Recently I have been going through some major changes and adjustments at work. Both the Boss and the Assistant, had both recently turned in their resignations. Lucky for me, the Assistant was convinced to stay, with a healthy pay raise and a snazzy new title. Lucky, I say, because she is the one person that every driver can count on at all times to know what is going on and to treat each driver equally. Corporate then decided to bring in a few more Chiefs to run the show. So now there is one fellow doing something....(I am not sure what), and another who had taken the Boss' position, while a third has been hired to seek out back hauls for every out going trailer. Yikes!!
The back haul situation is one that has been attempted in the past. It didn't last long because the Aluminum Company put an end to it when the trailers were not returned in a timely manner. This caused major delays in reloading and even shut the docks completely down a few times. So, I am anxious to see how long it will last this time. I know, most other truck drivers have to sit and wait on reloads, but that has never been the case with this dedicated account. I am concerned that the trucking company's greed will get the best of them. Aluminum should always remain the number one priority! Not to mention that I get paid peanuts for any additional work I do outside of my metal loads. Two weeks ago, my back haul took a total of 6 hours out of my work day, loading and unloading. It forced me to work 12 continuous days with very little time out of the truck, because my day off was spent playing with "additional" freight. And it only profited me and additional $37.50 to haul it. I do realize that I am at the mercy of the folks who sign my paycheck, but I am not too enthusiastic about working 6-7 days a week, for mere pennies more than I would make in 4-5 days.
Another issue that developed during the first week of seeking additional freight, was a crazy notion our new "Load Man" got lodged in his noggin. He wanted me to pick up a load in Indiana on Friday. A load that was not going to the Aluminum Company. A load that would then leave me stranded at a truck stop over the weekend, waiting to deliver on Monday. A load that would also knock me off of the following weeks dispatch for extrusions. A load that would tie up a trailer that would be needed to load the extrusions that I was not going to be around to haul. A load that would reduce the following weeks paycheck because I would be too busy sitting around a truck stop waiting for Monday to deliver outside freight and would not be able to return in time to haul my extrusion load because there would be no trailer to load it on and no driver to deliver it because I would be sitting my lazy ass at a truck stop all weekend WAITING. I asked the "Load Man" who was going to deliver this Indiana load, and pointed out all the pitfalls involved. He called me an hour later and said the load was cancelled, but I have a sneaky suspicion that someone told him that he could not follow through on those crazy notions of his.
As for the new Boss. I have not met him yet. But already he has ruffled my feathers indirectly. The first feather fluffing incident involved a small note that was placed with our load manifest his first week on the job. It simply stated that all drivers were required to fill out DAILY INSPECTIONS on our vehicles. Well, duh!! Not something to get upset over except that we do this already. If he cannot find them, maybe he should look in the Shop Foreman's trash can, where they are filed daily. Once again, the blame is laid at the feet of the driver, with no research or questions asked!! This, my friends, perturbs me to no end because of all the unnecessary complications I have faced while dealing the Shop Foreman, or Moe, as I like to refer to him...Head Stooge!!
The second issue I cannot wait to address with the New Boss, is load safety. This week, we all received pretty bright yellow stickers all over our trip packs requesting that drivers check their loads often, tighten straps and drive safely. I know, I know....it is just a sticker. But this sticker seems to indicate that the recent misfortunes with certain loads are due to driver negligence. Seriously, a sticker.....Why not teach the loaders how to place metal safely on a trailer to be hauled thousands of miles...That would be too complicated, now wouldn't it. I mean, after all, a sticker is the easy way out, except a sticker does not get my trailer loaded safely. I can tighten straps all day long, but if the metal does not have a good foundation, the load is going to collapse anyways. An experienced driver can work around these complications, but a new driver might not know what to do in a bad situation. Hey, lets give him a sticker and that will make it all better!! Lets just go ahead and blame it on the driver now and get it over with.
Third week in a row my load has collapsed!
No items were placed in the center to support the outer bundles!!
In reality, I am not complaining about the sticker, I am grumbling about the 3 punches that the Boss has already thrown at us, and I don't even have my boxing gloves on yet!
The third mussing of said feathers, came when it was brought to my attention that the temporary drivers were being dispatched first, because they had other things to do that week. Um, seriously, what have we spent years doing, building up our seniority if only to have the loads given to temporary drivers. And when asked why this happened, it was rumored that the Boss stated that in no uncertain terms that the permanent drivers would take what they were given or else they could seek other employment...WOW!! Now that definitely tends to ruffle the feathers, especially now that I have relocated back to Georgia, to eliminate my weekly commute.
I have no intention of abusing any of the new commanders, and the 2 that I have met are dealing with my personality very well. For example, when the Load Man called last week, I muttered into his ear, " Do you think it would be very rude of me to say What the heck do YOU want?" He laughed at me, because he has been told I am the company clown. I am anxious to meet the new Boss, and will do so at the conclusion of this load. Wish me luck!! I think I will leave my boxing gloves in the truck, at least for the first round.
