SAIA | Reality Check

Sounds like you are really worried about your job and are looking for away to get noticed for a promotion into management and out of the truck.


i’m a lh driver in orlando and have been with saia for over 7 years. In seniority i am 2nd from the bottom, and i’m very, very worried about the possibility of being laid off. So understand that what is about to be said is not coming from a senior driver that has nothing to worry about.

I find it amazing and perplexing the mindset and perspective some (not all, but some) have regarding their employment, and perhaps it is time someone spoke the cold, hard truth. I have been a business owner and employer for many years, as well as being an employee. So i have personal experience with being on both sides of the desk. There are just a few facts that we all need to realize and accept. Better stated, there are a few misconceptions that should be corrected.


1. My company owes me

some people have the erroneous notion that the employer owes employment to the employee. Well let me set the record straight... Your employer owes you nothing. Once your company pays you for the work you have performed, the employer has no further obligation, legally or morally.

Your company, be that saia or any other company, is not obligated to continue employment with you, even tomorrow. If you have a job tomorrow, it is because the company has offered that job to you. Each day you are given work is a privilege, not an obligation.

Some may say, “well i’ve given abc company x years of loyalty... And they owe me.”

wrong. You may have given whatever period of time of work and they, in turn, have compensated you for every moment of that service. You do not owe the company, and they do not owe you. Saia, nor any other company or employer, has negotiated loyalty as part of the terms of employment. If you found a better job, would you leave the company?

Of course you would. And you would have every legal and moral right to do so.

And that works both ways. If you are not obligated to remain with your company, neither is your company obligated to keep you.


2. My company doesn’t care about the employees

that is probably true. But guess what, they shouldn’t.

No company has an “employee care” department. The company is not your friend, mother or caregiver. The relationship between the employer and employee is a business relationship, not a personal one.

The interest and value of the employee is only viewed in terms of how that employee will benefit the company. And that’s exactly how it should be. This is another concept where some want to have the situation just one way or one sided.

Do you “care” enough about the company to work for free? Of course not. You want to be compensated for your work. You want the relationship to be all business when you deal with the company. Well it is time to wake up and realize that it is only fair for the relationship to be strictly business when the company deals with you as well.

You go to work for one reason: To be compensated for your efforts. Likewise, the company allows you to come to work for one reason: To benefit the company. It is purely a business arrangement. It is silly, even arrogant to expect an employer to make business decisions based upon assumed (and erroneous) personal feelings.


3. They weren’t fair

welcome to life, it isn’t fair. You may think a business decision isn’t fair, but you have no real right to make such a judgment. I’m probably like you in that i believe it would be a better business decision to decide those affected by lay offs to be based on performance rather than seniority.

But here’s the hard, cold truth...

The person in charge has the legal and moral right to run a company any way he/she sees fit. As someone that has owned several businesses i can tell you that no one could or would ever instruct me on how to run my business. I’m in charge and i’ll do it the way i believe is best. And i will be the one that will be rewarded or penalized for my decisions.

If you think you can make better business decisions, start your own business or work your way into top management where you can make those decisions.

When you accept employment, and each day you continue that employment, you agree to accept and abide by the decisions of those over you. If you don’t like those decisions, terminate your employment. But stop whining about “fair” and “unfair”, remember your employer doesn’t owe you anything... Including your perception of fairness.


Like many, i’m on pins and needles about the very real possibility of being laid off. I am by no means safe. But even if i am, i will have no hard feelings towards saia. I have always greatly appreciated my job and have done my best in my work; it is a privilege to work. I feel very bad for anyone that has and will lose a job. But don’t let that loss cloud your mind and have the wrong perspective about what employment is really all about. Be grateful to any employer and for any term of employment. Always remember, no employer is required to offer you employment... Or continue it.
 
It boils down to respect of management for its employees and the hard work they do, and their dedication, and respect of the employees of management that they as well are working hard and doing what is right for all involved. While business is business, we all still like to feel valued, and a meaningful part of something bigger than ourselves. Saia, more than any other trucking company I have worked for shows a level of teamwork and "family" - and the desire to have that mutual respect. While no company is perfect, and their are many ways Saia could be better - I wouldnt trade it. The grass aint always greener on the other side.
 
zip230 you said it clear. i worked for spartan express and i believe a few of the higher ups
left and went to saia. for one was tim p. he was a good person to work for dont know
about now.but what is the deal with saia getting rid of all these terminal mgr"s? who in the
world is running these terminals? how is saia"s freightlevel? is it holding up? you guys better watch
fedex they have there butts in a bind they spent alot of money trying to help put yellow out
of business and it back fired on them. anyone in this group from norfolk,va or greenville,nc?
 
d to call the greenville,nc terminal and the operator said number no longer
in service. did they close this terminal?
 
Most of the TM's that weren't let go, were given multiple terminals to manage. I think the number is 3 or 4 per TM. We still have a TM in Greenville, SC but that is b/c of our freight level. I don't know who is currently running the GNC terminal, but I think it's Joey.
 
not very good ones b/c of a lack of outbound freight. It's been awhile since I ran to Charlotte regularly and saw the GNC drivers, so I can't comment on any specifics. As far as city, it's just like city anywhere else I suppose.
 
Wayne from Greensboro is "TM" with "help" from Tim P. It will surprise me if this terminal stays open much longer. ONE person has been against this terminal from day one and he continues to beat this place down. He is using Saia's own numbers to his advantage to slowly close this one. He will succeed one day because he runs the show unchecked by corporate. This terminal has been cut to the bone. They don't even have enough city drivers to deliver freight, much less make pick ups. Three TMSR's in seven years is not a good record. Every time a TMSR got close to achieving any freight, that ONE person would cut the TMSR legs out from under him. Pull him from an account for a "important" meeting in CLT ot ATL. Sometimes he would just tell the TMSR that we can't pick up that freight because of time limits. It's a losing battle at GNC.
 
whats the deal then they show hiring city and road driver in the gnc terminal.
what kind of runs they have out of gnc?
 
what they need to do is move that terminal over towards williamston,nc then they could service edenton-elizabeth city,nc.
shoot all the way down 17 to the va line.
 
It could be done from where it is. Drivers must get out before 11:00 am though. If they could leave a 6 or 7 am it could be done.
 
well if the outbound is not that great in greenville they should allow them drivers to run these areas and take a little stress of norfolk,va.... then gnc could work on building up there outbound.
 
othertrucker2001 how many city drivers gnc got?
how many road drivers?
where does the road guys run to?

6 city--3 lh--some come from of clt now and then.
2 run clt with stops in ral, gbo, and fay. I meets with atl.
and to answer why these guys can't help va, they are spread way too thin with way too many customer time limits. Runs to the coast require freight to be delivered by 3 pm. hard to do with a 1-1/2 hour ride staring at 11 am. other routes are similar. to far to go getting out that late. coastal towns want freight trucks out of town by 3 pm especially during summer months. Military bases stat shutting down a 3pm. Saia refuses to acknowledge this.
 
there is alot of problems in norfolk,va. and its getting worse week by week. sad really.

I don't know anything about Norfolk except there were running the outer banks of NC. I used to work for a LTL and ran out there 4 days/week. I was able to leave at 2:30am an it was a ALL DAY JOB. Had to sit in line for the ferry that took 40 minutes to cross (not counting the in line waiting) each way. Now there's a day killer.
 
well they dont have the ferry anymore just a highway, they also built a new highway thats goese from manto straight to mannsharbor. before you had to go threw manteo to get to mansharbor but now theres about a 3 mile new bridge.
 
But go back and read the <Bussiness owners words> He`s right. This day and age, don`t expect any pats on the back from any company. Unless your UNION, they will do what ever they want. And the buddy system applies for all NON-UNION companies. Just my opinion.
 
There is a ferry from the end of Hatteras Island to Ocracoke Island that is 40 minutes each way not counting the sitting in line to board the ferry. It is about an hours drive from Manteo and Nags Head just to get on the ferry.
 
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