To lump, or not to lump?

Drop and hook....or wait and complain about how long it takes to get unloaded...lol...I never want to get in a trailer for any reason....why I don't sweep 'em...I don't even like to open the doors...

 

When I worked as a stock boy at Buehler's Markets here in Wooster, I used to unload pallets of baking goods supplies with a hand pallet jack. Those suckers were stacked with 100 lb bags of flours, sugar, etc.. It wasn't too hard wheeling the pallets off the trailer with the hand pallet jack, and it only took about 1 hour to unload. All for minimum wage at the time. It was work, and I was 21 at the time, so who knows how I would do now. At first glance, I would like to believe I would do it, although I am no strapping 21 year old any longer. It's all about the money I am making in a time frame. Who cares if it's is earned unloading or driving? I do know that $100.00 for a couple hours of work averages out to a good hourly rate. Probably higher than what a company driver would earn driving the truck in the same amount of time.

 

It comes off of line 4, so its going to affect your 14 - which means your availability for the next load. Most of the time I would rather catch a nap so I'm ready for the next load, but if I'm doing a multiple stop deal with a hosed schedule, I'll lump some pallets just to get it done and be back on the road.

 

I would do it just to get it off. I used to unload trucks and it takes on average 1.5hr to do it. So that is 66.7 an hour for 1.5hrs worth of work. Not too shabby if you ask me. Yes it may affect line 4, but thats a chance I am willing to take. If I am in area with no freight, it could mean the difference between getting a load and not getting a load.

KH

 

As a company driver you have to fight for your unload pay. First you'll see that it is not on your paycheck. Then you send the trip info,trailer number, date etc to your DM via e-mail and qualcomm with a note that your were not paid to unload the 3 stops on that load. Then you'll typically hear nothing back and call your DM and remind them of the same info over the phone. They will promise to take care of it and meanwhile 3 paychecks go by and you still have not been paid off unloading that trailer a month ago. So you keep hounding your DM about it and you see this mystery payment for $50 on your next paycheck coming up when you log onto the Swift portal. Call DM, 'what's this?', "oh that's your unload pay", 'but I unloaded 3 stores, 5 stops...', DM:" I will look into it". That will be the last time you will hear about it from your DM.

 

Many years ago when pulling a reefer, I used to haul alot of Land O Lakes butter, usually 6 stops, and those I would lump in a heart beat. Knew most of the stops, and along with the stop pay, I would usually pick up an extra $300, for a total of about 5 hours work. One stop was just a straight pull of 4 pallets, lumper $40, give me the power jack, pull and out the door. The ones that I always hated where the places that it was sort and segregate. Take forever.

Here is a question for you, if you decide to lump, and you get injured, even in their trailer, but doing something other than driving, will workers comp cover. I know that when I was with USX, Dollar General, that was driver unload, and was injured, so covered

 

When I was with Prime, I dealt with lumpers a lot. Average twice a week, I was shelling it out to those racketeers. The times I did it myself, I charged about 75% of what the lumper wanted and my FM made sure the lumper reimbursement part of the revenue matched.

The differential between Swift's driver unload x-pay and what they're willing to pay a lumper is one of my few complaints about Swift.

For me, it depends on the load. If it's a complicated pallet breakdown with lots of heavy stuff, I'll cut a Comcheck. But I never pay cash.

And I think ol' Hamshoe needs a Firestone load or two.