Do you have actually --Proof your Mentor has been "training for so long"?

Age doesn't mean anything, How do you KNOW he's been driving for VERY long?

So they call 'em Mentors these days.... you working for KLLM right now?
Just wondering-- I'm looking at going back into the Training "racket" myself.

Best thing to do is-- next time you're close to HOME-- call the Training Coordinator and have a little heart to heart conversation with him( like during a rest area stop or something out of ear shot of you problem Mentor. If you don't get satisfaction with the coordinator's first couple responses--you'll need to threaten to quit if you don't get a different trainer.
Before that-- you might try a factual/positive slant to the deal.

Tell him, you've gained as much as you feel you can with this one...and you think you'd benefit from some cross-training, gaining more insight from a DIFFERENT MENTOR.
You might also mention- he's not "getting along' too well with dispatch and thus you're setting around too much- and that's a waste of company money. You can sight-- Personality Conflicts- ASK to leave it at that before going completely- Negative on your Mentor.
Hopefully, at the end when you part ways--- there's going to be a form for you to fill out-- evaluating your Mentor and rating your EXPERIENCE with him.

You also have the opportunity on your periodic evaluations of your mentor to let Swift know about your experience. Your evaluations are done at the kiosk at the terminals and your mentor is not privy. These evaluations go to the "right" people to let them know. They most likely will get you on another truck.

I hope the picture I have of him driving talking on a cell and using the QualComm on the steering wheel is enough alone to get him tossed. Not to mention getting a company advance for 'hotel for student', taking the money, and not putting me in the hotel. I hope those things are enough. But I am sure he will turn the table, and make it sound like it was 'theft' of the $1 in quarters from the ashtray. He'll make it sound like I'm the one being disrespectful for not saying 'thank you' while he made living in his truck hell.

The turnover rate at Swift is about 72%. And they have been getting rid of the drivers (either compnay or O/O) who do not perform. You go home with a truck, and it sits for 4-5 days, then they will come and take the truck back. I would like to see a program put in place, where they spot check mentors on the road just to see the living conditions in real time. Check paperwork, logs, BOLs and the training paperwork. Think that would be enough to get a mentor yanked.

I dont have a problem with drivers being mentors for the money. But do the job you wanted to do.......TRAIN. If you want me on the truck just to gopher and fetch and drive extra miles on your truck, and not give 2 shakes of a stick about my welfare and not do the job of training, then take a hike.

We hear this story all the time. And the blame goes to the mentor. I say don't blame him, blame the company for training by the mile. If he was getting paid by the hour, I am sure you could be backing for 8 hours straight.

This doesn't mean the otr has to be completely changed to hourly, but on duty not driving should be paid also.

Yes, paying someone to not work will solve the poor training problem. I don't see what this has to do with having a bad mentor. :roll:

Sorry to hear about your training experience. I get to start on the road next week with a company trainer. I just hope it turns out good, and doesn't end up horrible.

Well, here is an update......

I went in, talked to my DM, and asked quite simply, "How fast can I get a new mentor?" She said, "...15 minutes...".

A few keystrokes later, I had a new mentor. Of course she asked why I was requesting one, and i gave her a simple answer of, "I'm not being trained." I talked more about how I've been on the truck for 14 days, and only been 'working' for eight of them. Said how he has been home four times, in two weeks for a total of six days. And of those 14 days, I've only had two backs.

Now for the bad news.....my new mentor is in Iowa, and I have to wait a day. I sure hope they can actually plan him to return to this terminal to pick me up, and not end up waiting 4-5 days like I did coming out of orientation.

Getting a new mentor was easier than I thought. They really seemed to bend over backwards.

Waiting a day or two is probably minimal compared to what you were going through. Glad to hear the company worked it out for you.

EXACTLY what i was thinking. out of the two weeks i've been on his truck, i will get that much training in a day or two with the new guy. I'm willing to take another day, to get a new mentor, one that will actually train me the rest of the 4 weeks i am out here.

Oh...not to mention, when i was asked by my DMs husband, who i had for a mentor, and i said his name, he just nodded. Said 'yeah he is having some issues'. I said "not to tred on someones reputation, but he really needs to be yanked from being a mentor"....and my DM said "he probably will be anyways". =)

If you are staying at the terminal waiting for the new mentor to show up and there is going to be a delay, and if they have local drivers at that terminal, ask about going out with one of them for the day. You may do nothing more than ride around depending on the driver but at least it would get you out of the terminal and relieve some boredom.

When I was with Swift many years ago some of the local drivers would let students drive, do backs etc which counted towards your training days, and some of them turned out to be some of the best trainers the company had.