Western Express Or Star Transportation

Hello everyone, New on here and I was wondering if I could get some insight on which company might be better as far as how they treat their company drivers and also how well they take care of their trucks - Western Express or Star Transportation. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks........ LT

Welcome aboard! I cannot, from personal experience, address your topic, but there are members on here that can. I believe you will find this site very informative for a multitude of questions you are going to have. Best of luck.

Thank you Scott D. for replying to my posting. I have even sent out a message to OLD SCHOOL because he had worked for Western Express but have not received any replies yet only yours. I am currently in training with a company but not very happy there. That is why I wanted to know which one was a better company to work for because I am thinking of going over there. Thanks for welcoming me and I look forward to my new career in trucking. LT

Hello Latina Trucker, and welcome to Trucking Truth!

Hey if it's alright with you I will just answer you here in the forum, I prefer to do it that way so that others may benefit from our discussion later on.

Okay, first off, I don't know anything about Star Transportation. I know a lot about Western Express, but first let's just look at something you stated:

I am currently in training with a company but not very happy there.

Okay, we don't know where you are, or why you are "unhappy." Actually we probably don't need to know those things. Latina Trucker, here's what I would counsel in your situation. I would tell you that almost 99% percent of new truck drivers in training at their first truck driving job at some point are so miserable that they want to kick their trainer in the teeth (just for the satisfaction of it) and then walk off and quit right there on the spot. You are concerning yourself with how these other two companies that you are interested in are "treating their employees" because you are convinced that the one you are with is not treating you well. If you were to look at the reviews of Western Express you would find that many, if not most, of them are complaining about how they were treated! It is such a difficult transition from working a regular type job to breaking into the trucking industry that most people are convinced they are not being treated well. I mean most of us are not accustomed to working sixteen hour days with little or no rest in between our next shift, and constantly running like your tail is on fire.

With little or no information to go on, I'm going to say you should just stay where you are at, and make the best of it, or just throw in the towel and decide that trucking is not for you.

I think you are going to run into the same kinds of problems that are plaguing you if you decide to switch over at such an early stage in your career. I had a terrible trainer, I ended up teaching him as much or more than he taught me, but when it was all said and done the folks at the office who upgraded me to solo told me this: "We know that you are tough enough for the job, because very few people make it all the way through their training with this guy." Can you believe that? They knew how hard it was to work with this guy, but they somehow thought that helped them determine who would make good candidates for the job!

I say hang in there where you are, and see if you've got the resolve to make it work for you. It takes a lot of discipline and determination to get started in this career. If you can handle some setbacks and disappointments now it will only serve to prepare you better for the problems you are going to face as a new solo driver. You are going to make mistakes, lots of them. You will be disappointed at times, but you have got to get yourself in a mindset that says, "I can do this" no matter what happens. Do not focus on what ever perceived ills the company is doing, focus on how you can get through this training time and move on to the time when you can start proving yourself as a company solo driver. Everything about this job is performance based. I became one of Western Expresses top performers while I was there, and I was treated like royalty. That is just how it works in this business, you have got to be on top of your game every minute. If you make a big mistake, that is the thing that you are always remembered by - you are only as good as your last delivery to your dispatcher. That is why you want to prove yourself completely awesome with each and every load you get.

I loved my time at Western Express, but during that time I talked with a lot of the other drivers who were miserable. The thing is, they just didn't want to put in what you are required to do to be successful at this stuff. It is a huge adjustment for most of us. I think that is what you are experiencing... your expectations of the job are nothing like the realities of what you are facing, so you are convinced that the company is not treating you well.

Get a grip, and put on those big girl pants - It's time to show them what you are made of.

I am currently in training with a company but not very happy there.

Latina, from this sentence it looks like you are in company sponsored training. Company schools are very good and teach you all you need to know to pass the CDL skills and driving test. Not much more.

On top of that, it's a short time period and you will get real stressed out about barely knowing enough, or not getting time in a truck, or little attention from the instructors. These are things most people feel while in a company school. I did the company program with Swift last December, and this is how I felt. As Old School says, this is what happens at nearly every company school.

At any rate, I did take the CDL tests and passed them the first time out. Later you will learn more when you get on the road with your road trainer.

So, grit your teeth, keep your final goal in mind, and do your best to get through your course.