Random LTL Rants (all are welcomed)

Actually wasn't all that bad. Came in at 11 AM, picked a truck with a working AC and radio and it was two hours out and two hours back. Drop an empty and picked up a light loaded one. All country roads with little to no traffic. I think I punched out at 4 or so.

 

Turns out my dispatcher cycled through our seniority list and I was the last one standing. Everyone else told my dispatcher to pound sand.

I guess if I read through our entire union contract, I could have easily turned this one down. Especially since the load wouldn't have gone out until Monday night. But he figured he didn't have enough drivers to haul all those trailers out without a weekend run.

 

I think everyone at work has collectively lost their minds.

I show up to dispatch waiting on a truck. Inside the office are two fellow drivers and my ever so eloquent dispatcher. He has a huge grin on his face and says "just the man I am looking for, I got your truck all ready and you are good to go!

Another driver quips in "you might wanna write up that oil leak that she's having"

- what oil leak?

"Don't worry about it, it's just minor"

I go out and hook up the truck to an empty trailer and there is so much oil coming out of the bottom that you can follow the leak back to the parking spot. This thing is legit leaking

I got back inside and my dispatcher goes "just top her off. It should get you down there at least so you can make your pickups. You might not make it back though. Just gonna have to see how that will unfold i guess."

I am sitting here protesting the leak when my terminal manager walks in

"Gentlemen, what seems to be the issue?'

"R/R is being a pansy"

"Yeah, he said he won't drive the truck cause it's leaking oil"

"Is that a fact?"

- sir, it's a significant leak

"Lemme ask you something. I hired you last year?"

- yeah, one year ago down to the week

"So you can't possibly tell me with a straight face, that this is the first time you set foot inside one of our company trucks that didn't have a leak before"

- sir?

"Now here is what we are going to do. I got some hot freight sitting down there that needs to be on your trailer. I can't get it loaded with you and your truck sitting at my terminal. Now, I need you to march to the storage room *points his hand out the door towards the storage room*. And you are going to grab yourself a jug and fill it up with oil. We just got a brand new drum in and you will grab as much as you need and top that son of a ##### off until you are good to go. I really just need you to make it down there. If we have to tow you back, well that's why we have a contract with the tow truck company."

I am looking at my dispatcher who is standing next to our TM. He has a big smile on his face as he is nodding in agreement while pointing at my TM with his thumb.

"You heard the man with the plan! Get that bad boy topped off with oil and roll on outta here brother!".

"Yeah man, all this time you are in here arguing and you could have been back by now" another driver chimes in.

I am sitting here scratching my head looking around the room to see if anyone is going to side with me. My strategy is clearly not working.

- can you at least call up the mechanic so he can clear the last three write-ups?

"He just left"

- I gotta go through two scales. I cant roll in there with three open write-ups.

"Ok, so here is the deal. Our mechanic was here all morning changing trailer tires, and I tell you what, he is a bit moody. I'll go ahead and give him that call to bring him back in, but if he gets cranky, I will be forced to tell him that you requested him in"

- fine

Mechanic shows up

"Huh... Looks like they didn't tighten down the oil filter. Hmmm... Might have been even me that worked on this last. Who knows"

We all meet back up in dispatch. Everyone is making bets how far I would have gotten.

"He would have made it all the way to the point where he needs to be towed" the mechanic chimed in.

"Haha! The mechanic got jokes! By the way R/R, we scrubbed your route. Just sit tight and we may find something else ...or maybe we won't. Who knows?"