Willis Shaw Express

ander12

New Member
Willis Shaw??

A friend of mine said Willis is a really good co for taking care of their own. Is there anybody out there that can enlighten me on their success with this company. I live about 2 hours from their arkansas hub and think that it would be a good position to be in with the hub close to home. I know I will be out alot but I spent more time away from the wife when I was in the Corps then I will driving. I want to get 1-2 years with a good company OTR and then with the experience get a local area seat.

Thanks all,

Andy:cool:
 
Willy

Deja Vu Andy!

I just tried to type out a nice long review of WSE in the review forum, but when trying to spell check it, I lost it all. So I have to start over. I will try to make this as simple as possible. I worked for them for just over a year as my starter company.

1. They sent me to a well respected school. I know its not a concern for you, but it signifies the first proof that this company cares about safety. Other things that showed me this included booking loads that could safely be run within log book rules (Not a lot of night driving unless the driver prefers it.) and well maintained (only slightly used) comfortable equipment. They never asked me to run a shadey load. They do allow you to idle to be comfortable as long as you don't abuse it. The biggest factor by far was a quality trainer and training program, post school.

2. They filled all promises to me including pay and benefits. You will not get rich at WSE, but a Honest Company with integrity is priceless in this industry as you know. No real layover or detention pay, but they did take care of me during an extended breakdown with hotel and pay during that downtime. They did have some notorious areas in the country where there were more loads going in then out (Like L.A.) where this did become a minor issue. Longest wait, which was over the weekend, was rare. But a day wait was just common enough to gripe under my breath sometimes. All disputes were resolved in a professional manner also.

3. Equipment for company drivers are not Cadillac's of the industry, but they tend to be very comfortable and quality equipment. I believe they are still running Century Condos with all the comforts and Newer International Condo's with auto trans and NICE interiors. There may still be a few visions and XL's, but I doubt it. They tend to run there equipment from new to about 500k-600k at the very high end. They try to insure good maintenance schedules also.

4. Getting paid is quick quick quick now with the Trip Scan. They implemented that about a couple years ago. Tolls always got paid. Lumper's always got paid.

5. No Mexico or Canada, which is good in my book.

6. They new me by name, not a number. Although they do use a number on the qualcomm. Which by the way, they only use for trip data and communications, not to micromanage.


All in all Andy, a good honest company with "decent" equipment and an "O.K." pay package.

Plus side:
- Good honest people (RARE in the industry)
- Safe policies, practices, and equipment
- Easy and quick payment methods via tripscan and such
- Fuel partnerships at Flying J, TA, and Pilots
- Work with you to get you home when you want to be home as agreed
- Qualcomm for all the RIGHT reasons not the bad
- Tolls and Lumper's paid (Approved Logical Tolls)
- Comfortable trucks and policies (idling ok and Idle Air paid)
- Care about there drivers as friends and partners

Negatives:
- No Pete's or W900's here, sorry
- Pay package "OK" at best
- Frankly, major customers tend to be ones difficult to work with. Tyson, Budweiser, and Walmart to mention a few.
- Trucks capped out at 69. Ok for me though. (Might be 65 now?)
- Trailer fleet is aging and can be a hassle sometimes. I believe that 2007 was suppose to start a major change in that. Maybe its better now.


email me with any specific questions you might have. [email protected]
 
I worked for them for just over a year as my starter company.

1. They sent me to a well respected school that trained me the right way the FIRST time. It was far from a CDL Factory. This was the first first proof that this company cares about safety. Other things that showed me this included booking loads that could safely be run within log book rules (Not a lot of night driving unless the driver prefers it.) and well maintained (only slightly used) comfortable equipment. They never asked me to run a shadey load. They do allow you to idle to be comfortable as long as you don't abuse it. The biggest factor by far was a quality trainer and training program, post school.

2. They filled all promises to me including pay and benefits. You will not get rich at WSE, but a Honest Company with integrity is priceless in this industry as you know. No real layover or detention pay, but they did take care of me during an extended breakdown with hotel and pay during that downtime. They did have some notorious areas in the country where there were more loads going in then out (Like L.A.) where this did become a minor issue. Longest wait, which was over the weekend, was rare. But a day wait was just common enough to gripe under my breath sometimes. All disputes were resolved in a professional manner also.

3. Equipment for company drivers are not Cadillac's of the industry, but they tend to be very comfortable and quality equipment. I believe they are still running Century Condos with all the comforts and Newer International Condo's with auto trans and NICE interiors. There may still be a few visions and XL's, but I doubt it. They tend to run there equipment from new to about 500k-600k at the very high end. They try to insure good maintenance schedules also.

4. Getting paid is quick quick quick now with the Trip Scan. They implemented that about a couple years ago. Tolls always got paid. Lumper's always got paid.

5. No Mexico or Canada, which is good in my book.

6. They knew me by name, not a number. Although they do use a number on the qualcomm. Which by the way, they only use for trip data and communications, not to micromanage.

Plus side:
- Good honest people (RARE in the industry)
- Safe policies, practices, and equipment
- Easy and quick payment methods via tripscan and such
- Fuel partnerships at Flying J, TA, and Pilots
- Work with you to get you home when you want to be home as agreed
- Qualcomm for all the RIGHT reasons not the bad
- Tolls and Lumper's paid (Approved Logical Tolls)
- Comfortable trucks and policies (idling ok and Idle Air paid)
- Care about there drivers as friends and partners
- No Canada or Mexico (I think NYC is not forced too)

Negatives:
- No Pete's or W900's here, sorry
- Pay package "OK" at best
- Frankly, major customers tend to be ones difficult to work with. Tyson, Budweiser, and Walmart to mention a few.
- Trucks capped out at 69. Ok for me though. (Might be 65 now?)
- Trailer fleet is aging and can be a hassle sometimes. I believe that 2007 was suppose to start a major change in that. Maybe its better now.
- No pet's (if thats important to you)
- Rider policy is kinda nuts. A girlfriend or wife can ride with you, but thats about it. A friend, father, or mother can not. So, if I meet a waitress in a greesy diner, I can call back and say my girl wants to ride with me, but if my father wants to do a run, he can't.


email me with any specific questions you might have. [email protected]
 
Judge For Yourself

I worked a short time for WSE and I'm sorry that I can't say all those good things about them. Now the company as a hole was not bad but the trainers are something else. :eek: Take a good look at them before you make the move and judge for yourself your not going to get a 100% at a boy on any company that you look at. My complaint was personal between me and the trainer but the company went with the trainer because of the experience he had. I learned not to voice an opinion with a so called experienced trainer.
 
I am working for WSE now. I have a dedicated regional run in west Tennessee and western Kentucky. I get home every weekend. When the economy slowed down they had two pay cuts of 1.5 cents. I told them I was quiting and they gave back one of the pay cuts. I am not getting rich on my dedicated run but I am home every weekend.

When I was OTR with them getting home was difficult at times. The longest I stayed out was 6 weeks but usually stayed out 3 to 4 weeks. They have many drivers who like to stay out for weeks or months on end so I think that they feel everyone must like to stay out that long. You can get 2000 to 3000 miles a week with them.

When you do get home they will give you 7 or 8 days off. They are good people to work for and do not expect you to run illegal. They usually give you more than enough time to make you loads. But since you drop up to 24 hrs early on alot of loads you can drop and get another load.

Their tractors are all auto shifters and some have apus. Some of their trailers are in bad shape but some are new. orientation is in Elm Springs, Ark. and was 3 days. There was only two of us in the class and the people talking to us were personable.

Their insurance is only fair.
 
Does'nt sound like a bad company at all.
I am working for WSE now. I have a dedicated regional run in west Tennessee and western Kentucky. I get home every weekend. When the economy slowed down they had two pay cuts of 1.5 cents. I told them I was quiting and they gave back one of the pay cuts. I am not getting rich on my dedicated run but I am home every weekend.

When I was OTR with them getting home was difficult at times. The longest I stayed out was 6 weeks but usually stayed out 3 to 4 weeks. They have many drivers who like to stay out for weeks or months on end so I think that they feel everyone must like to stay out that long. You can get 2000 to 3000 miles a week with them.

When you do get home they will give you 7 or 8 days off. They are good people to work for and do not expect you to run illegal. They usually give you more than enough time to make you loads. But since you drop up to 24 hrs early on alot of loads you can drop and get another load.

Their tractors are all auto shifters and some have apus. Some of their trailers are in bad shape but some are new. orientation is in Elm Springs, Ark. and was 3 days. There was only two of us in the class and the people talking to us were personable.

Their insurance is only fair.
 
I don't work for willis shaw but my company but i pull alot of their trailers out of waco for repair. alot of the old mct trailers are in terrible shape. but they have some of the trailers that are in great shape and they do try to keep mainternance up on them as much as they can . as for as wquipment have seen alot of international and volvos .
 
My boyfriend has been with the company (Willis Shaw) a month now. He has completed his training and yet they give him more loads not going toward his place of upgrading. His friend had no problem upgrading after logging 10,000 miles and yet my boyfriend will almost be at 13,000 before he gets done with his loads...it makes me angry that they can't get him to his upgrading state when he's already above his training mileage by almost 1,000 miles already. He's been gone a month and he should be able to come home. Never had a problem with this from any other trucking company and I'm sure they have loads going to this state where he can be upgraded.
 
I was just terminated from wse. Overall they r not a bad company. Most of the trlrs r old but they try to keep up the maintenance on them.Pu and del times started to get crazy.Sometimes getting a preplan was like pulling teeth. I changed fm and that was alot better.Picking up lds late was starting to b the norm. and if u pu late chances r u will not make ur del time.I think there load planners r a little screwed up.I was terminated because of two miner backing incedents. I think the termination was premature bt i"ll just move on. I start with windy hill tommorow. It stinks because i was 10 days short of 6 mos. They tell me i only have to go on a training truck for 2 weeks.Hope i dont mess this one up.
 
I drive for WSE currently. There equipment is a crap shoot. I am driving a 2006 International and the inside of the cab is beat to hell with use. I just left the Caves in Springfield, MO and did a drop and hook with a Oscar Mayer load and there were 5 trailers of ours left in the lot to choose from that were empty. Each one of the trailers were junk imo. Miles is sometimes there and sometimes not, to define WSE as inconsistent with miles would be correct. I got a bonus in June for running over 10,000 miles, the next month it would be a stretch to say I got half of that. Haven't seen 10,000 miles since. Dispatching is a little insane at times. I'll get a preload and 9 times out of 10 the appointment times will change once I get the actual load information. It will change so much that it is almost and sometimes impossible to do legally. I have at late been putting my foot down with my dispatchers. I don't let them push me like I did for a month or two when I was new. Seems like when you do get load information they allow just enough time to make it legally barring nothing happens a long the way like stopping for coffee or bathroom break. I run at night which I despise since I am more of a day person. The company dictates how you run your logs just by the nature of their dispatches e.g. appointment times. I am considered otr but spend a lot of time in the SE which not really fond of, sorry folks. Describing WSE is like describing a company who has a bunch of amateurs running it, from the load planners to the dispatchers. One plus side I can think of is that they do make an honest effort on getting you home when you needed to. Yes I still drive for them. There might have been times when they were a descent company to drive for but the winds have changed.

In defense of WSE maybe that is just the nature of the reefer business that appointment times are so tight, don't know? Eight years ago I drove for Covenant and their appointment times were a lot looser, less stressful and otr was otr lower 48 but Covenant was a dry van carrier so don't know?
 
WSE Sucks. I have several friends that drive for that company and they all told me and my husband that they promas to get you home when it's time that it's no problem. But yet it's taken up to 3 weeks over for my friends to get home. They don't have any safety awards like they use to. Also the short **** runs will kill you. Our friends are over the road long haul drivers the longest load they've gotten in like 3 years was from Texas Dallas area to Atlanta, Georgia. The company is going down hill. They use to have terminals in Atlanta and Boise oh and arbundale fl. the only terminal they have now is the one in Elm Springs, AR. They also use to haul loads for Budwiser not anymore. Also Candy loads Nope. WTF. Yeah their a good just starting company. Just make sure the trainer trains you and not just have you sit there and not drive.Becareful out there and God Bless
 
Heatherann. I know how you feel. My husband is an otr driver and being married or being in a relationship with a truckdriver is kinda ruff. I was home for 3 years taking care of my stepkids when he and I first got married. The longest my husband was on the road for was 2 and a half months.They'll get him home. They do have a rider program. but you have to be married to travel with him in the truck
 

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