Working For Werner

Don't spend it all in one place.

 

Detention pay is one of those things that really makes me mad. I dont mind being out here working my butt off. But I do mind being out here and not doing anything + not being paid for it (I dont expect to get paid for not working but i expect to WORK). Detention just shouldnt happen. The only time it makes sense is when you're somewhere like a canadian border crossing or waiting in line for long periods of time at other places because a place is understaffed, they do have a right to keep proper records of things.

But like, why cant a trailer be dropped in the door and a day or whenever its empty, be picked up by a shag driveR? Why do these companies allow trucks to sit in doors all day?

Or, if im dispatched on a shag from a drop yard, why cant I be set up to take a trailer to a place, drop in door, go back to yard, do it again, and again, and then go take those 3 trailers back to the yard when theyre empty?

And why does $20 for a day, when if im running i make over $100 a day, make sense to anyone?

 

Bob,

I'll be honest up front and say that I read through all 17 pages without reading MOST of the replies. I was more interested in reading your posts and so I did. I must say...koodos to you fellow brother! It's not everyday someone will take the good with the bad and then do it again the next day....etc... It's nice to see someone out there in your situation (rookie) has made the decision to do your best and stick with it. I commend you for that mentallity for sure! I'm glad you were able to go to school, then a big company and you have a smile vs a frown. As you can tell, most wouldn't do it with the attitude you've shown!
I myself, I'm still a young buck. I'm 29 and have 10 years of commercial driving so far. Combined miles of close to 1 million, SAFE, accident free. When I first started I did local, then otr, then back to local, and for the last couple years its been nothing but otr. I hated it at first, then loved it, hated it again, and now.....years later, i wouldnt change my love of trucking for anything......well......maybe the winning loterey ticket.lol. I have to admitt, when I first started, I had the bad attitude and just wanted to get turned loose and roam the open hiway and get paid for it. Well...it took a few years, but I wised up after meeting so many Experienced drivers out there. I haven't hauled much dry freight as most of my trucking has been auto transport and flatbed, so I do lack some of the experiences of the normal freight haulers out there, however......I do know about times, and sitting, and the fustrating break downs or dentention. It's part of it, and you either learn to deal with it and make the best, or well.....you become the old bitter man sitting on a laptop in the T/A on a mon, tues, and wed, wondering why your dispatcher isn't giving you the "gravy", lol.
Anyways....I'll wrap it up, just wanted to commend you on entering a very diverse industry when it comes to commodity, people, equipment ...etc..... The moral of what I learn in the last 10 years of trucking has been this. 1. ALL truck drivers complain about something, at sometime in their career.....if they tell you different they are LYING. lol. 2. Be smart about it......learn when and where to voice your opinions in a mature matter. IE- Maybe you don't flip on the dispatch, but wait till your eating dinner at the T/A with all the other guys, and blow your steam off there where people can and will relate to your problems. Finally........4.........Just enjoy yourself and don't take yourself to seriously.......OH......and if you see someone that needs help in a t/s or dock.....take the 5 mins out of your day to help them. *insert Karma here*

Take care Bob, and happy trails.........

 

Wow, I just read my own post, and I went from # 2 to # 4........great......I'm slowly becoming the statistic I mentioned.......haha

 

I had to quit cuz of the truck they gave me Bob. I gave werner my all and really was trying to save my job. (But I just felt to unsafe in that truck.) After three days of sleeping on the couches at the omaha term having the truck inspected three times, gas tank not working correctly, calling road break down, trying to take a leave of apps, and just getting sick and tired of what the company has to say about fixing the trucks and treating me of being fired if I asked for a new truck takes a toll on you (all in four days). It makes us mad when there are hundreds of new trucks and the newbies are stuck with the must unsafe trucks to drive.
Its like a number wheel, some do well, others dont. I have not had a good time working for them and felt unsafe most of the time. Even with my trainer. From when they asked me to work DG accont my first day solo when I had my own truck, to almost firing me for not passing there test in a truck (T900) that I had for only one day. (Both trucks had no APU. also had a frightliner classic XL torn to crap why i quit cuz of safty. loved to T900)To qualcomm not working right. ( Putting presser on you to go Go GO because of fear while there is no signal in Larado to check time)
It just adds up, and werner as a hole they do not care and a lot of the trainers also train for the money only.( my trainner kicked me on the street at 1:15am had to call safty and would not let me use the qualcomm.) Im in the process now of just calling OSHA for truck 50665 because it was that bad. as a collage kid I have the abilty to up and leave, but somone that my not. it can be very stressful. I love to drive and loved to drive my 70 in the week to take 2 day off and relax in a hotel and have fun eat around and meet people. I met a lot of good people working there, but when it comes to what werner does as a company, they will use you and not care for you when it gets down to it. THEY WILL DRAIN YOU. its not cool because thought I know I was unsafe driving and had to quit. (I tried to take a leave of apps to try to come back to a new truck. but they terminated me. Im might file a OSHA SATT claim to work for them again.) I would keep trying with them, but it is right what the older ones say. they get money for each new guy.

(also it made me sick to learn that a group of newbie packed full where shipped from Dallas to Ohama Nebraska in the dodge van, cuz there went any new trucks down there not cool who does that? thats how many hrs from down there to up there? saw it and witness it myself, the faces the people had getting of was just sad.)

All in all im glad Im 22 and I can deal with this and move on without any problems like having a family to go back to. But now forced to go back to college while id rather be out there. I guess Ill be driving class B local.
But werner can be good and could be bad. Just just like rolling dice I think. theirs Some like Bob and some like me. we both work hard. stated at the same time Dec also, but I just rolled bad dice. he didnt.

BTW: MY FIRST POST HAD TO SIGN UP TO JUST POST TO THIS FORM.
LOOK AT THE TIME WHEN I POSTED, YOU CAN TELL IM PISSED. lol

 

No offense Xsd, but all rookie comments to the T. If you started into trucking thinking it was 9-5, or a set 70hrs then 2 days off.....I suppose you found out the reality the hard way. As far as trucks not being safe or legal, I don't argue that at all. I would do the same if I knew my truck was neither, however....lets face it, Werner is a big enough company that you sitting won't effect their lively hood, so I'm thinking its the "attitude" mentioned in previous posts.......

BTW- I'm curious to see this T900 model you drove. It must be a Werner exclusive model.

 

WOW - that was painful at best. It sounds like you had a very bad experience with them. I am going to guess College isn't working out for you too well either. Not bashing but - come on man!

 

Great post - It's nice to see someone with such experience willing to share it with everyone and offers to lend a hand to a "new" driver. You Sir, are a blessing to the industry.

 

Thanks!! Not sure I deserve being a "blessing to the industry", but I'll take what I can get. I just wanted to throw my 2 cents into the mix. I'm not too proud to admit that I was a rookie once.....and a dumb thinking one at that! LOL.

I will say this. I knew how to drive before going to CRE years ago, and seeing the way they "train" people to handle 80,000lbs sleds just scared the crap out of me. ESP when there was 4 people in my truck on the road. I'm sorry, but you can read everything on the internet, books and talk to every driver on the road.....nothing.....and I mean NOTHING will train you like actual road time. I started to fear for BOB while reading when they put him w/ a trainer on a dedicated route. I've never felt that should be an option for newbies to learn how to do the job. I personally think it trains the mind/body from the get go of some sort of routine, and well........90% of the time OTR work is nothing of the sort. I think the perfect training is regular OTR work with some live load/unloads along the way. If you train a guy to bump a dock and never touch/count freight, then the day he has to do it is usually the day the complaining begins and its the start of something horrible for the driver and dispatcher.

Oh...someone mentioned about how the big names profit from hiring so many people. In a sense that is true, but the reality is this. All the large name companies get FEDERAL FUNDING for every driver they bring in, train, and LICENSE. They don't have to work a day past getting their license, as long as they qualify them and have a CDL issued......the government pays a fee for each one. So you figure day one, anywhere from 30-60 people show up. Day 3 (drug result day) you can count on at least 1/3 to be cut, and by test day.....figure another 1/3 will be gone because they just can't drive in any sense. Then you figure by the time you hit the trainer at least another 1/3 or the 1/3 that made it will be gone because its not for them..........so.......I know, this is truck drivers math here.....but out of 60 ...........maybe 10 will become a "professional driver", and about only 1/3 of that will end up being a million mile "safe driver"???

No wonder they funnel 60 people every 6 weeks. It almost breaks down to a 1 or 2 person per week average that is successful!! x that by 52 and well.........see how much funding these companies get to "train". Thats roughly 400 people a year they funnel through their doors, and to only 2% of them safe, qualified drivers is ......wow........but hey.......someones gotta take the risk so we can have a paycheck, right?

**this is all based on personal experience** I'm not google, nor did I google this info, so don't lash out if I'm wrong, but thats what I've seen with my own 2 eyes.