If you turn down loads ,will your company fire you

[kellmellus]

My company (Express-1)says that i should not turn down any loads even though they said i can before i joined with them(then they tell me no turn downs once i am in class by the upper management) and i am worried if i do they may fire me after too many turn downs?

I know panther can turn down a million loads and still have a job ,how about other companys and did anyone get fired after too many turn downs or do they just say that to scare you?

 

[RichM]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Landstar doesn't care oficially but the Agents will remember.

FedexCC and Panther allow refusals,but one the refusal rate starts getting very high you will probaly get a warning and if you continue a high refusal rate then you could get fired.

The term FIRED originated with the founder of the NCR Corp in Dayton. This was back in the 1880's. Guy was a real tryant and if he didn't like a report from you or you gave him bad results he would wait until you went out to lunch,then he would have your desk and chair brought out to the front lawn,pour oil on it and then set it on fire. Thus the term "I was fired"came into existence.

 

[highway star]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

"No forced dispatch" is a common phrase in this business. Since we are independent contractors they really can't "force" us to do anything. The reality is, they have loads to move and that's what we're there for. Any company would, at some point, cancel a contract if the driver went too far with turning down loads. There would be a point where that contractor is just more of a pain in the rear than they are useful.

But, you shouldn't feel that you need to take everything, period. Just don't abuse the "no forced" thing. If you've told dispatch you need to get home and they want to send you in the opposite direction, say no. If the deadhead and paid miles are way out of whack, say no, unless they are willing to sweeten the pot a bit. IMHO, you need to balance being a team player with doing what's best for you.

 

[terryandrene]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Like HighwayStar said, plus keep in mind that we get "run offers", not "Job Assignments". As an employee, you can be fired for refusing a Job assignment; as an Independent Contractor, your contract (lease) can be terminated but you cannot be fired. Also, as an Independent Contractor, either you or the carrier can sever the contract at any time; no excuse nor reason is necessary by either party.

As with the termination of any deal, contract, relationship, or agreement, the courtesy of advance notice, whether or not required, is always appropriate.

 

[ATeam]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

In FedEx Custom Critical's Four Star award program, a load acceptance rate of 70% is one of the eligibilty criteria. In other words, if you turned down 30 out of a hundred loads, the people at FedEx would think your accpetance rate is pretty darn good.

 

[letzrockexpress]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

I know this may sound like an expediting clichet' but keep in mind that you never know what awaits you at the end of that crappy run. I have never turned down a load. I can't tell you how many times I took some little run going into what I thought might be out of the "zone" so to speak, and after delivering got a really nice run. This has happened to me quite often. Things are not always as they appear.Someone mentioned that the company has freight to move and we are there to move it. That is exactly right.Turning down loads inhibits the process.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

And which process would that be? Luck?

-Vampire Super Slooth Trucker!!!

 

[letzrockexpress]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Did you read what I wrote? What I was refering to was that freight exists and as such it needs to be moved. Turning down these loads, when offered, slows down the process of moving freight and in turn may cause unnecessary complications for the customer.

 

[cheri1122]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

On the other hand, accepting unprofitable loads, while speeding up the process of moving freight, can also speed up the process of bankruptcy for the o/o or driver, and will definitely cause complications in their financial well being - and, who, ultimately, should take priority, in the decision making process?
While I'm willing to take the occasional hit, for a valued customer, I'm not willing to subjugate my own best interests on their behalf. Somehow, I just don't think they'd be there for me, when the bills are due, each month.
The refusal rate is quite often more an indicator of the quality of the offer, than of the driver (or most often, drivers) that reject it, IMO.

 

[dieseldiva]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

> On the other hand, accepting unprofitable loads, while
>speeding up the process of moving freight, can also speed up
>the process of bankruptcy for the o/o or driver, and will
>definitely cause complications in their financial well being
>- and, who, ultimately, should take priority, in the
>decision making process?
> While I'm willing to take the occasional hit, for a valued
>customer, I'm not willing to subjugate my own best interests
>on their behalf. Somehow, I just don't think they'd be there
>for me, when the bills are due, each month.
> The refusal rate is quite often more an indicator of the
>quality of the offer, than of the driver (or most often,
>drivers) that reject it, IMO.


Agree 100% (SUPRISE!!!)

I've often thought when one is approached by the company concerning their refusal rate, perhaps the thought pattern should be introduced that (let's say 50%-50%) the company has offered us unacceptable rates 50% of the time and therefore should be concerned with what they can do to rectify that!

 

[cheri1122]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

I'm not surprised, DD - I believe you have a pretty sharp mind, really - even if we don't agree on some issues.
The carriers simply find it much easier, and more profitable, to blame refusals on the quality of the drivers, rather than the offers. Blaming the victim is a common way to avoid engaging in a battle one would prefer to avoid.
I'm pretty sure that most carriers have a threshold for refusals, below which one risks contract termination. According to the original post, that threshold, according to his carrier, is 100%? Glad I don't drive for them, is all I can say. (And before someone else says it, yep, they're probably just as glad, too )

 

[ATeam]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

If you look at a load from the shipper's point of view, I believe you will find that most of the time the shipper is offering a fair price for the services requested. The shipper has something he or she wants moved from point A to point B and is willing to pay for that.

The shipper has no concern about how far a driver has to deadhead to the load, whether or not the driver needs a load goes toward home, or whether or not the driver feels entitled to team loads, loads that fit a solo driver's log book, or loads that fit other driver-imposed requirements such as no Canada, no New York City, no west of the Mississippi, no Florida, nothing that ties the truck up over a weekend, nothing that puts you in a slow express center, etc.

In other words, shippers owe contracted drivers $X.XX per mile. They do not owe drivers a living.

If you are turning down half or more than half of the loads you are offered, you may well be in the wrong place. It would be wise to search the trucking industry (not just expediting) for a better home, change you mind about what you are willing to accept, or change your business and financial practices so you can accept more than 50% of what is offered.

At 50% or less over a long term (6 months or more), you are wasting a lot of people's time and resources, including your own. If there is less than half a chance that you will accept a load, any broker, agent or dispatcher that can will pass you over, and instead spend their load-covering time with more productive drivers. And if, because of company policies, they cannot pass you over, they will dislike you more than they will like you.

Drivers are only as good as their ability to meet their dispatchers', carrier's and customers' needs. At 50%, you require twice their effort to obtain half the coverage. In comparison, a 100% driver provides twice the coverage for half of their efforts.

There are circumstances where load offers plain just plain stink. FedEx Custom Critical recognizes that and respects a certain amount of refusals. But if, over a period of time, your acceptance percentage remains in the crapper, don't be surprised to find yourself there too.

 

[letzrockexpress]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Wow, ATeam's post is the unabridged version of exactly the point I was trying to make. I suspect most expediters don't want to or just won't look at the big picture. There are a whole lot of spokes in this big wheel called expediting. Weak or broken spokes end up getting replaced. Biting the bullet and taking one for the team once in a while makes your star shine brighter than if you frequently turn down loads. A little deadhead never hurt anyone...

 

[cheri1122]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

I agree, if one is turning down half or more offers, it's time to look for a new opportunity, and I wonder how much that might have to do with the astronomical turnover rates that plague some carriers.
Speaking strictly for myself, my acceptance rate is real close to 100. I don't need to turn down very many, and I'm quite happy where I am.

 

[dieseldiva]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Just for the record, that 50%-50% that I wrote about was a HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE, lest anyone would think I was posting personal information.

 

[Broompilot]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Brings back memories of the Cleaning Business. Some customers wanted a spotless building at a Discounted Rate, once we were in a building for two months and we found that the two hours a night or week what ever the customer wanted for us to clean, acutally was taking three or more hours due to the list they kept adding and adding. (There thinking we were there for them no matter how long it took).

Well it came to a point where either a price increase was given with 30 days notice for it to become effective or we just gave them our 30 day notice. Sometimes they did it to me. The point being not all customers can be happy, and we cannot make everyone happy, but our bottom line is up to us to determine, not someone else doing favors.

 

[are12]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

<<<The shipper has no concern about how far a driver has to deadhead to the load, whether or not the driver needs a load goes toward home, or whether or not the driver feels entitled to team loads, loads that fit a solo driver's log book, or loads that fit other driver-imposed requirements such as no Canada, no New York City, no west of the Mississippi, no Florida, nothing that ties the truck up over a weekend, nothing that puts you in a slow express center, etc.>>>


The shipper may not be concerned, about any of the above mentioned, but don't you think the company you are leased to should?

Does any company worry about where their trucks end up? Do they care if they put you in an area where there is no freight and you may have to deadhead a couple hundred of miles, for free, to get back into a good area? Do they care if you want to be home for a special family occasion? I can answer that, the answer would be "no" for all the questions.

So, why should we take all the loads that are offered, especially if there is no pofit in it for us? Why shouldn't we, as owner's, worry about our bottom lines, just like the companies do? If we do not watch out for ourselves, who will?

 

[fastrod]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Are12, you are right. If the profit is not there, do not take the run. By taking one for the team or an occasional hit for a valued customer you are only helping to keep the rates low. It is the carriers valued customer so let them take the hit and just how much of your truck payment is the team paying.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

Express One is very liberal in it's turn down policy!

The original poster is also the one that figures the FSC should pay all the fuel remember people...The poster has also derided E-1 in another post...The poster drives a van for flat rate mileage .70 -.80/ mile...whats to turn down????

I think the poster should leave E-1 instead of always degrading them here....!

If they are this unhappy they are prolly whinning at MY customers as well....(assumption)

Please kellmellus ...Resign.

 

[fastrod]

RE: If you turn down loads ,will your company fire

It is customer ovm, not customers. As per your exclusive use agreement your only customer is Express 1.