Trans Am Still

A&A Express. Having a great experience so far but I'm still in the honeymoon phase

 

Team relays. Not to mention that there's already an over-abundance of ~200-300 mile freight already. Add in all the major carriers bringing in 30+ drivers a week.

 

Like most businesses in this country the trucking industry is liability insurance driven any and the insurance industry has become like medical specialists. Many carriers have a strict policy against their drivers loading or unloading trucks.....unless they have paid the insurance premiums for them to do so. The drivers that do pull double duty are usually compensated for it. It will be up to you to choose what is acceptable for you once you move on from a starter company.
The industry has had a self-created driver shortage for years......because it benefits them. Due to that so-called driver shortage they have been allowed to import drivers from other countries......indeed, there are some starter carriers that have whole legal teams dedicated to that task. Given the times that we live in and what has been happening in our world, I believe that practice will become more and more difficult to sustain and justify. That will have a major impact on their never ending ability to bring in 30+ new drivers a week.
The simple truth is, Hick, you should be paid for the hours that you work.

 

It's a corporate world... anything that can bring in ~5k-10k/per person from the gov purse will continue until someone comes up with a way to get ~$10k-20k/per person. And when these companies can take half of the 30 they train per week and talk them into paying for their own trucks, they will continue to jump on it.

I guess I look at my hours differently. Right now, I could jump in a cab and go do whatever I want. I'm not driving. Would it be better if I were making minimum wage riding around in the cab? Yup, for me. But that's not fair to the company. And when you get your CDL and decide to go OTR, you already know what you're getting. You already know that your off time will be spent wherever you land. I think if you can't handle that, stay local or something.

But the situation is already in place for short haul/fingerprinted loads. You can already run for weeks getting 200-300 miles a day. It wouldn't be hard to imagine unloading the trailer becoming a minimum wage job that desperate driver will take just to have a job.

That's all just my opinion, though.

 

Btw lease guys my friend hector and I have had the same issue with our trucks before. Engine derate with a flashing def light plus check engine light. Same problem with both the t700 and t680. If you have this happen it can be many things, but it will most always be caused by a bad nox/oxygen sensor or sensors.

 

Got the same thing going on with my Freightliner down here in Birmingham. Wondering if not draining the air lines caused this shiznet.

 

The nox sensor is part of the exhaust after treatment system.

 

Edit

 

We aren't talking about off time. We are talking about uncompensated work.
There is no government compensation to bring in drivers..the benefits are great enough on their own merits..however there are some drivers that have come here looking for a better life and found themselves with no home other than a box on the back of a truck that they share with one or two other drivers and they each make about $30 a day.
I don't believe that you have to worry about being fair to TransAm, the system make s sure that it is in their favor. I do believe in giving them an honest day's work for an honest day's pay and doing that job to the best of your ability.
I also agree that no matter how many experienced drivers tell someone not to go right into a lease with a starter company there are going to be those that think they know all there is to know and do it anyway. They usually last less than six months. TransAm does have a neverending supply of new drivers with dollar signs in their eyes. No matter how many of them sue the company they will never win based on the lease contract. The contract is a legally binding document......fair or not.....if you sign up for it then you take on the responsibility for your own actions. There will come a day when they will lose a lawsuit based on other issues pertaining to the lease operators.....but not on the contract that a driver knowingly signed and agreed to.
I also agree that there will always be that 10% that is willing to work and not be paid. I do a lot of work for various organizations and cities without compensation. The difference is that I have no expectation of making a paycheck or supporting my family. I know that my only compensation is contributing to my community. When you drive OTR or have any other type of employment you have a reasonable expectation of receiving pay for services rendered. I know of no one that willingly donates a paycheck to a mult-million dollar corporation.