driver beware of first fleet inc

Thank you for the post on FF. I was considering them but have now changed my mind. They seem like a company for drivers who don't need money or have no vison of a secue future.

 

TNmomof3 is right! i have worked at the Cleveland TN Firstfleet for a few years now and im sick of it. It is a great place for butt kissers to work, but awful for someone who cares about time with their family! certain people get to pick and choose while the rest of us are forced to work every weekend, but left begging for something during the week. certain drivers have their own trucks, but most have to slip seat. she was right about having to call in and be on hold "if you can even get through". you wait for a half hour or more just to be told theres not anything " unless your one of the favorites!". i have heard callers get told that theres not anything just to hear the next one get a trip. they have some trips that pay very good, but those only go to the choosen ones. they have bids for trips every 6 months, but they dont mean anything, you still get called in for short crap that knocks you out of doing your planned bid run. i hung in because i thought things would get better, but im not the brown noseing type. i just try to do my job and do it well, but i guess thats not enough at the Cleveland Firstfleet.

 

I worked at FF also for about 6 months & it was awful. Only stayed that long because of a family medical issue. I left there lucky to make $650 a week at best, and starting making $1200 a week with a new company.

 

The same family that owns First Fleet, also owns Averitt and First Express. Averitt & First Express seem to be good quality companies for drivers, but First Fleet is not. The First Fleet terminal I briefly worked for, was very bad about favoritism. I was in dispatch and asked about my next run & they said, no runs available. I went around the corner and as if was leaving, I closed the door. They thought I left & was laughing about a couple of good runs they were holding back for their friends who were pressing to get back from runs in order to take the new runs on time. When I heard that, I left within a week after securing a new job. This was common practice with FF.

 

I was there in Cleveland from 08 to 2010 and never a problem. Didnt have to kiss butt, just knew how to do the job. You claim to have 14 years trucking but complain about time with family? LOL...Try OTR or are you just one of those that only have driven locally. I see solo post, so prob another one of those who are the same disgruntled person making different accounts since acct just opened. Just like many of these other complaints. All ppl have to do is look at all of these accts to notice this. Sorry you never got a chance to learn a Peyton acct, I even worked it when Calhoun Trans had a piece of it back in 06 when I was at that company too. It really is quit simple. Made $62,000 on it in 08. The other years were very close to it. Wasnt home EVERY day, but...THATS TRUCKING. Be safe out there drivers.

 

it was a great place to work back then, when it was ran by somebody that knew what they were doing! now its mostly another big red truck company's rejects. i think everybody knows how that goes, new guy takes over and works all of his buddies in and tries to show out and change everything. a lot of the drivers that were on before have left, and that is a shame.

 

Chinatown, wow, talk about not knowing what you are talking about... FirstFleet is its own company. The owners of Averitt, and the owners of FF are freinds, and they use the buying power of 2 companys to get better discounts on buying trucks, and fuel. And that is where the business partnership of the 2 companys end..

Worldtrvlr, I couldnt agree more. They spent all of 3 bucks on these driver apreciation gifts, and they overpaid at 3 bucks, and these little tool kits are NOTHING we can use in the truck, or in real life. The LED flashlight last year was nice, and the little multitool was also cool. But again, each one of their drivers brings in more than 250k dollars, and they can spare 3 dollars for us. A 10 dollar holiday gift card? Can you at least make it enough so that I can buy a nice dinner for me and my family? Gee honey, 10 dollars, I guess that means we can order off the dollar menu tonight!

With that all said, I am changing my tune about FF. I was working out of the St Louis terminal. The terminal manager there is a good person to work for, althou they have to many eggs in one basket, and not enough loads for their drivers. I LOVED my job at the St Louis Terminal. And I will miss it greatly..

I recently moved to the Denver/Fountain terminal. I thought this would be a good idea, looking over the pay that the drivers were making out here. I dont need to run 3000+ miles a week. And would be happy with 2200 actually. I originally requested an older truck, but they were slip seating it when I got here, and had to take another truck out. That truck was a POS, and needed alot of work (engine, apu, computer, etc) to even be safe for the road. Dropped it off at the terminal, and got the original truck I requested, and althou it ran down the road GREAT!, it also needed major extensive work (Engine, clutch, exhaust, ETC). So at this point I am apsolutely confused. The terminal has a shop, but apparently no one bothers to pre-trip the trucks for the incoming drivers. I just dont get why they have Mechanics standing around in their shop, with almost nothing to do, and they have all these empty trucks that need to be looked over, and repaired! Finally get a good truck (brand new). 3 trucks in 1 week? Whats wrong with this picture? Why were these trucks not open seated inspected? Why were they not cleaned out? Why were they not ready for the road? This is a trucking company, and that should be simple, easy logic. Maybe I ask to much, but this is what I tried for when I was in St Louis.

I cant tell you how many times I have heard drivers threaten to kill the terminal managers for Fountain (and I have only been here 3 weeks now). Everyone hopes that both of the top 2 at this terminal will just go away, or something. Cooperate leaves these 2 guys alone, because somehow they are making money. Of course they are, at the cost of their drivers!! Not being paid correctly, and unless you are watching your paychecks, that money is gone. Luckily, the girl at the terminal in charge of the payroll/settlements is easy to get along with, and works to get your payroll corrected. 1/2 of the dispatchers are OK to work with, but they too can not stand the leadership at this terminal. In the drivers I have met along the way at this terminal, all of them say that leadership does not exist, just 2 very large Sphincters in charge.

Come on FF, the people that I have met on the cooperate side of this company are some great people. Daniel Piper, Lou Miller, Rob Stone, Kevin Steele, etc. And you promote these 2 to lead a terminal? Really? I expected so much more from you. I see that trust was serverely misplaced.

The biggest surpise for me is that it would not take alot to turn this company into one of the best. Just alot more policing done by the cooperate personal of each of the terminals. Its not hard science people. If you make it, they will come, if you make it great, they will stay!

 

I am glad to hear that please tell a fellowman First Fleet driver witch terminal you work out of .my terminal dose not pay + drop pay + layover pay for picking up back hauls, holiday pay,and I do not have any accidents or log violations.In January ,2012we had 125 drivers now in Nov,2013 we have about 25 drivers and I know 12 are waiting for the first of year to change jobs
Two of our closes terminals were closed down .some drivers went to these terminals and ending up coming back .......
STAY AWAY FROM DALLAS (Lancaster,Texas) 's First Fleet TERMINALS

 

well I drive for First Fleet Dallas Term
and I say thank you for posting it for all FF drivers.this terminal has been open for 5 yr and at the first of this yr it had 150 drivers and now about25
and most of them are looking else were.So the boy and/or DAD is telling the truth.last month 6 drivers, were hired and 4 of them have left.
they said they were looking when they found this one they will just keep looking,I said I will be looking after the first too.

 

Msrollinthunder take your bigotry to another website. those types of comments are just rediculous and untrue.