Comments By USMC AAV

I really appreciate yall adding to this thread. I get a lot of truckers ask me what the perks with Maverick and I was curious what it is like on the other side of the fence in that respect. A buddy of mine drove for Millis a while back and loved it, he had health issues and couldnt keep doing it but he said their trucks are pretty sweet inside

Hey Parrot, just curious but of all the loads that yall run, how many are steel (coils etc)? I know that McElroy runs a ton of the Lowe's stuff but I havent seen to many of yall running anything other than lumber, shingles, and stuff like that

Hey light,

I called and asked my brother who works for Western and he told me this. In a typical week while he was a on-site trainer at Western Express, there were approximately 60 people (on average) there from various parts of the U.S., that would come to the weekly orientations He said on average about 5 fail the drug test and a few that couldn't get past the road test, and another ten that just quit before the week was out for one reason or another. After that first week (roughly 40 being left), they went on with a driver trainer for 3-6 weeks (except those select few that came over with experience from other companies). Of those 40 or so people that went with a driver trainer about 10 would quit before there training period was even over. ( these people would quit for various reasons from; they missed being home, missed their kids, or realized this wasn't the life they thought it would be, or they just didn't want to follow directions from their trainer). After that about 30 would actually make it as a solo driver. However most would not make it past 3 months!!

He said that the vast majority didn't take the time to find out what the job would be like. If they had issues they would quit. If they didnt make it home on time, they would quit. If they felt cheated or didnt submit their weekly paperwork on time or it wasnt correct, they would quit. Some complained that they were lied to, so they quit. A few said they didn't ask enough questions so their expectations were false, so they quit. See the trend here??? Of those roughly 60 people that go to a western Express orientation only about 5-9 make it past three months solo. Western Express keeps data on this.

The vast majority of those people, when frustrated, ****ed off, angry and feeling misled that left Western Express are the same people that write those biased reviews that other people read on google and truckers report. The reason why I mention this is like you, I read tons of reviews and after I came here I realized that those reviews were written by people who were upset at that time.

As I found out after I found this site, here things are done differently.

I'm with G-Town on this one. An entry level driver, delivering fuel is a fatality in the making!!

Thanks again for all the information and insight. As soon as I pass their physical and UA I will be driving a fuel delivery truck.Fortunately all their trucks have 10 speed manual transmission so I will still be able to get that experience.

Is this a tractor & tanker trailer? Fuel as in gasoline station delivery?

If yes to both of these; this is a very disturbing turn of events. NO entry level driver should start their career delivering fuel.

Been getting my tractor loaded and I was curious what trucking companies have fridges and some of the other perks pre-installed in their tractors as a company perk.

Christian,

I'm sitting here waiting on my truck to be loaded but I caught your question. McElroy is a really good company that has a good school for someone who wants to learn how to drive (CDL) as well as become proficient in flatbed loads.

Susan D.... I totally agree!

Terminal rats are everywhere. I only go to a terminal if I need my truck serviced or I have no other convenient choice for parking.

I'm going to add my two cents on this one also, but first I have to agree with G-town! The vast majority of what you will find on the internet about Swift and Western Express are false and have bias opinions from people who made comments about these companies when they felt wronged or were ****ed off.

My brother has worked for them as Long haul flatbed driver, flatbed trainer and now drives dedicated. In total he has about 8 years with this company. "Old-School", one of the moderators did in fact start his career with Western Express also I believe, and he can offer loads of good information.

That being said, I will say this. I know three drivers that are currently with them (we graduated truck driving school together and have kept in touch). All of them, say that it is fantastic place to work. That being said they all have had to learn about the trucking industry and pay their dues. If you go into this industry with assumptions and expectations about a glorious lifestyle you are in for a shock. There is a big learning curve and mastering all the ins and outs takes time.

Cleaning supplies, well lets see (in my milk crate of supplies I have)

Windex and paper towels Clorox wipes!!! Febreeze Spray Rainex Anti-fog (comes in handy during cold months on interior glass) Walmart bags and a small trash can

Hey Parrot,

Question for you. Has McElroy starting implementing automatics into the fleet? Do the drivers get a choice if they go there or is it some other way that they are distributed? I am just curious cause there website doesn't give many details and I can't seem to get a straight answer from a recruiter. Your thoughts and knowledge on this would be appreciate, or any other driver here that works for them who has seen drivers go through their hiring process.