I Was Told To Turn In My Truck If I Go On Vacation.

When the wheels are stopped, the interest on the lease payment keeps rolling. 2 weeks stopped cuts the truck's revenue for the month nearly in half while expenses remain the same. Don't take it personally its a business decision.

I have no idea. But, after four years with the same company, they want you to turn in your truck when you go on vacation? Sounds odd. Although I'm still relatively new to this industry, I've seen a lot of trucks sitting idle for days and weeks on end - brand-new trucks at that.

But, to me, a truck is a truck. Since my first truck, which I recovered for the company and then named 'Roxie', was taken and given to an entertainment driver, I try not to get attached to them anymore. As long as it's clean, dry, serviceable, and not banged-up looking, I'll drive it. I don't even want a new truck unless it's a new Kenworth W900L or W900 - and the company I drive for only runs Volvos and Freightliners. So....that's not happening.

That said, when I left my truck for a week's vacation earlier this year I took all of my personal belongings out of it. Everything!

Best of luck with and above all ENJOY your vacation! you've EARNED it!!

When the wheels are stopped, the interest on the lease payment keeps rolling. 2 weeks stopped cuts the truck's revenue for the month nearly in half while expenses remain the same. Don't take it personally its a business decision.

You’re absolutely right that it’s a business decision based on finances. It’s also their equipment and therefore their choice to make.

That said, the policy his company has of turning in the truck and giving it to a new driver and putting him on a waiting list if the truck is parked more than 3 days is a really lousy policy and I would argue that it’s not even a good business decision on their part. Driver retention is a major issue in the trucking world and policies like this do nothing to help that. While it may cost the company a little bit of money to have that truck sit for more than a few days, it’s going to cost them more money to replace that same driver with someone else if he leaves.

That one policy may not cause most people to leave, but little policies like that add up and cause drivers to look elsewhere for employment. Not only that, but it’s just good business to take care of your employees. Big picture, letting a productive driver’s truck sit for a week or even two when they haven’t taken vacation in years is a small concession to make.

Just saying, it’s totally their decision and maybe they are just being cheap right now because times are tough. But for crying out loud, just because it’s their equipment and their decision doesn’t mean we have to just bend over and take whatever they give us.

I’m not saying the OP should make a big deal out of this particular situation but in general don’t sell yourself short as a driver. It’s your job to make sure you’re being compensated fairly, getting the benefits you deserve, getting the hometime you need, etc. If you’re not, then either negotiate or find somewhere else to work. Don’t just suck it up because it’s their equipment etc. In general, no company is going to pay you more than they have to because, why would they? That’s just business. You wouldn’t pay more for a home repair or a meal just because you were feeling generous. At most you’d tip but that’s it. Companies aren’t any different.

Sorry I’ll get off the soap box now. This is just something that’s a real pet peeve of mine. Don’t get me wrong…I LOVE my job, I LOVE driving trucks, and I take a lot of pride in it and often go above and beyond because I want to and enjoy it. But I really hate the idea that we should just accept whatever BS policies a company might have because they have the right to make that policy. They have the right to make that policy, and you have the right to negotiate or leave if they won’t negotiate.

Fwiw I practice what I preach. I have never done this before in my life but I am actually in the process of negotiating higher rates for the runs I’m currently doing at my company. I also am just a company driver, but we just picked up this new customer and I am the only driver doing this run full time. When I got my settlement the first week of doing these runs I was expecting a considerable amount more than it paid. I and the other driver who had done one of these runs that same week both individually went to our boss (we didn’t know until afterward that we’d both complained about the rates) and asked for a higher rate. Long story short, the boss has had several conversations with me about it and is currently negotiating a higher rate with the owner. I realize I don’t work for a mega-carrier and this may not be possible everywhere but if I and the other driver had just accepted the rates for what they were, my boss wouldn’t be negotiating for a higher rate right now. All I’m saying is please don’t permeate the idea that we have to just accept whatever we’re given just because it’s a “business decision.”

But I really hate the idea that we should just accept whatever BS policies a company might have because they have the right to make that policy. They have the right to make that policy, and you have the right to negotiate or leave if they won’t negotiate.

I agree

I broke my foot, and my truck sat for 3 months in my driveway.

About a year ago or so at Marten Michael was told that if he took more than five days off he'd have to clear out his truck. He just took six days off and the only thing he was told that he had to park his truck at the company yard instead of at home. I thought maybe it was because work was slow but that hasn't been the case, they've kept him busy and his manager has tried to talk him out of switching to another fleet so maybe it might depend on how much they want to keep you. Michael plans to take a longer vacation when his truck hits mileage to turn it in for another truck.