SWIFT Bronze, Silver, Gold Mileage Increase

Tractor Man, have you been getting and or submitting any of the driver surveys mac 61 that Mr Stocking has been asking for? I've actually received 4 requests in 6 months but have hesitated filling them out because I was basically **** ed when I got them. Well, I received another one yesterday. Yes I'm still ****ed but I filled it out anyway and sent it in. LOL!

Basically it just asks on a scale from 1 to 10, ten being best. Would you recommend to other drivers to come to work at Swift? There is also a few lines for comments.

I gave them a 5 and then stated that I while I have the utmost respect for guys like Jerry and himself. I also believe that Swift is a good company in general, I can not in good faith recommend coming to work here at this time. I went on to say that there are too many issues to discuss in this survey but the bottom line is that myself and probably most solo OTR drivers simply aren't getting enough miles.

Wish me luck! LOL!

JJ

No, I have been a bit hesitant to fill out such a survey with my name attached to it. (probably irrational paranoia on my part). As far as wishing you luck, I'll quote our new President in a former life.........."YOU'RE FIRED"

LMAO! Yes I too was hesitant but like I said, I really do have the utmost respect for guys like Jerry and Mr Stocking. I truly believe that they truly believe that without the drivers there is no Swift Transportation. He can't make the necessary changes without input from us so I figured I step up and throw it out there. LOL!

JJ

He can't make the necessary changes without input from us so I figured I step up and throw it out there. LOL!

Jim J, You are absolutely correct. I need to grow a pair and offer my opinion!

I was reading through this thread and wanted to point out that a lot of the time, even the "low" mileage weeks the pay is, in total, leaps and bounds better than what someone working a local driving job may be getting.

Local pay (where I live) ranges from 16-22 an hour, with starting pay commonly somewhere between 12-14.50, and many jobs work to keep people in part time status no matter how many hours you're willing to put in. It takes years and years to be able to make decent and consistent money in a local job. And that local pay is still leaps and bounds above what someone is going to make in a retail/store job, even in a state where minimum wage is 10.50— and in many states minimum wage is still 7.25.

Someone working in food service is going to make less yet. SEVENTEEN states have a "tipped minimum wage" that is stuck at federal standards, and that standard is 2.13 an hour.

So all of this taken into account… The same should be considered for trucking, and the fact should be to stick with it. Examine your bills and the rest of your finances and see what you can reduce to make it so that the money works out for you. Can you change auto insurance and find a lower rate, can you find a lower rate for your cell phone, do you really need a cable tv subscription if you're out on the road (assuming for a single individual, families are of course a different story).

-K.

Unfortunately with Swift it's more the norm then the exception. I can see and accept an occasional 1500 - 2000 mile week but to average 2000 miles or under because of the lack of planning and or scheduling is BS.

Guys, I have been busy all day today working, but this whole thread has been on my mind because I think that several of you are missing some things in this discussion, or are just not really understanding what is going on with your new careers. I fear that as rookie drivers who are just laying the foundation of your careers, you may just be laying blame in places that are going to cause you to make decisions that are based on misinformation and or a misunderstanding of some of the dynamics of this whole career.

Norm started this thread with some questions about levels of measurements that I certainly know nothing about, and I admitted freely in an earlier response that I don't know anything about SWIFT's operation, but for the most part the responses have been from other Swiftie rookie drivers who are expressing concerns that Swift doesn't have enough freight to support their drivers, and that their planning and scheduling makes no sense.

Here is what gets me about the discussion: We have rookies who seem like they know much better how to run a trucking company than do the experts who are running it. I was trying to point out earlier that there is no way that SWIFT has been as successful as they have been by doing things in some ridiculously inefficient manner. While I will concede that some of you are not getting very good miles, I disagree with your explanations and/or your reasoning that it is a problem with the way SWIFT conducts it's business. Most of you seem to think that if you just move to another company your problem will be solved, but you are wanting to stick it out for a certain duration of time to sort of establish yourself.

If you take a look at some of the trucking publications you will find that the tonnage of freight is low right now. Most of the major carriers are saying that capacity is outweighing demand, which simply means that they have the capacity (equipment and man-power) to move much more freight than they have available to them right now. So this is not a SWIFT problem it is a problem in the whole industry right now. When things like this cycle through it will be the new inexperienced drivers who feel it the worst. Veteran drivers who are well established will still be getting the lion's share of the work. There are so many variables in play here that I am not sure some of you are seeing where the real problem lies. I have followed along with Tractor Man's career with interest because I thought from way back when he got involved in this forum that he had the potential to be a really great driver, and I still do. I have also felt that he may have ended up with a fairly new and inexperienced driver manager which kind of put him at a disadvantage. He has also had some issues with needing to stay near his hometown due to his ailing mother, and that is something that can kind of hamstring a dispatcher from keeping you really busy.

Earlier in this discussion Norm asked this question...

At what point should I make the decision to move on to another company?

I just want to share my whole thought process on this very good question, since I have gone through this before, and I did make a conscious decision to move on after a very successful run with my first company.

Continued...

As every rookie does, I had my moments of wanting to quit my first company and move on to some greener grass, and they were always when things were not going well for me. Anytime things don't seem to be going well we somehow convince ourselves that a change is all we need to turn things around for the better. That is not always true, and I am convinced that all the major trucking companies are experiencing some struggle right now because the business climate is just not really conducive to profitability right now. We had a message today on our Zonar tablets that indicated that Knight was actively trying to take steps to face the challenges that lie ahead this year with freight being light all across the country. There are more people fighting for less freight, and that only puts downward pressure on freight prices and the profitability of the operators who are moving that freight. So just making a move because things are not going well for you will not always improve your experience.

What I made up my mind to base a move to a different company on was two fold. First off it had to be a significant increase in the pay, and secondly I made up my mind not to leave my current job until I was content with the way it was going for me. Yes, you read that right. This goes back to what I always try to teach in here about how this job is performance based. If you cannot establish yourself at one company as a driver who is kept fairly busy, then it will be just as difficult for you to move on and expect to do a whole lot better elsewhere. That is just the way that I looked at making a move. I think in answer to Norm's question, that is how I would answer him. Once you know that you are doing well, and are confident in your abilities to proceed as a really professional driver who understands how to make things happen out here, then you can consider making a move to another employer. If you are still struggling with your understanding of the career, and how to fit yourself into the way the company is operating and doing things, you have got to apply yourself to accomplishing that right where you are first, and make a niche for yourself where you are currently. That is how this business operates, drivers really do create their own opportunities, and if you are struggling with that at one place, then I seriously think it will follow along with you elsewhere.

I'm sure that some of you will disagree with me, and that is fine, but I hope you will consider what I'm saying, because there is some merit in it. To move on right now just because your miles are low, and you are concerned that Swift has stretched themselves too thin, is not properly analyzing the full dynamics of the situation. It takes some time to get established out here, and it is even trickier when the supply of freight is a little thin. I think you guys will develop an instinctual feel for when you are really doing what it takes to be a top tier driver, and at that point you will probably be a lot less willing to just jump ship during a slow time.

Always love reading and learning from you, Old School.

A couple of thoughts to add-on to Old School's thought provoking response.

Any fluctuation in fuel prices effect the balance of freight between rail and truck. When fuel prices are low like they were over the spring and summer, freight is pulled off the rail and put onto the highways. Since railroads cannot perform as efficiently as trucks in door to door service, they can more than make up for that in reduced cost. It's a trade-off. When fuel was lower cost, it was reflected in a lowering of truck freight rates. As a result trucks grabbed more freight from the rail and needed to increase OTR capacity by hiring more drivers. I think part of the issue is we are currently enduring the hangover effect of rising fuel prices causing more freight moving back to the rail. Over time normal driver attrition will balance this out and positively effect OTR drivers who work through it and stick it out. Try to keep in mind, as many people coming into the business, there are just as many exiting. This is why driver retention is under management's microscope right now.

TractorMan's experience definitely emphasized the importance of a motivated driver manager (DM). But he did figure out by effectively communicating using the Qualcomm , drawing the attention of the planners thus sitting less and getting better loads. At least with Swift, the planners parse out the freight, deciding who gets what. Part of the DMs job is to work with the planners to keep their drivers moving. Some DMs are good at this, some aren't. And others...just get by. A sub-average DM , just barely hitting their minimum targets, negatively effects their driver's mileage/income. TractorMan tried everything and I think eventually figured out how to keep himself moving by bypassing his DM. He got creative and did not sit back and wait for something to happen, he made it happen. Big part of Old School's point.

Last point for me..."Dedicated". Yes it's not as exciting as OTR or adventurous, some might even say dull and boring. It's often misunderstood. However for the most part it's steady and consistent. Even more so with grocery, food service and retail supply,...no shortage of healthy appetites in this country buying food and consumer goods. I have never sat for more than a couple of hours and never need to manage the highs and lows of varying paychecks. The other element to think about is priority and resource allocation. Premier Dedicated accounts like Walmart and Target get priority; best equipment, expedited maintenance/repair and employ top notch planners and DMs. Something to think about...