Why is trucking so stressful?

Post of the year canadiate.

 

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Biggest joke I ever heard " the trucking industry was deregulated" That is only half true, the regulations were take off of the companies aaaand PUT all on the drivers.

As far as the original topic , I had a friend leave driving not too long ago, he had been driving almost 10 years, mostly with JB hunt ( they could get him weekends home near NO) and he couldnt get with some of the better jobs even with his experience due to a felony (public intox). But he said he was tired of the stress of driving. When I asked him what was so stressful to him he said " they scheduled loads so close that if you messed up one they were all screwed" I replied " whose fault is that ? "

As others have said you have to be able to teach some of them reality.

 

Here’s what I get by trying to communicate with a dispatcher

 

Hahahahahahahaha, sometimes that smooth jazz on-hold music is lovely

 

Nobody has to look hard to see companies firing drivers to cover for bad customers or bad dispatchers. What drivers can do to keep from being jettisoned so easily is to not develop a reputation as screwing up, getting angry, having "incidences". It's no guarantee of good results but it will buy you one or two do-overs, or a 2nd chance if a situation doesn't obviously and only point to you screwing up.

Don't read the riot act to your dispatcher. You don't win arguments with customers, you get put into the penalty box. Also don't believe the story some driver you don't know telling you he was fired because he was 5 minutes late, scratched a trailer, or something else trivial. That's his lie to cover the fact he threatened to beat up a customer too many times or was routinely 8 hours late for Monday appointments.

 

Treat employers and customers like you would a woman. Just smile agree and they will

 

Megas are great. You are on mileage pay? Some short run/swap trailer/local garbage comes up ask how much it extra it pays, they can give you something extra to make it worth it. Don't just take it for milage pay, they will always be up your butt you do.

When you deliver and someone borked the appointment, call dispatch and put your head up their butt asking for layover pay or at least detention. Some cowboy is looking for the newb to work for free. don't do it. When you start getting on them to pay they will quit bothering you and move on, or they will make it worth it.

Don't let them pull that garbage over the phone, get it in writing email or "qualcomm" so there is a written record. When they drop the ball and try to give you the shave you have a record of what happened when you take the issue to upper management.

Don't let them get away with it, they will keep doing it if they can.

 

Don’t know if this is under the why is trucking stressful page, or mental page, I will let you, the people, decide, the conversation went like this,

I walked into the office, I’m empty and walked into the dispatch room, I’m the first truck empty and awaiting a load
Me “What’s the plan for Monday?”
Dispatch, “All I have is 3 loads going to Ft Smith, Ar”
Me, “Am I on one?” This load runs me right by the house.
Dispatch, “Right now I don’t know who is doing what.” While he plays on facebook
Me “You need to let me know, so I can be hooked up and leaving if I’m going or I’m going to the house in my pickup,”
Dispatch “I will let you know around 5.”
Me “I’m not sitting here waiting 2 1/2 hours on you to make up your mind, I’m hot, tired, and I’m going to the house, I’ll be back Monday.”

I just got back to Memphis from Charlotte NC and changed out all 4 airbags on my truck., and he can’t make up mind, so he said,
“I’ll text you around 5 to let you know if you need to be in ft Smith Monday morning.”
I replied, “What part of I’ll be back Monday did you not understand, I’m not driving 100 miles to my house, just so you can have me drive 100 miles back to get my truck and a tank, and drive that same hundred miles just to get back to my house, I’ll see you here Monday, and it won’t be at 7.”

I’m leaning towards mental.

 

Why is the Earth Round...
Errr ####....
Flat..