The New FFE Driver Academey

I've been leasing for 6 months. It's been pretty good overall, as mentioned before you'll have your days, that's for sure. But any job brings those. You can make OK money, better than co driver, plus better runs, all thought they tell you runs are no different. They have Cascadia's for lease, mostly 2012, more 2013 recently, maybe a few 2010's around.
If you don't have many obligations than you can do pretty well with a FFE lease, provided you are willing to sacrifice you current life for the most part. If you have a wife (that you like, LOL), kids, big pile of bills than it probably wouldn't be a great choice, trucking and lease purchase with any company that is. I think that is why many don't complete the lease.

 

How long are the times out I'm good being out 3 weeks as long my bills at home get paid and my family and wife understand I would work out of state all the time and wouldn't go home for at least a month and only have a few days off before I get home for a couple days how are those trucks the freighliners I see a lot of truckers with them they must be good are the sleepers big inside or how are the overall trucks and loads will I be only doing reefer or dry van as well

 

As co driver min. Out 3 weeks, most likely 5-6. You earn 1 day off for every week out up to 5 days off. 6 weeks out still only earn 5 days off. I really like the Cascadia, I wouldn't call it big inside, but it's great for one person. You will run both dry and temp. Controlled.

 

Not bad I'm use to it being away home and enjoy the days I would have off but I don't mind being away from family but I'm looking forward to a different career change I hope it works out my uncle is a truck driver an a lot of my friends are too

 

This company is no better nor worse than allot of other companys out there I wouldn't over think it to much.Get in where you can and you will know if this is for you withen 3-6mths.My year is almost up I still want to do this but I know this is not the place I want to stay at doesn't work for me but could for you.

No matter where you go at first you will be used and abused you just need to hang in there if this is what you want to do and get your time in and things will hopefully get better or maybe they just get easier to deal with the more time you have.

 

I just finished my first year with FFE and moved on already. It was a strange year. After training, I was asked for feedback on my trainer and was told it would be kept confidential. I said, "too much night driving." That's it, no context. Next thing I know for the first two and a half months, I ran nothing but all night loads. They say drowsy driving is as dangerous as drunk driving. Well that's all I did for the first two and a half months. It wouldn't have been so bad, but the opti-idle in the old 09 Century they put me in didn't work so it was like 97 degrees in the truck during the day time when I was supposed to sleep.

When I had about 10 months in I got a new DM because my previous DM was transferred to a different department. Anyway, I was with this DM for about three weeks, when I got a load that I picked up on a Thursday and was going to have to sit until the following Wednesday before I could deliver it. I asked to T-call the load on Thursday and Friday, but he never responded. I asked again on Saturday and he said go ahead and bring it to the Romeoville, IL drop yard, so I did. Then he sends me a load going to Woodridge, NY that was obviously a team load. You could tell by looking at the delivery date. Anyway, he figured I wouldn't know where Woodridge, NY was, as he was stupidly hoping I would pick up the load and not figure it out until later on, but I sent him a message immediately that said to the effect: "Okay...I see what you doing, nice trick." Anyway, for you guys that don't know, Woodridge, NY is in Queens, NY and the reason I know is I had delivered there twice before already. Anyway, he called me up and tried to ridicule me by insinuating that he didn't know that Woodridge, NY was in Queens, NY and in any event he has a number of drivers on his board that are begging him for loads to New York City. Yeah right! Anyway, the conversation didn't go as he had anticipated and he ended up acting on the phone like I was yelling and cussing at him like an adolescent. By the way, I don't cuss. In any event, I finally told him to pull the load off of me by tomorrow or else, and he did.

Anyway, the school is about like all the others, they get you to the point that you can barely pass your CDL and that's it. The six-week training was awful and torture. Be aware also the administrator of the school will constantly blow wind up your butt while in school about all the miles you will be getting. Don't believe him, because it won't happen. Company drivers get the leftovers, as the lease operators get first serve over there. Be aware also that they will constantly beg you to lease a truck from them. Thankfully, I wasn't mentally incompetent enough to make that dumb mistake. I also felt the main job of the guy that heads up the dispatch department was to rip off as much money as he could from the newbie drivers. By the way, they will also intentionally treat you like crap for the first two to three months and forget about getting paid detention for all the time you will needlessly spend at shippers and receivers, because they will keep it. Oh, one more thing, watch the payroll department like a hawk. They tried to rip off $270 from me and it took me like almost six-months to get them to return it to me.

In any event, I left that God forsaken place as soon as my one-year was fulfilled. Indeed, FFE will always continue to lose money as long as they leave the current staff in place. If KLLM is smart, they will clean house.

 

Do you really think that someone is reading your comments you made on your trainer, and plotting against you? Planning all your loads for all night driving, just to spite you? For 2 and 1/2 months? Really? Your truck idle was broken, and it was hot outside, so. Did you get it fixed? You got a load with alot of time on it, so asked for another. They gave you one that was better, and you call it a "trick"? Payroll made a mistake and paid you back, you say they "ripped you off". No wonder your DM ridiculed you. And I'm pretty sure you were not "tortured" in training. Lots of drama here in this statement.

 

I agree. FFE is not a company to hold your hand. Learn to manage your time, do your job and you will do fine.

As far as being pressured to lease, that's just flat out exaggeration. I was never pushed to lease. Ever. Matter of fact you have to wait 6 months from when you go solo to lease. It doesn't work for everyone. I am a lease driver and I do very well.

 

Thank you for the accurate, level headed and concise post.
I am glad that you've decided to share this to poke a few holes in the story that FFE is a great company. I myself have only a few days left on my contract and I'm counting down the hours till this bull-s#$% ends.
In regards to the night-time only driving, I think that's more or less coincidence rather than a plot or ploy by FFE, though in a lot of other areas I might not put it past one of the midwest planners to make your life as a company driver even worse.

The trucks provided, all of them have ungodly bad idle systems. I don't know about you, guy, but I'm married to the truck. I live in my truck, basicaly. A "creature comfort" or rather lack of it, can become a large problem over time. I'd say climate control in the middle of winter or summer becomes a little more than an annoyance.
In regards to being given a "better" truck? I don't think any truck in this fleet is really an upgrade from any other truck, unless it's one of the 660's AND EVEN THEN it's still hardly a condo.
And my biggest issue with your reply: Under zero circumstances, ever is it appropriate or even remotely acceptable for a desk sitting, four wheeling, paper pushing dispatcher or DM to ridicule a driver.
You've not gone to NYC with this company, have you? If you have it certainly wasn't as a company operator, because you'll get 100-250 mile puddle hoppers that take 2 days to pickup and delivery the whole way back to the midwest. And even then the area dispatchers always claim slow freight. They've been claiming slow freight, since November. Where's the freight? It's on the back of a lease truck.

Lots of s%*^-stiring in this statement.

I fixed that for you.

This is true if you are on a dedicated run with LtL or a cargil/jbs/swift contract as a company driver, does anyone really want to take the risk of being a lease OP for a company that skirted the brutal edges of bankruptcy in November of 2012?.

The fact that company drivers starve from having to take scraps is pressure enough. Get on my level dude and see what a company driver does for you. I'm the guy going out preloading trailers in DFW, Chicago, LA, Detroit...ect...ect...ect to get a crappy little 450 mile run with two drops so that you can have a drop and hook. And the whole run around takes 2-3 days. This happens EVERY week, almost.

Of course you do, company drivers do the bulk of your work by preloading, completing deliveries and IC'ing loads you feel need to be repowered.

In summary-
Yeah, you know what you might do well with FFE if you lease a truck from them. I aint sticking around here for 3 years, or even another 1 year after the six months it takes to lease a truck.
Don't post here saying that this company is even an iota of decent to it's employees unless you've listened to both sides of the story. And if the lease is so great, why is it that every time I roll through Lancaster I see over a dozen 67's and 68's (lease trucks) sitting on that lot, without a driver?
"Not every one can cut it." You're right, not everyone can cut it because FFE sets up an environment that not a lot of people can survive in, as a lease-operator.

If you are considering a career in trucking, or are considering coming to FFE I truly urge you from a point of realistic experience to look elsewhere.



I once heard a saying about trucking:
"A company is 90% of what you make of it, and 10% of a dispatcher screwing you."
This may be true, and maybe this is the first bad job I've ever had. But 99% of the time I've been working since I became an adult I've been able to find the good in any situation. I've always been able to be optimistic and work through problems; but FFE has slung so much crap at me since I started working here that I cannot look back at the past 15 months and say "This was a good choice."
It is not possible.

 

Couple of points here.
1. Nobody does my work for me. I am on the trainer line haul board. I don't do IC unless another driver is out of hours and it has to be there. I have NEVER ICed a load cause I didn't want to sit on it.

2. As a company driver my typical weeks were between 2800 and 3300. I made good checks every week.

3. The reason there are so many lease trucks being turned in is simple. Guys who did poorly as company drivers tried to lease and did poor there too. If you don't manage time well, don't want to run hard then lease is not for you.

4. Before you throw out "your doing well cause your a trainer" I leased before training for 3 months and averaged about $1500 after all deductions, fuel, maintenance, and putting money into a tax account.