.......And They Said You Would Have Days Like This As A Truck Driver!
Topic 1258 | Page 3
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Hey now calm down on the "Hon" business I always without fail tend to say Darlin or hon lol Zach is just being realistic to his own point of view, it is rather harsh but obviously his experiences have taught him that. Just as RedGators experiences have taught her to work closely with her DM. Every company will have different styles and approaches to DM driver relationship. The big thing is take it all in and realize maybe someday you may need to use either approach because you have a DM who doesn't like getting attached? or maybe you have a rookie looking to find 1 person they can use for their dirty work. Or maybe you have a DM who is a little bit smarter than the rest who asks for a favor every now and then but makes sure you get yours as well.
Lifes a gamble.. Let's roll the dice ;)
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
I use "hun" all the time, It's pretty common around here...what does that tell you about me?
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Would you prefer 'Cher' (don't know how to spell it, but my Cajun in-laws use it all the time lol)
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Hey now calm down on the "Hon" business I always without fail tend to say Darlin or hon lol Zach is just being realistic to his own point of view, it is rather harsh but obviously his experiences have taught him that. Just as RedGators experiences have taught her to work closely with her DM. Every company will have different styles and approaches to DM driver relationship. The big thing is take it all in and realize maybe someday you may need to use either approach because you have a DM who doesn't like getting attached? or maybe you have a rookie looking to find 1 person they can use for their dirty work. Or maybe you have a DM who is a little bit smarter than the rest who asks for a favor every now and then but makes sure you get yours as well.
Lifes a gamble.. Let's roll the dice ;)
Fair enough..I guess that I'm just from a different generation..I don't call any lady that I don't know, 'hun, sugar, sweetie,' or anything like that..but you're right...I guess that's my issue...
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Would you prefer 'Cher' (don't know how to spell it, but my Cajun in-laws use it all the time lol)
Yeah, that's more a term that older folks use for young'uns...and yes, you spelled it right..its a pidgin form of the work "cherie" literally translated it means, "cherry"..but it's used as a term of endearment..
Regator, the fact that he addressed you as "hun" told me all I needed to know about ol Zach, there...
Would you prefer 'Cher' (don't know how to spell it, but my Cajun in-laws use it all the time lol)
Yeah, that's more a term that older folks use for young'uns...and yes, you spelled it right..its a pidgin form of the work "cherie" literally translated it means, "cherry"..but it's used as a term of endearment..
I always wondered what it meant, my ex father-in-law passed several years ago and he was the only I ever heard use it until the X-Men cartoon lol. I use Hun and Sweetie like I use Man or Bro. Never figured on anybody taking offense. Like you said, a regional thing I guess.
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
I can see both side of the coin. Yes, you need to take care of your DM so they will take care of you. But I can also see a DM taking advantage of a driver.
If you get the wrong DM that doesn't really do their job right. If you always say yes to that kind of DM, they will always call you when they "need a favor". And other good trips will be sent to other drivers.
Maybe I am wrong, but the following picture comes to mind.
You have a trip, say 1000 miles to be picked at 8pm. Right now it is 11am. You have plenty of time. Your phone rings. Your DM says, hey I need a favor. Such and such needs done. It won't take you long. Well, just like Redgator, it takes all day long. Your 1,000 mile trip can't wait, so another driver gets it. You don't have anything till tomorrow and it is a short 250 mile trip. You have just lost tons of money.
Maybe it will be made back up to you down the road. But maybe it won't. I am not sure I would want to take that chance.
Many comments on TT talk about new drivers having to make their mark before companies will trust them. And I totally agree. But on that, the driver is also "feeling out the company". A newbie driver, their first DM. You don't know if they are good or bad. Shoot, you are new, you don't know what a good or bad DM is yet.
Did everyone here at TT always have good DM's?
Maybe things like that don't happen in the trucking world. But they do happen where I work now. And they happen in other jobs. Who has never had a bad supervisor/boss?
The job I have right now goes that way. I don't yell, scream, or b..... to the dispatcher about my trips. What ever trips I am given I take. I have never turned down any trip. Other drivers go into his office every chance they get and fuss at him about the crappy trips. Well in that, they get almost all the good trips. And other drivers get what they don't want.
A perfect example. This past spring we had tons of trips to FL. Normal thing in the spring. All of our drivers went at least one time. The drivers that are always in the office fussing and b..... about trips went at least 3 times. One guy went 5 times. I sat at home with no work a lot of that time. I am the second most senior driver in my shop. But I wasn't the only one that sat at home with little work.
So there is something to say about standing up for yourself and saying "No" sometimes.
If you have a good DM that treats you right, there is nothing wrong with doing them a "favor" now and then. Just make sure your DM is treating you right also. If they are the type that knows they can turn to you when things are down, they could tend to lean on you when they don't really need to. If they lean on you, you are the first call made when others could do it also.
Keep it safe out there. Joe S
Dispatcher:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
I can see both side of the coin. Yes, you need to take care of your DM so they will take care of you. But I can also see a DM taking advantage of a driver.
If you get the wrong DM that doesn't really do their job right. If you always say yes to that kind of DM, they will always call you when they "need a favor". And other good trips will be sent to other drivers.
Maybe I am wrong, but the following picture comes to mind.
You have a trip, say 1000 miles to be picked at 8pm. Right now it is 11am. You have plenty of time. Your phone rings. Your DM says, hey I need a favor. Such and such needs done. It won't take you long. Well, just like Redgator, it takes all day long. Your 1,000 mile trip can't wait, so another driver gets it. You don't have anything till tomorrow and it is a short 250 mile trip. You have just lost tons of money.
Maybe it will be made back up to you down the road. But maybe it won't. I am not sure I would want to take that chance.
Many comments on TT talk about new drivers having to make their mark before companies will trust them. And I totally agree. But on that, the driver is also "feeling out the company". A newbie driver, their first DM. You don't know if they are good or bad. Shoot, you are new, you don't know what a good or bad DM is yet.
Did everyone here at TT always have good DM's?
Maybe things like that don't happen in the trucking world. But they do happen where I work now. And they happen in other jobs. Who has never had a bad supervisor/boss?
The job I have right now goes that way. I don't yell, scream, or b..... to the dispatcher about my trips. What ever trips I am given I take. I have never turned down any trip. Other drivers go into his office every chance they get and fuss at him about the crappy trips. Well in that, they get almost all the good trips. And other drivers get what they don't want.
A perfect example. This past spring we had tons of trips to FL. Normal thing in the spring. All of our drivers went at least one time. The drivers that are always in the office fussing and b..... about trips went at least 3 times. One guy went 5 times. I sat at home with no work a lot of that time. I am the second most senior driver in my shop. But I wasn't the only one that sat at home with little work.
So there is something to say about standing up for yourself and saying "No" sometimes.
If you have a good DM that treats you right, there is nothing wrong with doing them a "favor" now and then. Just make sure your DM is treating you right also. If they are the type that knows they can turn to you when things are down, they could tend to lean on you when they don't really need to. If they lean on you, you are the first call made when others could do it also.
Keep it safe out there. Joe S
Thanks Joe,I couldnt have summed it up better .
RG ,believe it or not at one time I was a rookie too and I wanted to please everyone ,most of all my DM.I was the "go to" guy shuttling trailers to and fro ,usually on Mondays And frequently Friday evenings or Saturday mornings When I returned from a run .Back in the day I worked for a company that used electronic logging in lieu of traditional logbooks relying on them to keep me legal,and "optimising" my available hours .My rewards for going above and beyond meant I mostly got no touch freight ,drop and hooks .Unfortunately on many occasions I lost loads on account of my being otherwise occupied working for peanuts instead of miles.I became one of those frustrated rookies that eventually quit and moved on the greener pastures .The next company wasn't a whole lot better.
Regardless of the size of the company ,evey driver is assigned a Driver Manager ,whose primary function is to act as a liason beyween you the driver and the company .In large companies employing thousands of drivers ,its entirely possible you'll never talk to the same dispatcher twice...the favor you did last night isn't going to mean diddly to the next guy wanting to know why you are late getting "his" load picked up .Your DM may be able to interceed on your behalf and get you on another load ,or you may just be sitting there for hours waiting for your number to make it back to the top of the list again.Guess who is going to get called to do another "favor"in the meantime ? My opinions may seem "jaded" to you ,but they aren't entirely unjustified.
Congratulations making it up to the Top spot on your DM's board.Now go after top spot company wide .Thats how i earned my pickup truck after 5 yrs of being "top dog" consistently and my camper after earning my million mile patch 3 yrs later .Miles ,not favors earns the rewards.
Logbook:
A written or electronic record of a driver's duty status which must be maintained at all times. The driver records the amount of time spent driving, on-duty not driving, in the sleeper berth, or off duty. The enforcement of the Hours Of Service Rules (HOS) are based upon the entries put in a driver's logbook.
Dispatcher:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Driver Manager:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
TWIC:
Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.
Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
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Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.