Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

I went throught trucking school, did all of werner's 270hrs behind the wheel training which took a little over 2 months. They assign me OTR which was fine. My dispatcher was so busy, busy, busy he couldnt go into dept about my pay.... anyways they stick me in the Northeast where I do little runs, some below 50 miles, no pay for pickup or delivery, just a stright 25 cents per mile. On top of this, they insist on running me on the edge of my hours, and very hard to make appointment times. Many of the times, they will give me a nice 600-900 mile run, but then once I pick it up, they want me to take it to a dropyard or to split it with another driver.

I live in Atlanta, my first load usually goes to the NE and then they keep me up here until home time, which is a minimum of 18-21 days until I can come home.

Everyone I went to school with is making 28-30cpm starting.

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

Let me see if I have this correct. You went through Werner's training without doing the research to find out how much you would be paid after you were done, and now you want to complain about it?

Does that about sum it up?

Have you tried calling payroll and asking them if your pay rate is correct?

Welcome To Werner!

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

That's what I got out of it. No wonder they call them the big blue screw.

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

If that is the case, and I did read it correctly, then I place the blame squarely at the feet of the O.P., and not at the feet of Werner. If they didn't take the time to get their rate in writing before signing on for training, then they have no right to whine about it later.

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

Exactly what Rev. said!!!! Its been said a million times over...."research, research, research".......that is meant to be done BEFORE :roll: you sign on with a company...

yeah, that pay sucks. But dont quit yet. Just suffer for a little bit longer. Once you get 3 months a lot more doors will open for you.

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

It says a lot about a driver that signs on, then comes here, or other places and asks "How much, how long out, equipment.

A favorite question of mine was "CD OR CASSETTE". Amazing that this would decide which company you'd sign with.

.25 CPM stinks... but you singed on the dotted line, you have 3 options at this point

1.
Stay and make .25 cpm

2.
Stay as long as necessary for experience, take the hit of looking like a job hopper, move to better co.

3.
Quit

Either way when looking at a company, CHECK INTO EVERYTHING!!

:roll:

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

I agree that it is the drivers responsibility to get everything in writing before they start. But, I call them the big blue screw because no p/u or drop pay for all these short runs and only .25 per mile. Who could live on that?

It's simple. No-one believes anything stated on this board the first time around. They have to go and find out for themselfs.

I know from experience....I too, didn't listen. Never again.

Yup. We're always right. And by "we're", I mean "I'm". :wink:

Preach on brotha!

Spoken like a true horses a$$...... :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Wow, my 32-45 CPM dedicated gig (albeit P/T and local) looks better all the time -- especially with little experience prior. :D

Werner
 

You will be used for the 1st year no matter where you go. Expect to get screwed a lot the 1st year. Stay out of trouble. Ask around about good companies while youre out there. Listen to guys who have been at it a while, especially the guys with 25+ years experience. I've been at it 13 years, and I still listen. I listen to those guys who had to use railroad timbers to reinforce the bridges they crossed. Real old timers. Learn to seperate the bs from the useful information, and then you will learn something. Its a skill I'm still trying to master.

Werner, JB Hunt, Schneider, US Express, Covenant, and the list goes on. You will never be anything more than capacity to them. Its simple logic. Do you really think they care about any one driver ? They want to rule as much of the trucking world as possible, and they use whoever they can to achieve that goal. Trucks limited to 68 mph, Mexican trucks, etc. These big companies and their front organization, ATA, are behind this stuff. Its all aimed at manipulating drivers to suit their ends. Get a year in, stay out of trouble, and then be very selective. Be informed. Consider joining OOIDA.

First off, .25 per mile is just ridiculous.....2nd...I may miss a fact or 2 about a company when I look into one...but the very first freaking thing I look for is HOW MUCH WILL I BE MAKING!!!! Thats the first damn thing i look at...I am not out here to cruise around like a teenager on a friday night...i want a paycheck...I can promise you that the first thing i will always know is how much I will be getting paid.....

25 cpm.....thats absolute bull :dung: !!!!

When I started out in this game back in 94', I got paid 24 cpm for starters and that was at PST!!! Swift even paid me better than that in 95'!!!

If I was this person, I would be on the phone talking to CFI or someone else, now....and find out what I would have to do to make a transition. Not only would he be getting 28 cpm on practical miles, but an additional 5 cpm for every dispatched mile in the 12 Northeast States....for a total of 33 cpm while he is in there....and making one heckuva lot more. And, he would have access to people that will talk to him and explain things without "being tooo busy" to explain things.

I absolutely think anything under .30 per mile is complete turd pay even for a newbie, but thats just me.... .25 is just gross!!!

I started at 26 cent. managed to put away plenty of money, yes its very low pay but deal with it.

I agree......a little research will turn up many, many companies that will start a newbie out at (or in a few cases above) .30cpm practical with the miles to boot.........

Re: Werner
 

we have a couple of drivers who have been doing it so long they used to use a 5 gallon bucket for the trainee to sit on because the trucks only had one seat.

And this is the attitude that let's them pay low wages. I see a future for you at walmart......... :lol: :lol:

Id start raising hell and making calls. Try to hang in there till you go your 3 mos in and hop to another carrier. You being in ATL you should have no trouble getting freight in the SE and down to FL and over to TX. 25 cpm is slave labor and they will run you for that up there so long as you will have it. Demand a run going far away from the NE.

Yeah in 3 months JB Hunt will take you................... :lol: :lol: Sorry SD I couldn't resist.

I'll tell you what doors would be opening right away if I were you. The door to my truck at the nearest terminal and that terminals mgr's door to turn in the keys. Then the door on the taxi on the way to the airport.

I've heard the exact same thing from former weiner drivers over and over. You get short runs and when you finally get assigned a decent one the dispatchers tell you to drop it at the nearest yard so their favorite pet/azz kissin drivers can take it.

One of the worst companies in the industry. I agree with those who said that you should've researched before starting with them.

Well, I got to talking to the right person and it is/was .26cpm, but who gives about 1 penny. Anyways, I have been with weener for the 6months mark in less than one month. I already have been talking to the right people and looking at jobs paying 32+cpm, as well as being home every weekend.

The short mile runs in the NE going through nothing but high crime areas and getting nothing but bad directions, giving me the wrong adresses, andn wrong phone numbers to both shippers and cons.

I am on home time, I had to take my truck in for repairs. Of course I had to take everything out of my truck because thier "mechanics" are allowed to take anything they want out of the truck, and the search your truck and if they want somethign, they take it. Werner even has signs that they are not responsible for theft while the truck is in service. They do nothing about it when ti happens.

Well, since I am moved out and all, I am calling my dispatcher monday and having a talk. I don't think I will be going back out with Werner again.

I could make more money at walmart than werner. At least I could go home every night from walmart.

Re: Werner OTR $0.25cpm
 

My dad worked for roehl they are the same way but he wasn't out that long but it was i think 7 day out min. but he didn't make much money doing that so he was out about as long as u were. But you should have talked to their drivers more or any driver. you went threw drivin school so go work for a company that takes grads. but do research.

Re: Werner
 

You don't have to stick with Werner for a year. Once you get to the three months solo mark more options open up.

Make sure you do your research before you go to another company.

Heck right now my LTL barn will hire folks with the ink still drying on their CDLs.

Jason, good for you and best of luck. Let us know where you end up.

Well if he's in a loan with werner, then whats he gonna do? Also I also see a future of walmart.. Who doesn't deliver for wally's world?

I started out making .26. I think thats the best place to start, makes a person appreciate a good driving job.

So...... I get home and check my pay stubs, even do some math to be sure, I was getting 25cpm. So, not only did they underpay me, but turned around and lied to me. I actually averaged about 1800-2000 miles total each week including deadhead (which paid the same).

My Driver's License broke in two yesterday (an idoit at a Shipper had it ins a clipboard and ripped it taking it out, then I stepped on it in the morning) so I called my dispatcher telling him I had to go to the DMV and get a new one. Before I could tell him why, he jumped down my throat saying I should have taken care of it earlier, he didn't even know what happened and after his unprofessional attitude I decided to not tell him. He said "I had a good load for you but I'm taking it away and giving it to someone who wants to work" so I said "I'm sure it was a nice 1000 mile trip to the northeast so you can get me back up there and run my like a daycab". He didn't like that! He said my miles were low because I didn't want to drive them. I called BS on that because I would run out of hours every freaking day, I had to spend so many hours driving through downtown streets, just to get to the shp's and con's for mostly live unloads or live loads. Oh, and when they took too long, well, no retention pay because tthe account doesn't have it. I got so tired of having to spend my 10hrs breaks at the shippers and consingners because I would run out of hours there, no facilities, no food, sometimes sketchy places. He told me to get to my truck now, and I said Sorry for the licence situation and he said "Your going to be sorry". I took that as a warning he was going to F me bad. I know once they get me out there, I am kind of stranded, but I was in a good spot.

So, after our talk and him calling me a liar and just being a whiney child I called him back and told him to have a good one. Told him I am in controll and I won't drive for werner any more. I would liked to have left notice and all, but I think the dishonesty of my pay, combined with the low miles, and the threat "Your going tol be sorry" is justification.

So I have a application in review with Transport America, and I will be talking to a local company that a veteran driver of 40 years swears is the best company he's ever worked for.

I hope it works out for you Jason. It does seem to be a horror story for you so far. In trying to make something bad into good. At least your first exposure to OTR may have been worse. So it can only get better.

One would hope!!

Good luck.

On my way home, I checked my bank account and my check was not even close to $400.

I was talking to other companies but was going to go back out one more time. Before I did, I called my dispatcher and told him I didn't care how busy he was, he's going to listen to me. I told him to look at how I spent a total of 3 weeks in the NE with an average run of under 150 miles. I told him I will not go back in the Northeast and will refuse any loads under 200 miles. He told me that I need to check my additude and he will run me how he wants and that he is the one in controll and I'm not telling him anything, bla, bla, bla. I said "I'm sorry but I can't go into the NE running local in city routing..." and he just interupted with "Oh, you'll be sorry" and something about how he can really give me some bad loads. I told him "No, I'm in controll, I won't run for werner anymore, I'm turning my truck in" and I did. Normally, I would leave a 2 week notice BUT I would be stupid to go out for werner again after that threat.

So, I am scheduled to start orientation with Transport America. However, I am thinking about trying automotive one more time. For some reason, I just am not excited about driving a truck anymore at all. Some say Werner put a bad taste in my mouth, but I don't know. I just don't think this job fits me.

Bottom line, STAY AWAY FROM WERNER. Unless you like to lie alot and want to be a recruiter, I bet Werner has more Recuriters than drivers that have been with them more than a year.