The drivesr get ALL the blame, itis never the bad routing or dispatching.
If a dispatcher does something stupid that results in a driver bringing 4 deliveries back, rest assured he will get an ***-reaming for it. I've seen it first-hand. I've had one tell me to break off to get a pickup 75 miles away just because it was my area number. Well, by the time I got all the way back to where I was to see what of the 4 deliveries I had left I could still get off which was NONE, because by then it was 11 o'clock at night, I didn't have enough hours to get back to the terminal so I had to get a room. So now we have pickup freight that missed service anyway, and 4 deliveries sacrificed to get it.
That particular dispatcher got the next 3 days off. Thankfully he doesn't work here anymore, which is addition by subtraction.
I am tired of trying to call and get an exception number, being in a hurry, and then having to wait because the girl who gives the numbers is out on the dock smoking as usual..
Easy way to handle that, just write"c/s wouldn't give ex. # becuse she was smoking" on the bill, either that or talk to the t/m.
Incidentally, If your c/s dept leaves at 5, c/s in WIL is there until 8. They will give you a number after hours.
The dispatchers never answer the radio, but they want you to HURRY. They know about pick=ups, but won't pass the info to you, till you are 20 miles away, they you have to back=track.
Just say, "you make the call. But just to let you know I'm 20 miles away from there already, and if I turn around we'll be sacrificing about 3 or 4 deliveries."
That may change his tune fast, because like I said dispatchers are held accountable for their drivers' returns.
You get only get credit for 1 stop, even if you pick up 20 bills.
Oh, well. Nothing anyone can do about that. That's life in the trucking business.
I am thrilled now, when I go into a place where I used to get a lot of bills, but now I only get 1 or 2. I see the other carriers getting the freight we used to get, but since R&l wants to treat us like s**t, I don't really care.
I wouldn't worry about either, as such things as that are beyond your control, especially if FedEx or Con-Way is getting what you used to get. Rumor has it Con-Way cut their rates so low you'd be a fool not to use them, and FedEx is literally giving the business away. They've told people that they'll haul the freight for free (that's right, FREE!!!) just to get the package business, so they don't even register on our radar screen as a competitor.
Old Domnion on the other hand, is our primary competitor, that is according to the sales idiots.
When and if they start treating us decent, maybe I'll care again.
Zimmerman has brought this company down to BOTTOM=FEEDER=STATUS.
Well, keep in mind that things could definetly be worse. We could be working for FedEx or Con-Way.
