Snackbar is chillin'....at Shaffer

Thanks. I talked to payroll in Lincoln. I dont talk to my home terminal much because in my opinion, most are there for the paycheck and dont want to do anything unless you push them. Been that way since Mr. Acklie passed and T trashed the ones who knew how to actually run the company.

I been here 24y. Only had to get a motel 3x in all this. I seem to remember breakdown at $150 per 24h after the first 12h. That was my 1st issue. I don't know if/when they reduced it to $100.

The hotel issue was the company rising the Expedia and Hotels.com bandwagon, going cheap. I chose a large chain that works with truckdrivers and used to work with us. The hotel asked for a $100 down on the room that all the discount sites don't cover. Took 3 hours of breakdown trying to get them to pass on that requirement but the hotel wouldn't budge. So direct dealing with the hotel wouldn't work, using the bargain sites wouldn't work. I ended up paying the $100 down and then got the trucker rate.

Turned in the motel receipt with a transfo trip but it didn't show in this week's pay. Called payroll and they said I had to turn the receipt in a terminal directly, no tflow.

That's another thing that's bugging me is that they want tflow for all receipts but then don't accept it when I follow their policy.

Getting seriously bugged with the policy issues that were never a problem before

 

I had to take another crete drivers truck from that Freightliner. Had been sitting for a couple of weeks. This guy was a Mess. Junk all over the place. Took me 3 trash bags just to clear off the bunk and find the floor. I ended up going to wally and buying a sleeping bag and ground cover to keep the grime off me. Thank goodness I was only in it for 2 days to get it wilmer. Took a 30m shower when I got home (vacation) to feel human again. I know I can be a bit of a slob sometimes but *shudder*. I know he had a dog as well because of all the hair, chew toys and bags of dog food. I feel for that pup...

 

It's things like this that make me feel better. I'm far from the cleanest person, but I can at least see the floor in my truck!

 

Reminds me of the time I picked up a truck in Bakersfield CA and had to take it to Lincoln. Had been there for three weeks. Had a half eaten pizza on the bunk. I drove it to the repair places dumpster and tossed everything in it. On the way to Lincoln it started raining. I had as much water inside the truck as outside. I was very happy to pull into the Lincoln yard.

 

I've had an arguably good experience with Crete. My main problem with them is that they're thrifty in unexpected ways. I.E., when I was orientating, they rented me a NICE car, not a subcompact, put me up at some NICE hotels, not motels, provided excellent meals, and were forthcoming with miles (got paid for the miles I drove the rental cars). But then I found out I had to pay for a kingpin and trailer lock. I asked for a hardhat and found out I had to pay for that too. I didn't get paid for my first week of loads because I didn't submit my transflo documents with the correct cover letter. I'm unable to build truckstop points because they fuel at every different brand, depending on the deal they get that day - never made it to platinum status on Love's or better than x2 points with Pilot. Locked myself out of my truck one time, had to call a locksmith, submitted for reimbursement and denied - JB Hunt pays for that stuff. I got a truck with 460,000 miles on it and found out I had to drive it to 600K, instead of the usual 500K. It's the little things that they skimp on. And hey, okay, there are bonuses and the pay is decent, so my complaining is kinda counter-intuitive, I don't FEEL like complaining but I know there are some valid complaints. I guess I'd say, Crete will surprise you with the things they don't worry about, and the things they do.

 

Technically they pay for the fuel,it’s their points you get.
I had to pay for a locksmith (once).
Taught me to keep a spare in my wallet,and you get your money back when you return the locks.

 

Peterbilts and Volvos don’t allow the door to be locked by the button if the door is open. Can only be locked by the key from the outside or inside with the door closed.

Always stash a spare key outside somewhere and get in the habit of locking it from the outside. Last Freightliner I drove was a ‘12 and it had pop on/off rear taillight covers so I stashed a spare key inside one of those.

 

I locked myself out of two trucks early in my career. One at Celadon and one at Knight. Never got charged for anything. I have a spare in my pocket at all times ever since.

 

Yeah well, every trucker knows that truckstop points are a side-benefit, but forget about that with Crete.