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Articulate and lucid. Write away Brother Dock.
Dockworker said:
I totally agree. Saia guys seem happy, sure they could use more but the ones I talk to seem happy.
I don't even now why I concern myself with this but I do wish the Conway drivers well and that they all can reach some sort of understanding to move forward.

Conway used to be very competitive, who knows they might be. Back in the day, they were the top non-union carrier when it came to benefits and pay, they closely mimicked union pay and benefits to keep unionization out. It was the best family atmosphere you could ask for. People flocked to them for employment. You walk into a customer and they pretty much bowed down to you like they do UPS. I'm sure some senior members will remember those days.

That slowly eroded after Detter was forced to resign. New management, too many new ideas, too many new directions only tripped up upper management. While they were pursuing the latest and greatest form of micromanagement and technology, the competition that chugged along and shared and compromised surpassed Conway. Takeaway after takeaway after takeaway only got them one thing. Very angry workers with very low morale. Some could leave some were binded by their financial obligations and could not afford a change.
I know for a fact they lost a lot of very good top notch drivers to the competition. Some people believed it was a systematic way to slowly let go of the top pay drivers in lieu of a low scale work force.

I remember back in the day when the Midwest was threatening unionization. It was a very big issue when XGO swarmed in, holding hotel meetings, asking lower management to keep an eye on any driver mentioning unions activity and for them to report back to them. It was an ugly situation.
Things looked promising for the what the Midwest drivers were going to accomplish, the Teamsters were all ready for this. I may be spilling the beans a bit with this statement but XGO knew this already. "Shut down the Midwest so freight could not be properly diverted in a timely manner" "Terminals could not be closed and worked out of the next closest barn"

When the time came they all chickened out. That was an embarrassing fiasco for the drivers, the Teamsters never again took the Midwest seriously. They still welcome them with open arms as long as they prove they are ready.
Now that LLA has put their foot down and helped prop open that door, what will the Midwest do? If I'm a betting man, absolutely nothing. If they did make a stand it would probably become a domino effect just like it was when UPS left the door open for us.

When it comes time for termination they look into your file and all they see are write ups. You actually get suspended first but you are pretty much terminated. It's very very very rare to ever get your job back at this point. It's designed to make you feel there is hope but the deck is already stacked against you, so this becomes a nice private show between the TM, FOM and anyone else in that conference call, of mentally torturing you in hopes you start crying and begging for your job back. They over look the good stuff, they just focus on write ups.... all the bad....you are a bad boy, a very very bad boy....how could you do such a thing....you now it is not tolerated by Conway......suspension upheld you are terminated driver..now get out of the office and take that walk of shame!.

You can do 100 good things and the only thing they focus on is the bad. You can say the same thing to management now. They can do 100 good things(reinstate some bonus, cookouts, raise, overtime after 8 etc) but the only thing the drivers will focus on are the bad. (Takeaway after takeaway, forensic accounting, manipulating your money, illusion that you are better off now than your were back than) Compromise is not even a vocabulary word for Conway.


I love this topic.........lots of mental flashbacks...carry on and Good luck to you all.
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plopplopfizzfizz said:
Weren't they Ohio Connection? That was a big local outfit. Guess they shrunk.
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Saia is mostly out in the Midwest. Biggest customers are the oil fields. Or so I was told.

They are very small here in Cowtown. I see one guy in my area everyday. And he covers what is four areas for us. I think R&L might be bigger around here. They seem to have a very small hold here.

In terms of tonnage I would say we are 6th in the city. UPS, FedEx, OD, YRC, Holland all have to ahead in some order.
 
According to the terminal map, they have SEVEN terminals in Ohio so they must stay pretty busy. Saia originated in Louisiana and Texas and have been big in the south for a long time, apparently. They didn't have any presence around here until they bought Clark Brothers 10 years ago and rebranded them under the Saia name. I think they have done that with a lot of other small companies too (kinda like Old Dominion did years ago with WSKT and others). This terminal has only been open for a few years and business is growing so fast that they need a bigger place already.

The Con-Way terminal grew really fast when I hired on just because of the huge Caterpillar accounts, but from what I've seen, Saia keeps their hands out of that hot mess. That's one of the other added perks of leaving Con-Job... I'm no longer swimming in Cat's garbage freight!
 
PistonRing83 said:
According to the terminal map, they have SEVEN terminals in Ohio so they must stay pretty busy. Saia originated in Louisiana and Texas and have been big in the south for a long time, apparently. They didn't have any presence around here until they bought Clark Brothers 10 years ago and rebranded them under the Saia name. I think they have done that with a lot of other small companies too (kinda like Old Dominion did years ago with WSKT and others). This terminal has only been open for a few years and business is growing so fast that they need a bigger place already.

The Con-Way terminal grew really fast when I hired on just because of the huge Caterpillar accounts, but from what I've seen, Saia keeps their hands out of that hot mess. That's one of the other added perks of leaving Con-Job... I'm no longer swimming in Cat's garbage freight!
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They have been around a long time and that truly is saying something when you look at the ones that have come and gone.....We just got our new hats and T-shirts celebrating 90 years of service....Saia...1924-2014
 
runawaytrain said:
They have been around a long time and that truly is saying something when you look at the ones that have come and gone.....We just got our new hats and T-shirts celebrating 90 years of service....Saia...1924-2014
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Yeah they have had kind of a goofy past it seems. The Saia family sold out to Preston in the 80's, and then along comes Yellow in the early 90's and buys Preston, so they get Saia along with it. Then Preston shuts down and Saia gets spun off under a holding company that also owns Jevic. Then Jevic gets sold off and everything else gets folded into the Saia name and that's where it sits today... a stand-alone company.

Crazy stuff, but it's been around just as long as most of the big boys and is still super profitable.
 
PistonRing83 said:
Yeah they have had kind of a goofy past it seems. The Saia family sold out to Preston in the 80's, and then along comes Yellow in the early 90's and buys Preston, so they get Saia along with it. Then Preston shuts down and Saia gets spun off under a holding company that also owns Jevic. Then Jevic gets sold off and everything else gets folded into the Saia name and that's where it sits today... a stand-alone company.

Crazy stuff, but it's been around just as long as most of the big boys and is still super profitable.
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Yes you know the history very well....Yep, it is hard to believe they were once owned by Yellow.
 
PistonRing83 said:
According to the terminal map, they have SEVEN terminals in Ohio so they must stay pretty busy. Saia originated in Louisiana and Texas and have been big in the south for a long time, apparently. They didn't have any presence around here until they bought Clark Brothers 10 years ago and rebranded them under the Saia name. I think they have done that with a lot of other small companies too (kinda like Old Dominion did years ago with WSKT and others). This terminal has only been open for a few years and business is growing so fast that they need a bigger place already.

The Con-Way terminal grew really fast when I hired on just because of the huge Caterpillar accounts, but from what I've seen, Saia keeps their hands out of that hot mess. That's one of the other added perks of leaving Con-Job... I'm no longer swimming in Cat's garbage freight!
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Can't grow without brick and mortar. I wonder how far east they reach. Could be why they aren't as busy. This might be near the end of the line.
 
highspeeds said:
Can't grow without brick and mortar. I wonder how far east they reach. Could be why they aren't as busy. This might be near the end of the line.
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They don't do any of New England, also don't have anything in Wyoming and Montana yet. They still service both these areas, through partnerships with other truck lines.

They are growing just like OD was doing 10-15 years ago. But at least they actually pay OT and their insurance is way better. I about crapped myself when I actually saw how GOOD the insurance coverage is. Here's hoping for a bright future.
 
PistonRing83 said:
They don't do any of New England, also don't have anything in Wyoming and Montana yet. They still service both these areas, through partnerships with other truck lines.

They are growing just like OD was doing 10-15 years ago. But at least they actually pay OT and their insurance is way better. I about crapped myself when I actually saw how GOOD the insurance coverage is. Here's hoping for a bright future.
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We are here to tell others that there is life beyond Conway.....If you don't like things the way they are going you can take your ass down the road....You are a highly needed professional that shouldn't be afraid to start over at the bottom if you have chance to better your life. Its called paying your dues....Sometimes if your a man you have to move on for greener pastures if they exist..And they do.....If your that unhappy just move on.....Stop trying to change a culture...I don't think a tiger can change his stripes...Nor does he want to. His prey is not the least bit concerned about his stripes....They just know they better start running....And pretty damn fast...Your CDL is your way out if your truly that unhappy.
 
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runawaytrain said:
We are not really here to compare companies....We are here to tell others that there is life beyond Conway.....If you don't like things the way they are going you can take your ass down the road....You are a highly needed professional that shouldn't be afraid to start over at the bottom if you have chance to better your life. Its called paying your dues....Sometimes if your a man you have to move on for greener pastures if they exist..And they do.....If your that unhappy just move on.....Stop trying to change a culture...I don't think a tiger can change his stripes...Nor does he want to. His prey is not the least bit concerned about his stripes....They just know they better start running....And pretty damn fast.
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In your first sentence you say you arent here to compare companies and the very next sentence you basically do.
 
PistonRing83 said:
They don't do any of New England, also don't have anything in Wyoming and Montana yet. They still service both these areas, through partnerships with other truck lines.

They are growing just like OD was doing 10-15 years ago. But at least they actually pay OT and their insurance is way better. I about crapped myself when I actually saw how GOOD the insurance coverage is. Here's hoping for a bright future.
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Saia is a non factor where I am.
 
yrc-atm said:
In your first sentence you say you arent here to compare companies and the very next sentence you basically do.
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Damn I just woke up....Give me a break....I went back and fixed it....But you quoted me so that one is stuck because I'm not a Super MOD....Or the MOD in this forum....I can't edit that quote.
 
PistonRing83 said:
There's 4 terminals in Wisconsin. They must be moving a decent amount of freight...
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Piston contrary to popular belief bigger isn't always better.....Yellow learned that the hard way....And Zollars was mostly to blame....He got too big for his britches....LOL
 
A rebuttal from the Ole Lady that just walked up behind me and seen my post......You says that bigger is always better...Who knew?
 
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runawaytrain said:
Piston contrary to popular belief bigger isn't always better.....Yellow learned that the hard way....And Zollars was mostly to blame....He got too big for his britches....LOL
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Oh trust me I don't want to work for a huge company again. This terminal I'm at now has 20 dock doors,10 city drivers and 4 linehaul runs. Works just fine for me...
 
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