Swift, My husband got screwed Chattanooga Tennessee

Truck driving is ranked tenth regarding the ten most dangerous jobs in the world and is one of the hardest ways to make a living.

Over-the-road truckers essentially live out of their vehicles up to (and sometimes more than) three weeks at a time. Swift operates much like any large OTC truck company where drivers are on the road hauling freight, and personal business takes a back seat. Unfortunately, that 'comes with the territory'.

Truck driving is ranked tenth regarding the ten most dangerous jobs in the world and is one of the hardest ways to make a living.

Over-the-road truckers essentially live out of their vehicles up to (and sometimes more than) three weeks at a time. Swift operates much like any large OTC truck company where drivers are on the road hauling freight, and personal business takes a back seat. Unfortunately, that 'comes with the territory'.

Truck driving is ranked tenth regarding the ten most dangerous jobs in the world and is one of the hardest ways to make a living.

Over-the-road truckers essentially live out of their vehicles up to (and sometimes more than) three weeks at a time. Swift operates much like any large OTC truck company where drivers are on the road hauling freight, and personal business takes a back seat. Unfortunately, that 'comes with the territory'.

Truck driving is ranked tenth regarding the ten most dangerous jobs in the world and is one of the hardest ways to make a living.

Over-the-road truckers essentially live out of their vehicles up to (and sometimes more than) three weeks at a time. Swift operates much like any large OTC truck company where drivers are on the road hauling freight, and personal business takes a back seat. Unfortunately, that 'comes with the territory'.

I have been a dispatcher for many years and have had many drivers that have reported a family emergency at home that they had to get home for. Most of the time, it is a true emergency, but we have all been burnt by the driver that just wanted to get home.

A few months ago I had a driver call in and advise that his mother had died and he was the only surviving child and he had to get to Miami to take care of the arrangements. I did not have any loads going toward Miami so I told the driver that he would need to go to bed for the night and hopefully we would get him a load the next morning. When I came in the next afternoon, the driver had sent in a message to his day driver manager that since we couldn't get him a load to Miami, he would like a load to Dallas so he could watch the Super Bowl with his brother. Imagine my surprise that he had a brother and that the Super Bowl was more important than his mothers arrangements.

Years ago I had a driver call in needing to get home immediately because his wife and children had been killed in a car wreck. I was frantic to get him home. I deadheaded him over 500 miles so he could get home. Less than 6 months later the same driver called in distraught because his wife and children had just been killed in a car wreck. Maybe he just had really bad luck with a wife and kids or maybe he was just thumbing his nose at Karma, but I wasn't near as worried about getting him home the second time.

It's not always the dispatchers fault that they may not fully believe a driver that has a family emergency. Sometimes it's your fellow drivers that have created the jaded response that you may receive. I personally still try to get a driver home when they tell me that they have a family emergency... at least until they burn me for the first time.

Ben,

I definately understand how you feel about recruiters being honest with potential drivers. I have all new recruits assigned to me in my office the first week so I can sit down with them and let them know exactly what is expected and to ask if they have anything going on in the future I need to be aware of so we don't have to scramble last minute about a "forgotten" birthday or other event they need home for. I know that there are emergencies and have no problem getting drivers home for things such as immediate family deaths/accidents but if its a birthday, ball game or outing I would require them tell me a week prior because we do have to map out your trips ahead of time to get you home when you need or want to be there. I actually had a guy who I sent home every Friday in time to see his son play PeeWee Football and had no problem with this because he asked in advance.
Sorry, I'm always so long winded lol. Trucking is a hard job and not for everyone. Anyone considering entering the industry should definately think hard and maybe question any drivers they know about the "truth" behind driving and not always trust what the recruiters say. They get paid to hire you and will promise you the moon if thats what it takes.


P.S. Ben, since you drove for so long why not try and get a job dispatching or assisting at a terminal? Its salaried pay and I always find that previous drivers are much better at it than people like me because of their knowledge of the road lol.

I have been a driver for 14 years, working for 4 different companies. I would agree with this lady and disagree with the rebuttal posted by Shann, in that I don't think recruiters give an honest representation ever on any topic, but especially on home time. Anyone considering a career as a truck driver needs to know the truth going in, and Shann comes kind of close but not close enough really. The cold hard truth, Shann, could be better stated with fewer words than you have used. The cold hard truth is that once a driver signs on and leaves the terminal with the truck, there is no emergency at home that will warrant consideration for an expedited load home, plain and simple; you may as well be crewing a ship at sea, because it will be an unlikely miracle that you will get home for any emergency or dying relative. Believe this and you won't be dissapointed. This is the cold hard truth, and this is how recruiters should state it, plain and simple in easy to understand lanuage. The carrier policies and method of operations will work on a drivers head over time in that the message received to your brain and heart is that you yourself don't matter, your family doesn't matter, only the companies needs matter, and your self esteem will suffer. You may suffer some depression along with this loss of self esteem. Just know this going in. This is the reality of trucking, and recruiters should state it thus, but no... they sugar coat it to where a newbie doesn't really get the message of the cold hard truth. I would say that after 14 years, though I resisted it by trying to think positively, I come to know how a slave felt. I felt owned, and as if I had a "massa" dictating when I would sleep, and when I would go home and whether I would have any time for a shower or proper meal. I spent almost every hour of my life for 14 years in a cab smaller than a walk in closet. I missed birthdays and family events. Luckily I have a healthy family so there were no emergencies or deaths over the 14 years until last month when I got word that my mother was dying. My requests for a load that way (home terminal) were ignored first, then treated with disdain. The message loud and clear is that I don't matter, and my family does't matter. Though I worked for a company with plenty of freight going toward the home terminal, I had to fight and appeal up the chain of command. I resolved the problem by giving 2 weeks notice and get this... it took them 3 weeks to get me back to the home terminal. I will have to take one more trucking job to tide me over until college starts next fall, and then I am going into education for a new career. Trucking is only for the rare individuals who are disconnected from all family and prefer to live totally alone.

I have worked for a local trucking company as a Fleet Manager for 2 years now and nothing gets me going more than people who get into trucking not understanding the job requirements.
This is NOT a 9-5 Monday to Friday job. All drivers are told at orientation that if you are going to be needing off constantly or do not feel comfortable leaving your family for sometimes weeks at a time then DO NOT go any further. Yet every month we have people go through saying it will be fine only to call a few months later saying their wife can't deal with them being gone or they need off a week here and there. It's rather annoying and I suggest if you want your husband to be home more to assist you he get a job driving locally, many fleet managers will not put up with their employess having to take off too many times and they can be suspended for it. It costs the company a lot of money to get your husband home on a whim. You have to find a load going that way and have someone pick it up to deliver or pay empty miles and with the way the economy is these days its best just to shut it and drive. I feel for your situation but I'm assuming your husband discussed being a truck driver with you prior to choosing it as a profession so you know what you were getting into.