Terminal Rats

I am not really defending usa truck, I really don't have enough experience to justify a defense. I am just using my life experience to help me navigate this new endeavor. I am sure there is much to complain about here. I am sure I will soon see. I was just stating that every job, every company, has problems. I know for sure in my last job I had complaints every day. But I try to remember the serenity prayer. God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

 

Sarge- I'm going to echo what Exray said. I hope that when you get your truck assignment that its a good clean running truck with minimal to no issues. I also hope that you get a competent FM who is willing to treat you like a valued employee that you are and not an annoying stepchild. I know that right now you are motivated and ready to get started. Part of that is because of your character and your life experience, the other part is no doubt due to the quality of your trainer. I promise you when I first started, I felt the same way.
What you need to understand is that although its easy to paint a target on people who are upset, its much more difficult to understand WHY they are upset. Especially when you are an outsider, which until you upgrade and get in a month or so, you are. No offense, it just is what it is.

There are hundreds of things that can go wrong in a driver's day/week/month/year etc., that can piss him/her off. Merely standing in the break room at a terminal and listening in is not a fair way to get an understanding. Allow me to give you some examples. You just posted a thread about getting an idling ticket in PA where idling is illegal. Well thankfully, USA Truck is at the point where most of the old trucks with ICON are out of the active fleet. There are a few still left but not like it was last year when I started. Trust me, there are a lot more states than just PA where idling is illegal and enforced. Speaking of idling, try having a truck where the ICON didn't work properly and it idled 24/7. Then get a load to Eagle Pass, TX in the summer heat and not have a backhaul. I sat for 3 days then had to get a comcheck from dispatch to buy fuel at a local truck stop that was not only not in the network, but not even a major chain. How about getting sent to a state where idling is illegal and its really HOT or really COLD? Are you going to pay for Idleaire? USA will not reimburse it. I know they tell you to go hang out in the truck stop for awhile. Trust me, THAT gets old real quick! How about getting sent to a terminal for a PM and spending 5 days there where you are only partially compensated for your downtime? How about your first assigned truck spent 3 out of 8 weeks in shops for two transmission rebuilds, leaking diesel tanks, and an ABS system that locked up at random times?

Dispatchers are a whole 'nother topic. Some dispatchers are EXCELLENT! 3 out of 4 of mine have been. On the other hand you could have one that tells you they "forgot" you were supposed to go home this weekend. You could be told to "hurry up and get to the shipper because this load is critical." Then you do a restart in their parking lot after you find out the shipper was given a 48 hour window to preload a trailer on a drop and hook. How about going to a Food Lion in the Northeast and sitting for 8 hours to be unloaded? Then when asking for detention pay you are told that because of the contract with this customer, they have 5 hours from the time you "bump the dock," not 5 hours from when your appointment is, thus you can't be paid detention. To make matters worse, 2 weeks down the road you get a call from Safety because you violated your 14 hour rule when you left to find a truck stop. How about sitting at the gate to a recycling plant for 3 hours arguing about pickup numbers with dispatch on the phone in one hand and the plant manager in your face because nobody is on the same sheet of music? Or for that matter, sleeping overnight at a shipper in New Jersey because nobody can come up with the correct pickup number and they won't load you until you provide it?

Sarge, I want you to also understand that I don't hate USA Truck. I'm currently employed here and I love it. I wouldn't want to work anywhere else. I have a good FM who I trust and who runs me hard and compensates me for extenuating circumstances when its deserved. MOST (lol!) of the issues have been worked out of my truck. Its also getting up towards the 500K zone so I'm probably 6 months away from a new truck. However, I have bad days/weeks/months etc., and sometimes I am one of those guys who sit in the terminal and gripe. Its a good stress reliever and it usually leads to some funny stories passed around with the other drivers. You will be there one day I assure you. Will I admit that there are people who will just gripe about everything at USA Truck no matter what? Sure. Those are probably the same people that Thomas used to say are "Lazy, Late, Liars, and Laid Off." However, not all the gripers you overhear are bad employees. Some just are blowing off some steam. Until you've been in their shoes, don't discount them. Its also not easy to just "quit" in this job. If you announce you want to quit, they will route you to a terminal. It may be nowhere near your home and unless you have a ride arranged for not only you but all the junk you've accumulated in your truck, its going to be a PITA. USA is not going to rent you a car or U-Haul. If you leave on good terms they MIGHT get you a bus ticket home. If you quit unannounced while at home or just leave the truck in a random drop yard, you run the risk (depending on your reputation) of getting a load/equipment abandonment on your DAC.

Bottom line is, you be the best driver YOU can be and don't worry about the other drivers. If you see another driver doing something unsafe or acting in a manner that would damage the reputation of this company, report it. I do. If they are just being grumpy in the lounges, oh well. Thats what the lounges are for. Don't let it get under your skin and you just keep your driver door closed and your truck between the lines. I wish you the best of luck and I hope I get to see you down the road.

James
#2152

 

"Or" After 1600 on Friday. They go home for weekend. You go nowhere for weekend.

 

I was with usa for 6yrs, 4 1/2 as a trainer and the best thing I ever did was quit. Since last april I never could get decent miles with them. As a trainer I went from getting 5 to 7 thousand mls to struggling to get 2000 mls. Never late with a load and all my students passed and gave me good reviews. USA truck is a sinking ship and I feel sorry for all you suckers thats gonna follow them straight to the bottom.

 

And do you know what the saddest part is? The dunderheads in management have created most of this. I still contend that if the Board does not wake up and clean house there won't be much of a company left! Jim Shafer is always bragging about his mechanics, these are the same mechanics that can't seem to keep a prostar's regen system working, the same mechanics that can't seem to be able to fix a D@mn DPF filter on an APU! I honestly believe the best thing USA Truck could ever do is fire that moron AND his lackey's/flunky's in the shops. I spoke to an International Tech several months ago. This Tech told me when the regen system goes haywire and replacing the burn parts don't fix it, the problem IS in the computer. Jim Shafer won't take these trucks to the dealer to get fixed unless they are in warranty. Unfortunately most of the prostars are out of warranty. The same principal applies to the TK APUs. It's (cheaper) to let his flunkys in the shops do the work, however at least in my case my APU never got fixed. I asked Jim Shafer in person my last time in Van Buren to please let me take that APU to TK, his answer? No that's way too expensive!

 

Speaking of terminal rats.....I want to know which terminal rat decided to piss all over the seat in the upstairs men's room at the Van Buren terminal last night! I ended up having to clean it up because some filthy truck driver was too lazy to even lift the lid in the stall. Why he felt it necessary to NOT use the urinals is beyond me but it just goes back to what I've told my FM, Safety, and a few other key personnel. We have some lazy dirtbag lowlifes working at this company.

 

Speaking of terminal rats.....I want to know which terminal rat decided to piss all over the seat in the upstairs men's room at the Van Buren terminal last night!

I was framed.

 

I have noted nasty people in our terminals too. It's just a part of trucking I guess. I remember one guy at the Vandalia terminal, he stank so bad the guy that cleans the building sprayed deodorant from the front all the way to the TV room. I remember my phase 2 trainer one of the first things he told me, "when I shower YOU shower".

 

Speaking of pissing, I was taking my morning constitution at a pilot in PA and I was in the stall next to the urinals when I heard what I thought was water spilling on the floor and I looked out from under the stall and the guy using the urinal next to me was pissing all over the floor. I hollered out and the guy stopped or finished or I dont know what. I mean really, is it that hard to hit the urinal. Is it that small you cant find it so you just undo zipper and where it goes it goes. People like that just need to be taken out and shot. Population management. Its time we thin the heard.

 

I happens there, it happens a lot in highschools... Like you said.. people can't aim or it is just to small to handle lol .