Comments By Brandon S.

Thanks best of luck to you too.

Hi Brandon Thanks for your insightful posts, I am new to this world but eager to learn more, I admire your dedication and bravery to just stand up and go for it. Keep up the good work and best of luck to you. Try not to hit a sign. :)

Good luck!

5/10/22

Today’s the day we get to get in the trucks. The cdt’s came in and start calling names and taking people out to do one of the three assessments. Backing, pre trip, and road test. First up for me, backing. I have to say, this one I worried about the most. It’s been awhile since I’ve backed a 53 foot trailer, and the scenario was pretty tight. I was wondering if they are going to test us in manuel or automatic. I’ve heard people say both before coming here. They are automatics. At least they are this week in this place. I remembered how they showed us to set up for this the day before. I simply did it that way and I ended up with a perfect set up. Now I just had to start turning at the right time and hit the hole. I stopped and got out to look a few times. It really does pay to. Once I got it in it was just a matter of straightening the cab. I backed it in and stopped about a quarter inch from the cones. The cdt said if it was a rodeo people would have cheered. Lol I just got lucky. Any closer and I would’ve failed.

Next I did my road test. A simple trip down the highway. No problem. I got called for my speed a couple times but other than that it went well.

Finally I did my pre trip last. We didn’t name every part, but it’s a pretty thorough pre trip. You have to do it in 30 minutes. There’s enough time, but I get frazzled a little and jumped around to much in my order. I got everything, in about 28 minutes. I’ll try to do a little better tomorrow.

We lost one driver that day. He hit a sign on his road trip. I really felt bad for him. Hopefully he’ll come back in the future and try again.

I do think things will get worse, way worse, before they get better.

I’ll be coming out of Gordonsville VA, so I’m assuming that and surrounding states. Just a guess. I’m new. Lol

I believe the recruiter said the dispatch times were around 15:00

That said, your DC will have its own particular schedules available. You could possibly be stuck on nights, depending on what they have. I got lucky and jumped right into an optimal schedule for me.

What area are your stores going to be in....which states?

*Asking for a friend*

I believe the recruiter said the dispatch times were around 15:00

That said, your DC will have its own particular schedules available. You could possibly be stuck on nights, depending on what they have. I got lucky and jumped right into an optimal schedule for me.

First day of onboarding. And yes I’m very nervous. But I suck it up and do what I have to do. I’m here for the best job I’ve had and nothing is going to stop me from giving my best for it. Onboarding is at Dover mall. Not the DC in Smyrna like I thought. They have the course set up in the lot, and a classroom set up in an empty store. I got my first look at the backup exercise and it’s pretty tight. I went inside and went to the seat with my name. There were 17 of us. All pretty good guys. There were lots of cdt,s. All good guys. Every one of them. They truly want you to succeed here, and will help you with anything you are struggling with. But you still have to get it done. They had a folder with paperwork inside. We spent the first half the day with an hr representative. We did drug tests, filled out forms, entered our license and medical card info. Around mid day that was done and we were released for lunch and told to be back around 1. Save our meal receipts. They will reimburse you for any meals you buy.

After lunch we thought we’d get to get in the trucks. Nope. Not today. Today they will show us what they want done. They showed us how to set up for the back and how to get it in. They showed us how they want the pre trip done. Tomorrow we would start. I kind of liked it this way. Tomorrow I already know what they expect.

Sorry I didn’t format that right. The questions are in the quote. I’m still new at this lol

HiThe 5/2-5/3 is what I ran from day 1 up to a week ago when we "realigned" the annual schedule. It's a good schedule, allowing for that 3-day weekend every other week. But the "weekend" doesn't always include Saturdays or Sundays. In fact, a full Sat/Sun wknd only comes along every couple of months. If you can get comfortable with your weekend falling on different days every two weeks, you'll love the schedule.

I think I’ll like this schedule. I’ll get some weekends off, and some weekdays is good for going to doctors and dentist and such. Seems like a good variety.

The downside is sharing 2 trucks between 3 drivers. You'll have to take your stuff out each week and hop into the other truck next week. Cleanliness is top priority. You will all depend on each other to leave the truck spotless for the next guy. WM pays for all cleaning supplies. If you get together with the other 2 drivers, you can coordinate things like scheduling a PM on the truck, and agree to leave things on the truck full time for the other guys to use, like a coffeepot, microwave, CB, etc. This will keep each of you from having to lug those things from truck to truck.

Im glad Walmart has a policy to keep trucks clean. My last company didn’t and the trucks were always filthy.

Now for the issue of sharing the bunk. That was my biggest hangup when I first realized it was necessary in this schedule. I'm not a germaphobe at all, but let's face it, crawling into a bed that some other dude slept in last week isn't something I particularly enjoy. Here at Johnstown, we are given a mattress liner to put on before our bedding. This will keep your funk confined to yourself, and more importantly, everyone else's funk away from you. As a result, after 2 1/2 years the mattresses are still like brand new. If your DC doesn't issue liners, I highly recommend you get one for yourself.

Really though, when we go to a hotel we don’t know who or what was in the bed last night. But you’re right I am getting the mattress cover.

I myself have reached the point where I would like to at least have every Saturday off, so that I can attend family functions, parties and such without having to burn a day off. That and my grandchildren will soon start school, fall ball, etc., so I want to be around for Saturday visits and games. At our last realignment, I bid on and received a normal 5 day schedule Sun thru Thur with an assigned truck. Now I'll have every Fri and Sat off, and can leave my stuff on my truck each week. I'll miss that 3-day wknd, though. Of course, with the crazy amount of paid days off they give us, I can make my own 3 day weekends whenever I want. Eventually I'll have enough seniority to get the coveted Mon thru Fri run, but it'll probably take 10 years or so lol.

Im happy for you. I have grandkids too. Enjoy that time. I hope someday I’ll be there long enough to do the same thing.

We deliver primarily to stores and return empty back to the DC for the next load. The vast majority of vendor backhauls are covered by third-party carriers, keeping us away from the inevitable delays associated with vendors. Nevertheless, I still average 1-3 backhauls per week. But those are typically drop/hook.

Are you running mostly nights or days?

I guess I got a little long winded lol. But I'm happy for you and want to see you succeed. I'll be happy to answer any questions when they come up.

Start getting that ADP up (average daily pay). That's how you get paid for days off. Maximizing your days now will pay off later, big time.

Ok I'm out. Good luck!

5/8/22

Today’s the day to head to Delaware for onboarding. I have to say I don’t remember being this nervous for a job before. Something just seems different about this place, the way they do things. They are paying mileage for me to drive to the event. It’s about a 3 1/2 hour drive to Dover from where I live and can’t check in until 3. So I’m up early watching the clock and fighting my nerves. I start my journey there, and my journey to my new career. I arrived about 330 and I was one of the first to arrive. There was a couple of Walmart trucks in the parking lot. I was starting to move from nervous to excited again, but tomorrow morning the nerves would come back.