How is freight looking for you or your company?

[Sinister]

Freight at ATS is changing before my eyes. The OD loads I've hauled often pay less than the NYC load I took. They've cut the mileage contract pay, they say to "level the playing field" with the guys on percentage who've been taking a beating for over a year because rates have been so low.

Crap. Punish us because they chose percentage instead?!

My lowest check so far was this week, and next week, I'm pretty sure I'm going to owe the company money.

All of a sudden then seem to be offering just enough loads to make your truck bills, and that's it.

When I empty out on Tuesday night, why the hell am I being offered loads for next Monday?! If I had my own authority, Im pretty sure I could get on the load boards, and find at least one more load for that week. Don't tell me a company this size has that little freight.

Punish the losers. Not me. I run my ass off, and pull OD loads without error or drama. My family needs to eat.

I don't know what the company has to gain by holding me back like that, but it certainly seems that is what they are doing.

It started off so good...

I sincerely hope they don't turn this into one of those lease programs. I really hope I can last the year, and scrape enough up to get another truck that's not so expensive.

 

[Keendriver]

What happened to all the wind stuff they were supposed to start doin about the time you started? I seem to remember they were calling ex drivers to come back cuz of a new contract.

 

[Sinister]

They are still doing wind stuff. I'm sitting under a 11 6 wide Hub right now going from GE in Pensacola going to Mojave, CA. A bunch of guys left cloud under tower trailers (Schnables, etc.) not long ago, but I don't know where they went.

I just tested into Class 2, so they still tell me I can't haul any blades or anything yet. I think the biggest I'm "qualified" to haul is 14 wide, I forget how tall, and 95' long.

They don't care that I spent most of the last 2 years working for another company at 175 feet long. Because i was never behind a high pole, it automatically bumped me down a class when I was hired. During orientation they told me I was going to be a 2 to test into 1 in 30 days, then toward the end of orientation when they found out I had no high pole time, they bumped me down.

 

[young33]

freight slow

My boyfriend drives for Arfsten Transfer, out of Clearwater,MN, and they have 14 trucks and have 2 trucks sitting, they aren't hiring cause the freight is slow.

 

[J-MAC]

Man, I wish I knew your brother I'm also an independent and I really do'nt see any change!! Just the way it goes

 

[Cerberus]

^ it all depends where your located and who you know and exp you have to drive for a smaller (better) company. In the area i am in there are a few companies here that pay very well and home on weekends. But with my desire to never drive a truck again that has a bed behind it i am only looking inot day cabs or other types of jobs. I've done my time and paid my dues and will never drive a sleeper again. I left nothing in any city out there that i need to get or anything i need to see. Or even driving day cabs is good here also.

 

[Mike]

We are staying busy, and actually taking on some new contracts. I don't really like the sound of one of the contracts we are getting, and don't plan on hauling any of the loads out of that place, but maybe some of our drivers who like to run the short loads will stick with them, and open up more long hauls for me.

Industry wide, it appears things are getting better as well, as many companies are starting to look for drivers again.

 

[lunachic]

I don't agree with the why alot of companies have started to look for drivers again.
Alot of the new one can't make it. And alot of the seasoned drivers wont work for the new pay rate.

 

[Cerberus]

I don't agree with the why alot of companies have started to look for drivers again.
Alot of the new one can't make it. And alot of the seasoned drivers wont work for the new pay rate.

Your 2nd sentence answered your 1st sentence.

 

[the big bad trucker j]

All I can say is that. Things are picking back up out here running about 3200 to 3500 miles the lowest is about 2800 but that's still good
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[turbo tojo]

I just spent 11Grand on converting my tipper truck and trailer to cart grain and after 2 weeks of break downs and carting sawdust there's no grain work till next year. Luckily the gravel is picking up again so I'll have to rip the extensions off and go back to that.
I'd put my truck up for sale but I know I can't sell it or get what I need for it to pay off my loan. I've even been offered a job fixing photocopiers etc, with a company car and about 50-65K a year but then there is my truck to consider. I can't win.

 

[Sinister]

Okay, so the last two weeks have been decent. I'm looking at a third pretty good week also. But, I'm right up against Labor Day Holiday, I've been out going on FIVE weeks straight, and want to go the hell home for a day or two.

We'll see if going home screws me up like it did last time. If so, then I'm going to lose my mind. If staying aout that long can't get me a day or two off without totally going backwards, this program is crap.

On the bright side, I recently tested into Class 2, and have now hauled 2 back to back class 2 loads...well...I'm under one this weeked, but it's really a NOOB load, as it isn't wide, heavy, and only 14 1 high, but ATS takes high loads real seriously, so it counts toward Class 1.

I really do get offered a lot of OD loads too.

I kinda get the feeling they are trying to move me through the ranks quickly. Of course, they haven't said that.

We will see.

 

[Cerberus]

Hope you get the chance to get home man and it doesn't hurt ya too bad. Sad when going home to family really screws you up finamcially.

 

[the big bad trucker j]

I was out for about 3 week turned in 15683 for the mouth
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[tankeryanker]

Things went from dead to super busy where I work at. I've turned 3,000 miles a week the last 2 weeks - and that's even being able to be home for a reset. But now there's talk that we're going to have to take a 5% pay cut, temporarily. Ha, you know how temporary is. We're all rather irked, as we all have already taken a huge "pay cut" from the lack of freight. I haul Haz Mat with CTL out of Jacksonville, FL

 

[Chae Transport]

I can't complain, beside it would not do me any good since the only one that controls my trucks freight is me

 

[Sinister]

I managed a decent week this week, and ran enough short stuff right at the end to be able to "hold" a load going into next week, (which i'm not supposed to do, but screw em) so if I can get a preloaded trailer to leave over the weekend, and stay kind of close, I should make it back for the 2 days I actually put in for, as well as the days I'm stealing now, and not lose my butt.

They offered me ONE HELL of a decent OD load yesterday, with detention pay for getting stuck on the weekend, awesome tarp pay, and on and on, but I just couldn't take getting under yet another load for 6 days, staring at either a truck stop parking lot, or a motel room full of empty beer bottles one more time, so I came home.

And it seems that everywhere I go, theres a gaggle of ATS drivers, and I couldn't stand another weekend around drivers like this.

 

[Keendriver]

They seem to have cut/lost enough drivers that now we locals are doin some road trips.Went to La Grange Ga and loaded a skidder to Jax. Goin to Brunswick Tues gettin a crane to Jax.
Nothing spectacular but it beats sitting around all day hoping to get a container to pull.

Sinister, glad to hear your moving up with the o/d loads.....one or two more of 'em and you'll be ready for the ATS haul of fame!!!:shoot:

 

[Chae Transport]

Its funny on the news all the blame for the economy is on Wall Street, home buyers, mortgage crisis. and that did have a part in it, but the Main fault of it is WE NO LONGER MANUFACTURE ANYTHING, well almost nothing. We in the trucking industry felt this start 2 years ago, because we are at the beginning of the supply chain. If we don't make things, we cant ship things, people don't buy things, places close down. When Wal-Mart encourages companies to move their manufacturing to China and their stores are stocked with over 80% of stuff from China, it dosent take a rocket scientist to figure out we are in trouble. I used to work for a company that made electronic capasitors, they moved everything to Mexico for cheap labor, and then moved everything again to China, because China said "if you want to sell your product to us, you have to make it here" and it is cheap labor, so now they make everthing in China and ship it back to the USA to save money, oh and the still call themselves an "American" Company because they have there offices here. So untill we start making things again, we will continue to be a "Service Industry" nation, meaning, the poor serve the rich. So tip your waitress and your maids.

Very well put,

We will never be a manufacturing country again, if we can not make it in the service industry we will be SOL

 

[Sinister]

Very well put,

We will never be a manufacturing country again, if we can not make it in the service industry we will be SOL

I learned in sociology that the US is not considered a post industrial/pre informational society.

Meaning that blue collar jobs are becomeing few and far between, and it's basically rich, and poor. With little or no middle class.

Strange thing is, I am the middle class. So, what are my options?