Stevens, Knight, Stevens, Knight

Sorry, I guess I'm too long winded today and ran out of characters on that last post.

I'm really going through this in such a detailed manner because I want people to realize how unreliable so much of what you find on these trucking web sites is.

When it all boils down to what is important, you'll end up looking at who you are and what kind of work ethic you bring to the work place. You can forget all about the wages, and the training, the corporate structure, whether the company is in debt or not and all the other things that people get attracted to when trying to choose a trucking company. Drivers make this industry what it is. Drivers make their jobs what they are. When you see and hear all this complaining about a certain company, you might as well realize that there is just as much of it on almost any other company, and that is because most of those whining complaining loser drivers have worked everywhere they could, but they still haven't found a company that is worth a damn!

Now I'm not trying to carry the water for Stevens, I've made it clear that I don't know too much about them at all, and I'm employed by Knight, but I haven't really tried to sway miss Trish in their direction. My point in all this is to try and teach others who will come across this thread later on just how important verifiable information is. If we only share the trash we've picked up at the Trucker's Report on here with the people who are genuinely seeking some valuable information then we might as well not exist because there are plenty of places to go and get that kind of worthless tripe already. We are here to share the truth with each other and that is what we find to be helpful.

AJ D, none of this is even aimed at you, it just so happened you helped give me a spring board to launch off of and lay out some things that I think are important in our efforts to help each other as we develop into professional drivers serving the needs of this great nation.

Trish, sorry if we kind of got your thread sidetracked, but I thought it was a good time to insert a few things into this discussion, and I hope some of you will benefit from the discussion.

Thanks, Old School. Your analysis is highly informative and helpful. AJ D., you helped open up the discussion, which is awesome. We're all learning and the open discussion means we can learn from one another, so thank you.

Trish, don't forget to factor in that should either company offer you the choice of a male or female instructor for OTR training and you chose a female, there might be a wait time for when a female instructor would be available, simply because there are fewer of them. That's not a company fault. That's just statistics. Ask them about it.

I received an email from Knight this morning and I can just quote it for you. I don't have the liberty of going OTR but I am certainly going to keep Knight in my back pocket for when my "Board of Directors" (my growing children) are able to "release me into the wild." (Ha! just made that up. That was clever. Ha-ha)

Here's what the recruiter from the Western Dry Van Division wrote and if you need his name and contact information, you can PM me. I don't want to put anyone's information out there without his permission. ...And of course, me being me, I edited his email and made all the necessary grammar and punctuation corrections.

... ...Knight Transportation is a Fortune 200 company and is one of the largest transportation carriers nationwide. By the end of 2014 our company will own more than 5000 trucks - that’s right, 5000! All of which are owned outright. We are proud to say that we are a debt-free company. How does that pertain to you? You will never have to worry about your paycheck suffering due to our inability to make the payments on our equipment. We are growing faster than any other carrier. We have enough freight to offer our drivers consistent miles week-in and week-out. When you get consistent miles, you get a consistent paycheck... ...This makes your life and the life of your family much less stressful because you can plan accordingly every month. To us, you are not just a number; you are a name, a person, a brother or a sister to the Knight Transportation family. These are the principles our company was founded upon and these are the same principles we live and die by.

Knight Transportation is a career-oriented company. Anything you wish to achieve in this career can be fulfilled with our company. We offer: * Weekly home time · CDL School · Squire Training Program · Driver Trainers · Company Driver (Dry Van and Refrigerated) · Port and Rail Services · Owner Operator · Lease to Purchase

... ...full medical, dental, and vision, 401K plans, 05 CPM Quarterly bonus, 01 CPM raise after 6 months and 12 months.

Knight Transportation (Numbers from an actual Knight Driver)

Week 1- 3100 Miles @38c= 1178

Week 2- 3350 Miles @38c= 1273

Week 3- 3200 Miles @38c= 1216

Total: $3667

... ... Knight Transportation is about results ...

...and he continues on, a bit.

I have to caveat this by saying this is a recruiter's "pitch" but I also have to believe that on most things, a recruiter must quote verifiable information for his own company or he can get into big trouble for falsely advertising. These figures might be specific to the Western Dry-Van Division on not necessarily company-wide. I don't know. And they're merely an example for one driver.

He argues that other companies may offer higher pay per mile but that Knight can offer consistent miles week-after-week and therefore you would fair better with Knight. Certainly, a company that owns that many trucks debt-free, is doing well financially because the key to the survival of any business is cash-flow and that translates miles to the driver. It sounds like, if you want the miles, they are available for the Knight driver.

I don't have much information to give you on Steven's but that is what I have on Knight.

Based on Old School's business acumen and work ethic, I tend to take his advice seriously. While Old School is tough enough & savvy enough to work for the meanest of dispatchers that might be out there, while smoothing their ruffled feathers, and could make even the devil-himself look good as a company in the eyes of the customer, I would tend to follow any piece of advice he gave, down to the finest minutia. Because Old School likes a company for all the right reasons and wades through the riff-raff of bs out there, he's a high-quality example to follow. Most of the time, your success boils down to good 'ole hard work. If I could have a duplicate OS sitting on my shoulder telling me things like, "I would do this, MG, don't sweat the small stuff MG, and just get the job done, or this is how you'd act in a situation like this ..." all day long, I'd be golden.

-mountain girl

I have spoken with many stevens drivers. We go alot of the same places. They are ok with stevens overall. Stevens does have very nice equipment. I also know from some inside information they are up for sale. By the middle of next year they will probably be bought out. I know one of the final bidders is my company. We have acquired 3 trucking companies in the last 9 months and actively looking at others. 2 were fairly small and the 3rd medium size . All were in the state of Texas if that tells you anything. All that being said. When buyouts or take overs occur there is alot of uncertainity that runs rampant, just a fact of life. Not trying to sway anyone one way or another, just offering some insight

AJ D, there's no harm done, and I'm not even trying to get on to you. We just like to deal in facts around here, facts give us something to base our choices and decisions on, and since Trish is a little new to this forum, she may not realize what you are giving her is hearsay. You've now told is it came from the internet, but not what web site, and that makes a world of difference. If it came from their company web site then that quantifies it for us, but if it comes from the many loose cannon truck driver trying to slam his ex employer web sites that too many rookies consider as reliable sources of information then it is considered as completely unreliable garbage around here.

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I'm amazed by the people on this site. Thank you so much - you haven't made the decision for me, but gave me some great food for thought. Thanks for the information Daniel, Doug, mountain girl, AJ D., PJ. Old School: no problem. Good lessons, and I appreciate that you help keep this site honest.

I got interested in trucking originally for the adventure, money, and so I could tell my brother my truck is bigger than his. But now I'm really excited to be part of this world because the people are so cool (at least a lot of them) - people who are generous and care about each other and what's right. Thank you. I'll let you know what I decide. Stay safe.

AJ D, there's no harm done, and I'm not even trying to get on to you. We just like to deal in facts around here, facts give us something to base our choices and decisions on, and since Trish is a little new to this forum, she may not realize what you are giving her is hearsay. You've now told is it came from the internet, but not what web site, and that makes a world of difference. If it came from their company web site then that quantifies it for us, but if it comes from the many loose cannon truck driver trying to slam his ex employer web sites that too many rookies consider as reliable sources of information then it is considered as completely unreliable garbage around here.

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Well , rats.

I meant to post that Old School is absolutely correct on all his points.

I will keep the company comparisons down to a minimum until I know what I am talking about and not just relaying Glass Door reviews.

I'm amazed by the people on this site. Thank you so much - you haven't made the decision for me, but gave me some great food for thought. Thanks for the information Daniel, Doug, mountain girl, AJ D., PJ. Old School: no problem. Good lessons, and I appreciate that you help keep this site honest.

I got interested in trucking originally for the adventure, money, and so I could tell my brother my truck is bigger than his. But now I'm really excited to be part of this world because the people are so cool (at least a lot of them) - people who are generous and care about each other and what's right. Thank you. I'll let you know what I decide. Stay safe.

Please keep us informed on the info you gather. I am interested in both these companies.

...and... Good Luck!!

Here's the info I've gathered about Knight and Stevens:

SCHOOL: STEVENS KNIGHT Location Keenesburg, CO Phoenix, AZ Duration 3 weeks 3 weeks (1st wk is 4 days, orientation) Need CDL permit? no yes, so out of pocket $25+ for permit + approx $100 for DOT Expenses Bring $400 to cover Have to pay for meals (all weeks) fees & tests ($175), plus lodgings (weeks 2 & 3 - they housing ($90), and food will cover week 1) Obligation 3 yrs to pay back $4200 They will take out $50/wk till $2900 ($27/wk) is repaid (slightly >1 yr) Training pay zero $400/week paid on Thurs, 1 wk behind i.e. immediate hire! Note: 1st week is orientation M-W full time + a meeting on Friday

OTR TRAINING: Duration 8 weeks, with 3 days in Dallas 4 weeks after school and 4 days in Dallas after 5 wks in truck Training pay $350/wk $400/wk Students/truck 1 1, no team driving Trainers are scheduled in advance so if I request fem and/or nonsmoker there should not be any delay

SOLO Starting pay 26 cpm 28 cpm first 90 days Pay increases 6-9 mo: 28 cpm / 9-12 mo: 29 cpm 35 cpm after 90 days 1 yr: 30 cpm / 2 yrs: 31 cpm Benefits Med, dental, vision, life, Medical, dental, vision, life, 401k disability, 401k, prescription Vacation 1 week after 1 yr, 2 weeks after 3 yrs Same Forced dispatch/NYC both neither Regional opport. unsure "many" Hometime 1 day per week out "variety" Drop & hook 60% 70%

All info is from recruiters or current company brochures EXCEPT I haven't verified the Stevens 3-yr school repayment deal - that particular info is from this site.

For myself, none of these factors is a deal-breaker by itself, but when you add them all up, Knight looks a lot better. Note I haven't talked to any drivers yet.

For me, big factors are pay during training (I am dead broke!) and fact that Knight is in AZ ... kind of unique situation I'm in, but where I'll be spending most of my off days is way out in the boonies in AZ, country roads where I don't guess the company would like me to bobtail their rig, so I guess I'll park my 4x4 in the company yard while I'm working. Stevens' closest yard is SLC.

Let's try that again.

SCHOOL: Both are 3 weeks.

STEVENS Keenesburg, CO / Don't need CDL permit / Bring $400 to cover fees & tests ($175), housing ($90) and food / 3 yrs obligation to pay back $4200 / Training pay is zero

KNIGHT Phoenix, AZ / 1st wk is 4 days, orientation / Need CDL permit so out of pocket $25+ for permit + approx $100 for DOT / Have to pay for meals (all weeks) plus lodgings (weeks 2 & 3 - they will cover week 1) / They will take out $50/wk till $2900 ($27/wk) is repaid (slightly >1 yr) / Training pay $400/week paid on Thurs, 1 wk behind i.e. immediate hire! / Note: 1st week is orientation M-W full time + a meeting on Friday

OTR TRAINING:

STEVENS Duration 8 weeks, with 3 days in Dallas after school and 4 days in Dallas after 5 wks in truck / Training pay $350/wk / Students/truck 1

KNIGHT Duration 4 weeks / Training pay $400/week / Students/truck 1, no team driving / Trainers are scheduled in advance so if I request fem and/or nonsmoker there should not be any delay

SOLO:

STEVENS Starting pay 26 cpm / Pay increases: 6-9 mo: 28 cpm / 9-12 mo: 29 cpm / 1 yr: 30 cpm / 2 yrs: 31 cpm / Benefits Medical, dental, vision, life, 401k disability, 401k, prescription / Vacation 1 week after 1 yr, 2 weeks after 3 yrs / Forced dispatch and forced NYC / Regional opport. unsure, haven't asked / Hometime 1 day per week out / Drop & hook 60%

KNIGHT Starting pay 28 cpm first 90 days / Pay increase to 35 cpm after 90 days / Benefits Medical, dental, vision, life, 401k / Vacation 1 week after 1 yr, 2 weeks after 3 yrs / No forced dispatch or forced NYC / Regional opportunities "many" / Hometime "variety" / Drop & hook 70%

All info is from recruiters or current company brochures EXCEPT I haven't verified the Stevens 3-yr school repayment deal - that particular info is from this site.

Looks to me like you have done your homework young lady. Money talks and b******t walks. Just my opinion. I have never spoken with any Stevens drivers. All the ones I have run across actually seemed kinda stuck up. I'm not saying they are all that way by any means, just ones I have come across and tried to tslk with. Another thing to consider in my humble opinion. Type of freight you will pull. Stevens is strictly refer. With the percent drop/hook you quoted that equals alot of live loads/unloads. Time is money . Shippers/receivers are all over the board how they treat drivers. Example: walmart/ sams club= sitting alot. Takes them forever and they dont care if they pay detention. You can expect 3-10 hrs there. Kroger same thing. Costco I 'm in and out usually within an hour when its a dc. Stores usually 2-3 hrs. I dont know what either pay for detention but I guarantee you will make more rolling. Knight on the other hand have dry van , refer, and sounds like some flatbed stuff. That 's old schools new job . Since pulling this refer I go alot of places stevens goes. They have a very small number of drop trailers that I have seen. Just food for thought. I have spoken with knight drivers before and always seem friendly. When I pulled a dry van I saw large numbers of dropped knight trailers at customers. Personally the pay at Stevens seems low to me since it is refer . Refer tends to pay slightly better than dry van. At least the loads do anyway. I haul some dry product from time to time and the temp controlled always pays better. Flatbed pays the best but you earn every penny. Just another item on your consideration list .