week#15 final figures


2454 paid miles with 34hr reset( actually 46 hours setting in Ontario, Ca

guess It could be much worse... 2454 for 5 days running isn't all that bad.. and i didn't have to do that reset;

instead I could have taken that crap load offer with 770 miles for 3 days-
after all they said repeatedly-- "we're really short on freight" that's all we got.

2 hours later- just before they went home( after the next guy in line accepted that 770 mile load- got a load offer with no less than 5 choices-

so now on a 2700 mile load back to Pa for Monday.

I'd like to point out here-- how "zone dispatch" really hurts productivity with this example;

The 770 mile/ 3 day load was loading out of Oxnard, Ca going to Clearfield, Ut. Even though it was non-productive with only 770 miles in 3 days- it did run thru Las Vegas, NV with at least a DAY to spare.
Now, had we been operating on the old "personal dispatch" system-- there would have been a dispatcher in the house with a driver- which HE knew would love a full day in Vegas- and therefore--- 4 drivers would not have been held up- with a zone dispatcher having to "cry" about short freight and go fishing around to see Who he could pawn that one off on- because he can't "get to know all 1,900 shaffer drivers. (or all in his zone).

I also suspect he couldn't go around to all the drivers ready/empty and ask...."Who wants a day in Vegas? Got a non-productive load here that I need covered...770 miles in 3 days.

 

I also suspect that he could have cared less and as long as some poor schmuck made his delivery for him, he was happy.

 

Maybe people have misunderstood my posting. When I suggested that Headborg contact his terminal manager to discuss his problems it is called communication. If you are unable to contact your terminal manager then there is a level of communication above your terminal manager.

Reading here that JR is gone really took me by surprise. I went through my emails and don't see anything of the sort but will be sure to ask the question on Monday. I didn't see her on Thursday when I was in the office, but didn't take the time to go look for her.

I am not big brother. I didn't ask for your name nor do I have any need of knowing your name. Unless of course you would like to sit down and have a conversation. But I will also tell you that I have been with Crete Carrier/Shaffer Trucking/Hunt Transportation for the past 7.5 years as a recruiter only. My dad drove for the company in the late 70's and was leased on with them in the early 80's. Been around truck driving for all of my life. Do I bleed Crete red, HECK YES! But that also includes Shaffer Blue and Hunt Maroon. But I also have a very strong understanding on the importance of making sure that the company a driver chooses is a good fit for both the driver and his/her family. Because even though I never drove a truck longer then from Crete, NE to Lincoln, NE I understand what is important to a driver AND the company they work for.

The pet policy memo and the reason for it is posted in ALL of the terminals or should be. IF you go into a terminal and it isn't, please let me know and I can find out why it isn't. It gives the reasons for the new policy. 1. Fuel savings. Drivers with pets idle there trucks more. Cost of fuel is going up. 2. When a truck breaks down on the road, a motel room is gotten for the driver. If he/she has a pet, there might not be a place for the pet or a deposit is required. 3. Replacing the damage that a pet can do. Not just in chewing/scratching but also in dander and shedding. Even if the mechanics are able to get the filters replaced and the inside cleaned, there still might be enough dander to cause an allergic reaction to the next driver.

The dispatchers for the National drivers at Shaffer were moved to Lincoln. The Shaffer regional and dedicated fleets are still dispatched out of New Kingstown, PA. The system that is in place will be successful for the drivers who are willing to communicate. In the past it took three levels of people to get a driver a load to get them home or route them somewhere. Now it can work a lot smoother. Several of the dispatchers in Lincoln were involved with dispatching the reefer dedicated fleet that Crete had and once the adjustment period is done, should go along smoothly. But basically it is the willingness of people to adjust to change and we all know that change scares everybody.

The thought process right now is to get the drivers as productive as possible in their 11 hours. This is another change that people have to get used to both as a driver and as an operations/dispatcher. Understand from the dispatchers perspective, they have a certain number of loads to get covered in a day and only so many trucks to get it done. If the drivers in that area are willing to stay productive, then the miles are there. The problem is most drivers are old school. If the load isn't over 1200 miles then they don't want it. The customers are not giving trucking companies very many 1200+ loads anymore because they are trying to use rail to get them moved. If a driver is willing to go 500 miles in a day they will be productive. If they are given a 770 mile run with three days, find out if there is something to do when they get there. But don't blame dispatch because they are just trying to get everything taken care of.

So, I will go back to recruiting students and doing what I can do to educate people to make a quality decision and will continue to interject the positive and the helpful.

 

One other question, Why did you change the title of this posting from the Shaffer chronicles to X???

Are you ops:

 

HeyBLUEBEETLE.......you just talked about ONE PART of the problem. In my FINAL days at Shaffer last year I got also told, that the NEW WAY of trucking are these 350 to 500 mile loads. Problem here is, (at least it was for me) they were always so badly timed that I wasted the FIRST day to get the load, the SECOND day to finish the miles (if I couldn't get to the Customer on the 1st day) and try to get unloaded. Now to 95% I got the next load ready to pick up the 3rd day.(And with Shaffer they are often close by, so not many miles deadhead, but a Shipper who DONT give you your next load THIS DAY ANYMORE.) With this setup you are ending with a LOT of sitting and waiting. The few miles I get paid here in this example DONT CUT IT. Especially if this is repeated 2 or 3 times in a row! After I did ENOUGH of those and I went to the terminal manager which I TOLD that i was SICK playing local delivery driver who gets paid OTR miles I was told that he will check into this problem. His response was: Yes, you are right, you get short trips OVER AVERAGE because I live TOO CLOSE to the terminal. And thats were it all ended since this NJ to NK,PA and back didn't end after that phone call. And you know what? I would have loved these runs PAID BY THE HOUR, then there would have been no problems since many Shaffer drivers I talked to even REFUSE to go more East then NK.

 

because I'm still currently employed here and would hate to get fired for posting negative comments on a public forum-- it was my plan to go through
the entire pages and change all the references from Crete Shaffer to something else so as to not continue to offend. But I gave up-- too much editing involved...and this board isn't the most user friendly.

What I will not do is lie- and tell everyone a whole made up bunch of garbage-- phony impressive numbers etc.


As I stated before-- my communication skills are fine- I have communicated and nothing has changed.. They don't want to listen.

And no, the new system does not work better for getting a driver home- as
I am due home Thursday for a 11:45 dentist appointment (in Springfield, Mo-- 112 miles from home)--
The home time is in the computer-- that's as much help as Fleet Manager can do.
I call dispatch-- and the system always reads the Area code of my cell phone and I wait on hold for 30minutes to get Gayle( Zone dispatch for my Home area) Which is totally useless to a National driver- on a load from another zone to yet another zone.

So, she transfers me to the dispatcher covering the zone of the load I'm on... more waiting... no nothing he can do...sorry.. call the Zone dispatcher of the Area the load is going to- where you will be getting empty Monday evening( Pa) --- now, I'll be 1087 miles from Springfield with 2 days before the appointment- as the above poster pointed out-- it will take a day for them to sort out a load before they can get me moving..
ok, how about dropping the load somewhere?

Indy? Well - now you need to contact another dispatcher( for that area)?

sorry- don't have anything available... have you gotten with your fleet manager about this?

and around ...and around...and around we go....

 

Again---- I'm a Shaffer Driver-- I don't have a Terminal Manager--

As far as I'm aware-- I have a Fleet Manager in Wilmer, Tx-- but No Terminal
Manager- as they deal with Crete driver's because -- Crete drivers-- have terminals and no Fleet Manager & Driver Manager--- which now since the changes have been made-- Shaffer no longer has Driver Managers-- we now have several zone dispatchers.

So have fleet managers now been UPGRADED to TERMINAL managers?

I didn't get the memo on that--- and since orientation was 3 years ago and the system has recently been completely overhauled...

P.S. This week in California there were no less than 4 BLUE EX-SHAFFER trucks with the CRETE name on the door.

I would think that if AMS simply ran out of red trucks to put CRETE drivers in--- they would not be going all the way and taking the SHAFFER names off the equipment too-- if it was simply a temporary arrangement.

 

I think I'm going to have to do the hazmat fingerprinting-- just to be able to collect my vacation pay. Suppose to be going home this weekend--and have been told I must call safety before I'll be cleared to roll out of hometime. I'm assuming 1)that's if they actually get me home for that time off 2) they want to see the paperwork on that started..before I roll out of town.

My Anniversary is very close.

 

I figured out who you are and at this time don't see any reasons to "tell on you" Your postings are degrading or vulgar. You are just upset and are dealing with change the only way you know how.

Terminal managers are in charge of their terminals and their drivers assigned to them. They have replaced your driver manager that Shaffer used. At the beginning of the month all will be in Licnoln, NE to get an understanding of the new polices and procedures to help drivers in the future. You have the ability to stop at any terminal and ask questions. Hence the open door policy.

Personally with the way that fuel prices are going and the market being the way it is, I wouldn't recommend an experience driver go any where. Especially a driver who has been with a carrier for over a year. Things are soft everywhere and with fuel prices soaring, it just seems to shaky to make a switch these days.

 

I am guessing that this:

should probably have been this: