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| 05 Nov 2008 04:07:06 pm |
 Cut out the wait on DOT Release Forms |
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| You know those annoying forms you have to sign for every potential company you might go to work for that allows them to get your previous work history and drug & alcohol test results? Those are commonly referred to as DOT Release Forms the time they waste having to wait for then via a fax or even slower, via snail mail is a waste of time for both the driver and the trucking company. What if you could sign those forms instantly and have them back to the trucking company instantly? Now you can sign those forms right on your computer by using the free tool at http://www.truckdrivingcdljobs.com/recruiters/dotreleaseforms/ |
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Category : Trucking Jobs
| By : admin |  Comments [0] |  Trackbacks [0] |
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| 02 Nov 2008 08:53:40 pm |
| Winter Driving for Truck Drivers |
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I haven't personally seen any snow yet, but the winter driving season is here. Chain laws for truck drivers are officially in effect, and the winter driving season means alot of important things to everyone out there on the road. Whether they are in a truck or a four wheeler, drivers need to remember that winter driving is different than the rest of the year. For the professional truck driver, this is nothing new, but for the new cdl holder, we felt like a quick run down on things to watch for would help.
- Four wheel drive pickups that think that just because they can go fast, they should
- Four wheelers who have never seen snow before and think that driving 5 mph is "risking it"
- Frozen brakes, air lines, jelled diesel fuel, & dead batteries
- skipping pre-trips because it's too cold out
- lost traction in parking lots and customer yards
Above are just a few of the many things to watch out for this winter season. Remember to pack some non-perishable foods to keep in your cab in case of a whiteout, blizzard, or other unpassable conditions. Roads can be shut down with little notice and having a granola bar or two can make that idle time a little easier to deal with when you don't know when you'll be able to move again. Keep your CB radio in good working order, make sure your APU has been serviced, and carry so fuel additive to keep your diesel from jelling. |
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Category : Trucking Jobs
| By : admin | Comments [0] | Trackbacks [0] |
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| 26 Oct 2008 05:06:15 pm |
| Lumpers and other con-men. |
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For any of you in the trucking business that don't know what a lumper is, it is a person who unloads or palletizes freight. Most people not in the trucking business assume wrongly that all freight is put on pallets and a forklift puts on and takes off the freight from a trailer. We wish it was that easy. Despite the fact that trucking companies are paid to haul freight from point to point, most companies have gotten sucked into the unpaid business of unloading and sometimes loading the customers own freight off of and on to their trailers. With the hours of service rules being as strict as they are and the succeptibility to injury, many companies do not allow their drivers to unload freight by hand. Instead, they hire a lumper. Lumpers are typically meth addicted thiefs who will rob you in a heartbeat if they can. They accept cash payments from the trucking company's driver to unload freight from the trailer so it is arranged the way the receiver wants it arranged. Logic begs the question, "If the customer wants the frieght arranged a certain way, why don't they order it that way from the supplier, and why is the trucking company paying to arrange it?" Great question, and one that I personally have never been able to answer. Apart from weak minded trucking company execs who cave into unscrupulous tactics from receivers in order to keep hauling freight, I can't fathom a reason. Most lumpers do not pay any taxes on the money the make. Many are receiving unemployment checks while making 400 - 800 per day tax free. They are the scourge of the industry and a law to require shippers and receivers to oad and unload their own freight is desperately needed. A law demanding this would stop tax free monies from being paid to drug addicted thiefs, would allow drivers to focus on driving instead of arranging for and sometimes unloading the freight themselves, only to find themselves too physically worn out to drive.
LUMPERS are terrible and should be eliminated. Write your congressmen today to le them know about this little known bad side to the trucking industry. |
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Category : Trucking Jobs
| By : admin | Comments [2] | Trackbacks [0] |
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| 03 Sep 2008 07:11:05 pm |
| In the end, Truck drivers are paid by the hour, not the mile |
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I heard a driver complaining the other day about being told to drive a different, longer route than he would have chosen to drive if it was up to him. He was saying that he got screwed out of some pay because the miles he was paid to drive were less than the miles he was told to drive. This part of his complaint I understood. It sucks to get paid for less than you drive. This is, and always has been, an unfortunate downside of paying drivers based on miles listed in a mileage guide instead of the actual odometer. Industry reports say that drivers get short paid about 5% of the miles they actually drive. But when you account for the miles that most drivers put on the truck running errands, going home for the weekend, etc, it just about comes out even.
So, back to the whiner. He was told he would get paid 500 miles but was told by the company's fuel optimizer to drive a route that took 550 miles. The catch is, the 550 mile route was 1/2 hour faster than the 500 mile route. The driver said he wanted to drive the 500 mile route cause that's what he was going to be paid for. At first glance, this makes sense. But does it really?
The driver was going to be paid for 500 miles, no matter which route he drove. It would take him 8.33 hours to drive 500 miles at an average speed of 60 miles per hour, or he could average 70 miles per hour for 7.86 hours to go the 550 mile route. The different average speeds are because of the speed limits, stop lights, and stop signs, and ability to pass slower vehicles. The driver was NOT paying for the fuel in the truck, the company was, but he was still complaining about having to drive 50 miles further, even though it took him 1/2 hour less.
So I ask all the other truck drivers out there.... If you get paid per book mile (not odometer miles), would you rather drive less miles for a longer time, or more miles in a shorter time, all for the same pay?
Every OTR truck driver gets 14 hours to work, and 11 hours to drive every day. If a driver's goal is to make as much money per day as safely possible, they should be asking themself, "How quickly can I drive these miles safely?", not "Does my pay stub match my odometer?" Because in the end, when we look at our pay stubs, the most important number is the dollars, not the miles. |
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Category : Trucking Jobs
| By : admin | Comments [0] | Trackbacks [0] |
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| 15 Aug 2008 02:02:34 am |
| Trucking Bankruptcies Up 50% for the Year |
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Remember a month ago or so, we told you that jumping ship may not be the best thing to do? Well, we were right. Unless you see trucks being reposessed and your paycheck is bouncing, the atmosphere in trucking right now says you might be better off to stay where you already are. Drivers have been complaining about companies turning their trucks down, in an apparent effort to save on fuel costs. Those drivers that are complaining about that better not talk too loudly; they may unkowingly be standing next to a driver who only wished his company would have done what it took to stay afloat. Now that driver's paycheck bounced and he's hearing someone complain about a slower truck. He doesn't know how lucky he is to even have that truck driving job right now.
I even heard one driver say he gets better fuel mileage going 70 mph compared to 65  As if the company was dumb enough to fall for that and turn his truck back up 
The facts in trucking right now, are that times are tough and companies are looking to squeeze every penny out of every dollar they can. Companies are filing for bankruptcy left and right. Drivers who don't really want to be drivers but refuse to do the only other jobs they are qualified for, will soon be watching the big rigs from the side of the road. Trucking companies will be thinning their fleets, keeping only the safe, efficient, and high producing drivers. On the other hand, drivers who are professional, have clean MVR's, and haven't hopped around from job to job will have their pick of companies to drive for, as long as they remember that being a truck driver is not compatible to being home every weekend. If you want to be home every weekend, get out of trucking. |
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Category : Trucking Jobs
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