[headborg]

Originally Posted by VitoCorleone99

I don't know if they would be considered "catches," but here are a few of the knocks that are mentioned often on this board:

[Disclaimer: I believe everything I read on the internet :lol: , so I have made no effort to vet this information. It is just some of what people here have said.]

Pretty generic trucks
No pets
Logs audited against Qualcomms
Opti-idle
65mph
Paperwork required for pay/TRANSFLO

Some of that might matter to you. Some of it might not. As with any company, it's a matter of balancing what you like against what you don't like. .41cpm at one year of experience is not bad at all, so that would likely count as a positive. For some people, one or more of the things listed above would count as negatives. For others, perhaps none of those things sound bad.

Just take your time and figure out what works for you before you get swept up in a cpm figure that you might not ever see if you hate your job and quit in six months.

Vito; the only 2 there on your list that I would disagree on
is the pet policy & transflow.

(1)Here at Shaffer(division of crete)
drivers are allowed pets in truck(pay a deposit)
I don't have a pet--and dislike being assigned to a truck that HAD a pet in it( crete/shaffer does not employ professional detailers to clean these trucks after someone moves out) They once tried assigning me to a truck that still had white dog/cat hair all over the inside of the truck.

(2) transflow is a plus; don't see how anyone could call it a minus.

[gmh]

Originally Posted by VitoCorleone99

I don't know if they would be considered "catches," but here are a few of the knocks that are mentioned often on this board:

Paperwork required for pay/TRANSFLO

Thanks for the response. Most of the items don't bother me, but I'm not sure what this 'TRANSFLO' is. What exactly do you mean here?

As far as the cpm, to me, given the number of recommendations and the few negative posts about them, that was sorta the icing on the cake.

My biggest thing is that I actually get to go to all 48. And I'm hoping to spend the winter north of the Mason-Dixon.

[VitoCorleone99]

Originally Posted by headborg

(2) transflow is a plus; don't see how anyone could call it a minus.

I would call it a minus. Some companies pay on dispatch, meaning that a load dispatched on the last day of a pay period is paid on that check, even if it's delivered three or four days later. You can't scan signed bills until you've delivered, at least to the best of my understanding.

It's certainly not always the case, but on plenty of occasions I've seen lines of people ten deep waiting to scan those damn things while I just want to pay for a soda and be on my way. Considering the aforementioned pay on dispatch policy, it's quite a bit easier to drop an envelope in a box and be done with it.

[headborg]

Originally Posted by VitoCorleone99

I would call it a minus. Some companies pay on dispatch, meaning that a load dispatched on the last day of a pay period is paid on that check, even if it's delivered three or four days later. You can't scan signed bills until you've delivered, at least to the best of my understanding.

It's certainly not always the case, but on plenty of occasions I've seen lines of people ten deep waiting to scan those damn things while I just want to pay for a soda and be on my way. Considering the aforementioned pay on dispatch policy, it's quite a bit easier to drop an envelope in a box and be done with it.

Ok, my observation on that is over the last 15years the only companies that pay even close to like that:
1. Are paying lease/ Owner/Operators: an ADVANCE against a trip, OR
2. Paying at the completion of said trip(each trip) you settle up at the end.
3. Company like JBHUNT which pays on the "honor" system---where what
ever you complete and send a "empty" call in before mid-nite payroll cut-off/ or as you stated at time of dispatch. But they all want the PROOF OF DELIVERY within a couple of business days.

#3. Is very hard to find companies that will do this; 90% want PROOF OF DELIVERY

In the good ole days--companies would hold your pay until they received the Bills, all we had was "snail mail" US POST--and you considered yourself lucky if the company provided Postage Paid envelopes.
Then there was FedEX--and companies provided pre-paid envelopes
then came along ------TripPak
now there's Transflow & TripScan????( by the same company that gave up TripPak)

I currently have the TRANSFLOW NOW! software here on my laptop--so I can scan bills from my cab now( which is great if I get caught somewhere on a Friday night close to payroll cut-off)

[VitoCorleone99]

Over 15 years, I'm sure you've seen a lot more than I have. I've worked for exactly one trucking company, but we do get paid immediately on dispatch. That's not an advance (which is also available upon dispatch through the Comdata card), but rather the full rate of pay applied to the driver's paycheck immediately. The time and date of the delivery is entirely irrelevant in terms of our pay schedule. The only date that matters is the date of the dispatch. If the dispatch is within the pay period, the money is on the paycheck. Again not very frequently, but a few times I've been paid for long runs before I delivered said long runs.

I don't mean to imply that anyone should make a big deal out of one thing like this or the other, rather that each little thing should be seen in context. Would I wait a few extra days to get paid if there was enough extra money in it for me? Of course I would. However, in the specific case of how we get paid - compared to how I get paid now, using TRANSFLO and getting paid on delivery would be a step backward.

[headborg]

Originally Posted by VitoCorleone99

Over 15 years, I'm sure you've seen a lot more than I have. I've worked for exactly one trucking company, but we do get paid immediately on dispatch. That's not an advance (which is also available upon dispatch through the Comdata card), but rather the full rate of pay applied to the driver's paycheck immediately. The time and date of the delivery is entirely irrelevant in terms of our pay schedule. The only date that matters is the date of the dispatch. If the dispatch is within the pay period, the money is on the paycheck. Again not very frequently, but a few times I've been paid for long runs before I delivered said long runs.

I don't mean to imply that anyone should make a big deal out of one thing like this or the other, rather that each little thing should be seen in context. Would I wait a few extra days to get paid if there was enough extra money in it for me? Of course I would. However, in the specific case of how we get paid - compared to how I get paid now, using TRANSFLO and getting paid on delivery would be a step backward.

I would agree completely; in YOUR case....whom do you drive for again?

because a company like that must be pretty hard to get on with? since, they Trust their drivers so much.

Now imagine, how fast many OTR companies would loose money----trusting many of these "fly-by-night" drivers....a guy could come
to work--fake delivery of several loads then collect the pay for NOT doing his Job.

[VitoCorleone99]

Originally Posted by headborg

I would agree completely; in YOUR case....whom do you drive for again?

because a company like that must be pretty hard to get on with? since, they Trust their drivers so much.

Now imagine, how fast many OTR companies would loose money----trusting many of these "fly-by-night" drivers....a guy could come
to work--fake delivery of several loads then collect the pay for NOT doing his Job.

Well, I work for CFI and they hire recent graduates. I have no idea if they've ever lost money paying that way, but it is what it is. At the start of '08 we're switching to weekly pay but keeping the pay on dispatch, so that should be pretty nice.

Faking delivery - well I guess there's someone in this world who will try anything, but that one would be pretty tough. You would need an empty to get the next load, so you would have to manage to snag one from a customer while stashing the loaded trailer somewhere else. I guess nothing is outside the realm of the criminally insane, but I've never heard of anything like that.

If I had to guess, I'd say that part of the mountain of CYA documentation I signed in orientation said that they can take back money if I quit before a load is delivered, or something to that effect. My eyes glazed over after about the 80th page of crap, so I would be lying if I said I knew everything I signed.

In any case, we'll be joining you guys in the ranks of the 65mph club soon enough, so that's one more thing on the 'con' list in my little end of the world.

[headborg]

So as I understand you correctly, "godfather"
CFI, pays based on dispatch date? instead of delivery date?
sounds like this is another style of the"honor" system--like JBHunt

or;
they cut you a check/ wire the money to the bank at time of dispatch?

how far behind on submitting paperwork does CFI allow you to get? before they put a "hold" on your check?
how does CFI do the paperwork turn-in? trippak? transflow?
do they require the Logs for that particular trip to be submitted With it?
by law, they have to have your logs current in their possession within 13days.
Are you allowed to turn in logs by themselves?

It's not just the "honesty" issue (drivers might not report OS&D) issues too.
The company in many cases can't collect on the freight bill until they can
submit that "proof of delivery" to their customer. So, you make them wait
for their money ..they'd make you wait for yours.

[VitoCorleone99]

Yeah, it's like the honor system without having to deliver first. They don't pay us six times a week or anything like that. Just whatever miles are dispatched by 11:59pm on the closing date for the pay period, will be on the paycheck a few days later. I've never had any money held back and I'm about as lazy as they get when it comes to following procedures.

We are "expected" to turn in TripPaks within 24 hours of delivery for the reason you mentioned. The company needs the bills in order to get paid. I don't go out of my way to send them in, so if I'm stopping at a rest area for the night the TripPak waits an extra day. If I stop for fuel or stay the night at a truck stop, then they get sent in quickly. I dropped one under my seat and forgot about it once. They called me about three weeks later. I told them I must have already sent it in. Then, after a search of the truck, the envelope turned up. I called them back and explained. "Sorry about that," was about the extent of the conversation.

We have to turn in logs every three days, with or without bills. Fuel receipts every ten days, with or without bills. They're pretty touchy about the logs, but for the rest of the stuff they really should hassle guys like me more than they do.

[gmh]

Originally Posted by VitoCorleone99

They're pretty touchy about the logs, but for the rest of the stuff they really should hassle guys like me more than they do.

Maybe they don't want to wake up with their horse's head in bed with them?