XPO | Attn: Drivers. A question for you and maybe some answers.

White Shirt

TB Regular
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I see lots of post with drivers complaining about things and saying they are stupid without fully understanding them. Maybe they weren't explained to you, maybe you didn't listen or maybe you just didn't ask the right questions. I would like for you to ask me about any of the new programs or policies that you thing are stupid or pointless and maybe I can educate you why the company is doing it and what purpose it serves.
 
I see lots of post with drivers complaining about things and saying they are stupid without fully understanding them. Maybe they weren't explained to you, maybe you didn't listen or maybe you just didn't ask the right questions. I would like for you to ask me about any of the new programs or policies that you thing are stupid or pointless and maybe I can educate you why the company is doing it and what purpose it serves.

I've got a great program its called lets just move the freight!!!
 
A lot of people do not like LEAN !! lets be Honest it has it's good Points and it does and will save the Company Money.
But like everything Con~way Does they go to the Far Extreme with it and they end up stomping on the toes of the very people whom are doing their jobs.
Correctly each and every day when they have perfectly good systems in place to catch the Slackers why they are not using these systems is beyond me.
we talk about Dwell times getting off the yard Quicker great love it go after the guys not doing it leave the Men and Women alone that are !
No need to hold my hand every step of my day if your going to do that you might as well just do all of my job !
IT seems we have a witch hunt going on each and everyday we have some new little rule or procedure we must comply with to make management happy !
IT honestly feels like their is no trust in any decision a driver makes anymore if I am going to be questioned for every action I take to do my job Correctly why do I even have a job <>??? ?
You have a Camera Watching me all day long you have a CSA re-measuring my freight in the evening like I am not capable of doing my job Correctly I have to ask Permission to use the rest room now > REALLY ? I feel like I am in Kindergarten all over again ! I am sure in these few short sentences I explained how the Majority of us feel today ! Moving freight should not be this hard. Doing a job should not be this aggravating.
I should not have to constantly feel like Big Brothers breathing down my neck what you doing now George >>> ???

All this Damn Coaching ? Really coaching me on a tape measure when your own CSA is not doing their job right !
I measured the freight the way it was tended to me CSA puts on skid shrink wraps it remeasures it and says I am Wrong >?
Sorry I do not like my time being Wasted on Dumb **** I do My Job I find IT very Insulting that I am Questioned like this !
Same with the Camera if I have not hit nothing then I see no need in Coaching me I have well over 9 years save Driving I think by now
I have Earned just a little Respect not asking for much here !
Being safe is one thing and I appreciate we want to be saver but harping on us everyday is not going to help it !

You may end up with the opposite affects and have your drivers so damn paranoid that Big Brother is after him that he really does have a Major Screw up !!
 
Yes the 401 program could you please explain to me why the company has not gave back I believe the match on the 401 that they said they would when they stopped it a few years back? There the ones who I believe when they said that we would be getting it all back I believe them. Not trying to be a smart arse just would like some one to explain to me why not? Maybe you can
 
You might as well give that up they not giving nothing back its gone another lie they have perpetuated !!

They have a Bad Economy on their side right now and they are using it to the full advantage they know the Majority of us Wont leave and we will continue to do whatever they ask no matter how bad it is ! Better to have a job than No Job Truth Hurts !

Yes the 401 program could you please explain to me why the company has not gave back I believe the match on the 401 that they said they would when they stopped it a few years back? There the ones who I believe when they said that we would be getting it all back I believe them. Not trying to be a smart arse just would like some one to explain to me why not? Maybe you can
 
A lot of people do not like LEAN !! lets be Honest it has it's good Points and it does and will save the Company Money.
But like everything Con~way Does they go to the Far Extreme with it and they end up stomping on the toes of the very people whom are doing their jobs.
Correctly each and every day when they have perfectly good systems in place to catch the Slackers why they are not using these systems is beyond me.
we talk about Dwell times getting off the yard Quicker great love it go after the guys not doing it leave the Men and Women alone that are !
No need to hold my hand every step of my day if your going to do that you might as well just do all of my job !
IT seems we have a witch hunt going on each and everyday we have some new little rule or procedure we must comply with to make management happy !
IT honestly feels like their is no trust in any decision a driver makes anymore if I am going to be questioned for every action I take to do my job Correctly why do I even have a job <>??? ?
You have a Camera Watching me all day long you have a CSA re-measuring my freight in the evening like I am not capable of doing my job Correctly I have to ask Permission to use the rest room now > REALLY ? I feel like I am in Kindergarten all over again ! I am sure in these few short sentences I explained how the Majority of us feel today ! Moving freight should not be this hard. Doing a job should not be this aggravating.
I should not have to constantly feel like Big Brothers breathing down my neck what you doing now George >>> ???

All this Damn Coaching ? Really coaching me on a tape measure when your own CSA is not doing their job right !
I measured the freight the way it was tended to me CSA puts on skid shrink wraps it remeasures it and says I am Wrong >?
Sorry I do not like my time being Wasted on Dumb **** I do My Job I find IT very Insulting that I am Questioned like this !
Same with the Camera if I have not hit nothing then I see no need in Coaching me I have well over 9 years save Driving I think by now
I have Earned just a little Respect not asking for much here !
Being safe is one thing and I appreciate we want to be saver but harping on us everyday is not going to help it !

You may end up with the opposite affects and have your drivers so damn paranoid that Big Brother is after him that he really does have a Major Screw up !!

Down here at CSE we call it Traffic Court!!
 
It only makes sense to me when you get out of your truck walk down driver side. Climb up on cab unplug lines get down cont. to tires ck them, then around back lights, next roll landing gear down then pull fifth wheel back to driver seat. They flew all these drivers out to California to train them start from pass side. Just saying does it make since to start at driver door and back to pass side? This is the way I was trained 15 yrs ago seems make since to me. What you think white shirt?
 
Yes the 401 program could you please explain to me why the company has not gave back I believe the match on the 401 that they said they would when they stopped it a few years back? There the ones who I believe when they said that we would be getting it all back I believe them. Not trying to be a smart arse just would like some one to explain to me why not? Maybe you can

I doubt we will ever see our match back, right now they are using it to pay for the cameras and vnomics computers that they have plastered in our faces every day. They paid for the decking in the trailers and hand-helds with the 5% "give back" and our vacation time. They took away our pension and replaced it with the 401k program, then they crippled it so the only way you can retire is to quit and hope you have enough time to build up a nest egg before you are forced out because of your age. Then they wonder why so many people feel no loyalty towards the company.
 
Drivers tend to be independent and generally take pride in their work.

Current management has stripped our independence and many have lost pride in their job.

Many drivers are starting to view working for Con-way as an embarrassment.
 
Drivers tend to be independent and generally take pride in their work.

Current management has stripped our independence and many have lost pride in their job.

Many drivers are starting to view working for Con-way as an embarrassment.

Your first statement appears to be dead on. From 1968 - 1971, I drove for CF out of its Martinez, CA terminal. This terminal was principally for tankers and the Clark Farnsworth division (flats and heavy haul). I don't think Con-Way, which I understand is some sort of successor to CF, was around then. On the tankers I ran a lot of sleeper on the I5 corridor. Because one had to consider his partner (in those days one could choose his partner -- no Title 7 crap) one tended to be constrained about routes and how driving chores were split. Briefly, members of sleeper teams were considerate of each other. But no matter what, the guy who was driving was the boss.

In a couple of years, tankers (CF Bulk Commodities) got slow so I transferred to Clark Farnsworth (our trucks were the standard old green Freightliners), the only variation was that they were long wheelbase tractors as they had been used in Alaska and for that use, droms had been mounted. They were fair old rigs -- not too many breakdowns as we had top-notch mechanics who were fairly tolerant of us drivers. With few exceptions, at Clark Farnsworth (terminals in Long Beach, Martinez, Medford, Portland, and Seattle) we ran roll and rest. That was fine with me. At that job, one could pick his time and routes. It was not unusual for a driver to take a slightly different route to a delivery point or terminal and because of such little things like that bad roads or other problems could be avoided. In addition variety made the job more interesting. (By contrast last year and a couple of years prior to that, I ran back and forth to or towards Fairbanks from Anchorage -- no alternate roads -- boring.) Briefly, it seems that drivers should be treated like men who want to get the job done and a part of that is that they have prepared themselves to adapt to changing conditions.

From what I read here and elsewhere, it appears that the management of LTL lashups want complete control. To the extent that they have to service customers with prompt pickups and deliveries, managers should have a fair degree of time control. Beyond that, companies ought to leave drivers alone. It seems to me that humans like routine interspersed with variety. The problem is and probably has been how to establish a sufficient level of trust between management and drivers so that freight can get from here to there effectively first and then efficiently.

Were managers members of this or like fora, maybe some trust could be developed. Back in 1965 when I was starting out, an old tanker skinner, Bob Lawrence, once told me that trucking and women have something in common. Good looks and pay will get you there; but human relationships and conditions will keep you there.
 
Yes the 401 program could you please explain to me why the company has not gave back I believe the match on the 401 that they said they would when they stopped it a few years back? There the ones who I believe when they said that we would be getting it all back I believe them. Not trying to be a smart arse just would like some one to explain to me why not? Maybe you can

They never said the match was coming back. Conway still contributes 3% whether you put any in or not. I challenge you to find another company that contributes more than 3%. Most require you to contribute 6% of your own to get their 3%.
 
It only makes sense to me when you get out of your truck walk down driver side. Climb up on cab unplug lines get down cont. to tires ck them, then around back lights, next roll landing gear down then pull fifth wheel back to driver seat. They flew all these drivers out to California to train them start from pass side. Just saying does it make since to start at driver door and back to pass side? This is the way I was trained 15 yrs ago seems make since to me. What you think white shirt?
I can't say what makes more sense. I don't drive so don't have an opinion. What lean tries to do is take lots of drivers to come up with the best way. What 1 driver thinks works may not for another. But with 10-20 working on the best way we can come up with a way that works for everyone.
 
You guys are being baited.. Don't bite.

How am I baiting them? if you don't want to know don't ask. Just keep your head in the sand and pretend you know everything. It worked for all of us when we were teenagers and knew everything. I've been in this industry for 15 years and learn something new everyday.
 
How am I baiting them? if you don't want to know don't ask. Just keep your head in the sand and pretend you know everything. It worked for all of us when we were teenagers and knew everything. I've been in this industry for 15 years and learn something new everyday.

With all due respect, if I have a question about a company policy, or the reason behind it, I'll go to my TM or HR or higher if I'm not satisfied with the answer. We do have an open door policy. I sure don't know everything, but after 15 years as a driver with this company, I have pretty much seen everything. And I don't put much faith in anonymous internet company advice.
 
They never said the match was coming back. Conway still contributes 3% whether you put any in or not. I challenge you to find another company that contributes more than 3%. Most require you to contribute 6% of your own to get their 3%.

When I add it up from my statement it's only 1.5% they say 3% but its 50 cents on the dollar
 
Mr white shirt I see your are trying to spin this about the 401. I sat in a meeting and ask a lot of questions about this They sure did. I believe it had something to do with that 95 percent ratio somehow can remember the exact numbers but say said we would get it back now please feel free again to correct me if I am wrong but,I don't think con-way puts anything in the 401 for the new hires. I'm sorry I just took Bruce M for his word.
 
Mr white shirt I see your are trying to spin this about the 401. I sat in a meeting and ask a lot of questions about this They sure did. I believe it had something to do with that 95 percent ratio somehow can remember the exact numbers but say said we would get it back now please feel free again to correct me if I am wrong but,I don't think con-way puts anything in the 401 for the new hires. I'm sorry I just took Bruce M for his word.
 
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