Riddle me this...

Back to the original post that started this thread. So this driver turned down a bunch of preplanned loads in 18 hours. Okay, I do not drive for Swift. I am not in management. I do drive locally... Here is a suggestion, let him sit for a 34 hour reset. Get him a load back to the terminal. Suspend him for a couple of days without pay. Reassign his truck to someone else. When dim wit comes off of suspension, give him the most [expletive deleted] screwed up truck you can find. Require him to sit until the truck is back to factory original status. If maintenance has to order parts for the truck, so much the better..Sorry, I can be cruel,vindictive and a real [expletive deleted] with a real mean streak. I also have anger managment issues from time to time. But other than that I am okay to be around if not provoked.

 

I can't see why anyone would turn down so many loads if they trying to make money--sitting still don't pay. I was told it's forced dispatch too but other's on the forum say it is not--so i don't know full deal on that part. I know most company's would not allow you to turn down so many loads or they figure they can send you home and give your truck to someone who is going to let it make some money.

 

There are valid reasons for turning loads down. On the load acceptance macro, you have three choices. HOS, Home Time Request and Other. If a Company Driver chooses to decline a load, checks Other and enters whatever reason, the Company Driver is supposedly required to speak with his or her Driver Manager about it. The DM can then say whether the reason is legitimate or not and tell the Company Driver whether the reason will be accepted. If the DM says go on ahead and run it but the CD still refuses, that driver can earn a service failure and a written reprimand. Enough of these and the Company Driver will be looking for another company. That is what is meant by "forced" dispatch.

A lot of whether the driver is reminded of this whether verbally or in writing depends on his or her DM and the relationship with that DM. Having a good DM does not mean a driver is allowed to run roughshod over the DM and refuse like this guy did. It appears to me the guy has his knickers in a knot over something and is trying to prove a point.

I have had to remind night time ECT that they are disturbing my rest when they send message after message without considering where I am in my current load. Example: Wayne was brand new to ECT in Phoenix a few years ago. I was currently under a load going to Kingman, AZ that wasn't due until midnight the following night and was taking my 10 in Albuquerque. I had gone to bed at around 10 pm. At midnight, my QC started going off. He wanted me to pick a load up in Kingman at 10 am the following morning. I had to decline because I would not be unloaded until at least 4 pm. Load removed. 15 minutes later, another preplan. Picking up in Flagstaff at 8 am. Repeated my decline message and added" one more message from you before 0600 gets logged and restarts my 10." Preplan was removed and I didn't hear another word from Wayne until after I delivered the next day. We talked on the phone after that and worked well together. He's a decent guy, just didn't understand certain limitations. If an ECT starts that with me now, I let them know they are waking me up and they are usually pretty respectful of that.

I, as a Lease Operator, call my DM before declining loads, even though I don't have to, for several reasons: to keep him in the loop, to maintain his backing on my decisions, to get his opinion and to be sure it is advantageous for me to decline. He has more information on where freight is, what's moving and office politics than I do. I utilize his knowledge as an asset to my business. It's one of the reasons he and I work well together.

 

1nonly...there is a big difference in an "incident" and an "accident"! From your very brief description, it sounds like you had 4 incidents. Incidents are considered by safety and management as "potential learning and instructional points". OTOH, too many "incidents" can also point to a driver as one that just doesn't learn from mistakes and has a propensity for "brain farts"...a very dangerous situation considering what we drive and haul around this country.

Your, (the drivers) attitude during the "investigation" of said incidents and the "counseling" attitude given when the incident is "discussed" with either safety and/or the DM will also play a large factor in the decision to retain or let the driver go. Along with, the Driver Performance part of the drivers history with Swift is also considered in the outcome of retention from the company side.

Exactly!

Just exactly what difference does it make if she is a driver or directly involved in a drivers career? We have a strong partnership in out marriage...anything and everything we do we discuss...this includes the daily activities out on the road...even before cell phones, when I would have to call her from the truck stop at dinner! She was the one who dealt with insurance, payroll and settlements with my DM and with Swift...and it was all done on the up and up...in fact Swift insurance dept would call her instead of me when an issue arose...I guess they knew I didn't know much about insurance so why deal with the wacky husband who will just say to call her..go straight to the one with knowledge of the incident and send the driver a message on the Q-comm what they are doing..which would be her!

Just what do you see from your limited visibility of this issue? Not much for sure.

Lazy? Relaxed? Not a chance on any day at any time...even today!

In a nutshell the incident that led to the termination of my contracts was simple...5,000 pounds of undeclared freight (weight) on the "Bill of Lading". This load came out of Mexico, through Nogales, the highest sector for contraband on the Mexico/US border. The tandems when I picked up the trailer in Phoenix were at 36,000+, the seal was a simple tin seal and not matching what was on the dispatch along with not being a high security seal (bolt or cable). When I approached the dispatch window and voiced my complaint about both issues I was summarily dismissed by him and told..."just get the ##### thing legal and get the F out of here!". Since Swift (the dispatcher) wouldn't deal with the discrepancies, I called Law Enforcement for a CVI unit...(commercial vehicle inspection unit)...Swift did not like the "incident being taken into the public arena"!

There are more smaller details to the incident that I will not waste anybodies time with...the bottom line is that I did what I was instructed by both Security classes and videos, and Homeland Security trucker advisory classes we all were required to participate in...especially Mentors. I was a Senior Mentor and often called on by Scott Maldenado (Asst. Dir of Training at the time) as to the training program at Swift...not just me but he would call several of the Senior Mentors and bounce ideas off for our thoughts of the issues. What I didn't do...was just get the tandems and gross legal and run with it...the other fine points of FMCSA regulations, Fast requirements and CTPAT rules for quick border crossing of freight coming into the US from Mexico were more than just "little annoyances" to me!

By the way....the "little annoyances" is a direct quote from the court transcript...offered by Swift counsel to OSHA and to the Administrative Law Judge.

Sure you can...just be exactly what the company tells you to be...don't question anything...just run the freight without bothering about the little inconveniences and annoyances the FMCSA and other regulatory agencies have in the LAW and Rules and Regulations!

You do the same!

Check out my wife's post and see just how LAZY AND RELAXED a driver I am!

 

Behind the wheel? No, I've never been behind the wheel, although I have been on trips with my husband. Does being his wife, and not a driver, automatically mean I have no clue how the industry works? You sound just like some of the male chauvinist piglets who I've encountered on this forum who seem to think that since I don't drive I therefore can't possibly know anything about trucking. Kudos to you for enforcing this stereotypical attitude that women are inferior in knowledge.

How do you get that he was "too relaxed with his job"? I believe you've said this because I said something about the company you work for that you have decided to take personally. Everything I've stated about Swift is drawn from our experiences, not on hearsay. Tom ran hard, his solo average was 3,200 miles a week and was absent from home for over 300 days out of the year. At his termination, his truck had over 600,000 miles on it (he leased the truck brand new, picked his truck up at the Sumner lot with 23 miles on the odometer), he had the truck for three and a half years. When he mentored, his annual miles were shy of 200,000, and he maintained 3.7% deadhead/MT miles. This was how "relaxed" he was driving for Swift. Being a L/O, he, like other good L/O, made Swift a lot of money. A successful L/O works very hard for their money.

Now about the money. Are you drawing a paycheck? If so, you're in it for the money, honey. Everyone who works and gets paid for it, is in it for the money, that's how we take care of our families and attempt to live a quality life. I don't know any trucker who drives who doesn't require to be paid for his efforts.

My husband's only mistake was doing the right thing. I admit awhile back to being critical of the company and I believe I already apologized for it. Nothing I've said on this thread can be considered as "bashing", so there's nothing I intend on apologizing for. What have I said that can be construed as "bashing"? Or is it just that the truth is uncomfortable for some? I believe somewhere in my previous posts I have stated that I loved it when Tom worked for Swift. I just have a bone of contention with certain parties is all. Swift like any other trucking company has its little quirks that need to be fine tuned occasionally and whether or not they do, is entirely on them.

I look at it this way. I'm a republican. Do I like everything the republicans do? No. But at least I'm honest enough to admit that not everything they do is right. We can apply the same concept to Swift.

 

Great post Injun. COMMUNICATION is the key. Unfortunately, in some companies, dispatchers have so many drivers assigned to them, that communication is just something they THINK they don't have time for. Particularly any communication out of the ordinary. And of course there are some dispatchers who are either totally inept, or just don't give a ####. The old "don't bother me unless I call you" syndrome.

 

AFAIK Memphis has little or no time to talk to us on the phone. My messages take 45 minutes to get a response. Then they are misunderstood or misread. Then the 45 minute cycle starts all over again! I hate to call but it fixes things faster.

As far as thinking my mentor was like Blue's? NFW! He kept a clean truck, was a pleasure to train with. And was extremely knowledgeable about the inner workings of Swift. He worked in Phoenix in the office for a while.

 

Off topic that guy in Edward's sig pic was never paid for his image by Dart!

He sued and lost. And to this day they still use it. Probably over 10 years too!