to care for Swifts not-much-idling policy, especially in very cold or very hot temperatures.

You got "lied to" by the flatbed division... which operates as a seperate profit center from the rest of Prime. Take it up with them. I drive for the reefer division, which is the majority of Prime's business. I haven't had any of the problems that notarps continually whines about.

Duh!!! Then quit reading them!

I've been a professional in other industries. It's quite normal to be gone for extended periods in the course of business, and to pay for your own professional equipment. Yup, maybe Prime should pay for your $40 lock - but you can get it back on your taxes. And I'll agree that footing the bill for flatbed equipment is over the top - but that's what they do. Don't know exactly if a company guy has to pay for his tarps. But then again, that's one of the reasons why I don't run flatbed.

Actually it proves nothing, except you're running out of bald-faced looser arguments. If Prime was such a rotten company to work for, I'd be long gone. At my age, I don't deal with being jacked around well - as obviously you don't. So that says something right there.

Why don't you grow up?

 

Good luck to you man! I know where you're coming from.

One more observation about Prime... training pay is better here than most other companies that do CDL training. So get your training, and then decide where you want to go. But don't assume that Prime is a bad place for that to happen or make money at from notarps biased observations.

 

Yeah I want to grow up and be just like you big boy... I also was a NCO in the military. I deployed twice. I think I have a little knowledge of what you are blowing some smoke of...

 

Thanks man!

I am coming in feeling very confident that I will get some of the best training in the industry... and get paid pretty well during it too.

I don't assume Prime is a bad company. If I did, I wouldn't bother even coming there... I would probably get a job at Lowe's or something until the economy comes back if I didn't think Prime would be good for me.

I am coming in with a positive attitude and ready to roll. I am looking forward to it!

 

That is exactly what these company's are banking on. They want you to think like this.