My assigned load was ready to be picked up at 1:45 PM. However, because of the company who was shipping it (you would recognize the name), I was sure they would have it ready by the time I got there in the morning. It wasn't (which is not their fault since they guaranteed it would be ready by 1:45 PM). So I had to wait until the load was ready. That meant that I would not be home Friday. That is very irritating since I told both human resources and my fleet manager that Friday would be my last day. Why send me somewhere if it meant that there was a fairly good chance that it would not get me home in time? That's poor planning. That's caring more for your bottom line than the employees who help who obtain your bottom line in the first place. So, Roehl failed me...again.
Since I have time on my hands, let me grade the experience I've had with Roehl Transportation. If you are looking to get into the long-haul trucking industry, Roehl has a very good training school. My experience was in their Marshfield, WI location (which also happens to be their corporate location). In terms of driving for Roehl, I'd give them a "fair" or "average" rating. In fairness to Roehl, some drivers love to drive for Roehl. Some drivers have even left Roehl and then come back to Roehl. Therefore, Roehl certainly has drivers that appreciate driving for Roehl just as every carrier has drivers that really love and appreciate the carrier they drive for. My experience started out good and then faded from there. I've got a number of suggestions on how to make Roehl a much better carrier. If Roehl is serious about becoming a good-to-great carrier to work for (as far as drivers go), they've got to find a way to real listen to their drivers--at least a good representation of those who drive for them. Some of the best ideas originate from those on the front lines. Rick, if you're listening, I'd be happy to help as a consultant. I'm serious about that since I see the potential of this company.
From what I hear from the older drivers, Roehl used to be a very driver-friendly place (of course when you're a smaller company, you tend to know everybody which tends to make things more friendly to begin with). Roehl has grown from a small localized carrier to a mid-sized multi-million dollar carrier. There are challenges a-plenty when you're a growing organization. Roehl has done the best they can (in their opinion) but they could do much better if they choose-especially in terms of driver relations. They will have to in order to hold on to market share and grab more.
I drove until late in the evening and stopped at a truck stop in Ohio. From there it will be less than 3-hours to deliver the load to Indianapolis on Friday. However, I will need to split-log in order to get the load there on time which means a shorter amount of sleep time than normal.
miles driven = 648
PostScript: After driving awhile today (the comments above were made earlier in the day), I decided to drop the truck off at the Gary, IN terminal instead of Marshfield, WI. That way I will get home by Friday afternoon/evening. If I continued with the plan to drop the truck off in Marshfield, I wouldn't get home until Saturday morning/afternoon. So, I informed my fleet manager of the decision. Tomorrow should be an interesting day.
PostScript2: While at a McDonalds today, a car pulled up beside the truck and a female leaned out and said something I couldn't quite make out. I politely asked her to repeat what she said. She looked around and then said something which I couldn't still quite make out. I once again asked her to repeat it. This time, with a slightly annoyed look, she looked around, then smiled and said "Would you like some company?" Go figure. I was being asked if I wanted sex at a fast food restaurant. I didn't even think of recording her license plate down and then calling the local authorities until later on. I guess I was rather dumbfounded at the brazenness of being solicited at a McDonalds! Just when you think you've seen it all....
10:30:07 AM
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