Stay away from FIRST EXPRESS!!!

When I first spoke with a recruiter at First Express in Nashville, TN (affiliated with Averitt Express) I was offered .36/mi plus .02/mi for monthly safety bonus and another .01/mi for fuel savings bonus. (should be easy since all trucks have apu's) Got to orientation and was presented with TONS of contracts to sign including that if you don't give them a 2 week written notice when you want to quit that they change your payscale from cents per mile to minimum wage for your LOGGED hours. Also, they even reveal that the drug test costs $50, but they are charging you $150 for it and after SIX MONTHS they will refund it back to you. Also, (very important) if you take a dispatch and don't make the appointment time you lose your safety bonus for that month. Also stressed that LEGAL LOGGED HOURS are necessary to retain bonus as well as not getting shut down for HOS violation.

My first dispatches were an hour from Nashville probably to get my feet wet. After I delivered I was given a load going to Houston, Tx and told delivery time would follow when they got it. (a lie and a trick) Great, I was on my way. 2 hrs later I got the delivery time...10am in Houston. It was now 5pm and my dispatcher had gone home. Houston is 850 miles from Nashville, a SOLID 12-13 hour drive and they gave me a 10am appnt after being on duty since 8am. I called the night dispatcher (who knew nothing about it) but said it was set in stone. So I drove until midnight, slept 3 hours AND MADE the appnt time! I thought maybe it was a fluke and shrugged it off. Same thing on the next 2 loads. I spoke to 2 or 3 other drivers who said to get used to it...'fraid NOT! I called the safety guy (Marion) and complained about the illegal hours and having to falsify logs to make these times and got it turned around on me by a rude, ######## little punk. I told him I was sorry for wasting his time by trying to run legally and hung up. Next thing I know, my load was traded to another driver and I was rerouted back to Nashville. I delivered in Nash. and while being unloaded packed up all my things to empty the truck when I got back. I greeted by the owner (Bo) a recruiter (Adam)and the punk (Marion) out in the yard just as I finished moving out my things. Bo wanted me to talk but I said I wouldn't with the punk there to which Bo all of a sudden got real irate and hostile and told me to get my ##* off his yard, that no one tells him what to do! I got in my truck and he (on foot) chased me (he thought) in 95 degees to the gate screaming obscenities at me and telling me "You're not so tough." My final words (and gesture) to him before he finally backed off were (as I showed him my 9mm Glock that I had in my lap) was, "Who needs to be tough with someone stupid enough to only bring their EGO to a gun fight?" and drove off. After 3 weeks I was sent a check for $205, $430 short of what I had earned in 3 and a half days.

Since then, (contrary to the recruiters, go figure) I have spoken to several of their drivers. Every single one is either quitting or looking. This is a really BAD situation for drivers. I think it's a real shame that they have to blackmail you with your paycheck to get 2 weeks notice from you instead of just treating you right. STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY!

 

Thanks for the replies, questions, and advice. What I understand is that both companies own large amounts of each others' stocks and holdings, but neither owns the other. Being affiliated with Averitt lets First to dispatch their drivers (unpaid out of route miles) to Averitt's yards to fuel up since they have cheaper bulk fuel tanks.

I own a concealed carry permit and didn't point my Glock at him, just set it on the dashboard in plain sight kind of as a "preventative" measure. I don't aim at anyone unless I intend to use it.

 

Averitt doesn't own them or vice-versa. They own major pieces of each others stocks and work in tandem with swapping loads and fueling at each others yards. Tell your friend to expect HEAVY micro-managing from either
company, both are very paranoid. Also, if he goes to Averitt and they put him on the Cracker Barrel account, he will have to HAND unload THOUSANDS of lbs of boxes at his store delivery...no lumpers and no help in the trailer. (it's not allowed) I worked for a temp agency and did one of those runs in Florida and got heatstroke and very sick from having to hump 14,450lbs of freight in 120 degree trailer. They expected me to deliver to 5 stores on a VERY STRICT timetable...impossible to do in 7hrs.