Who is Hiring? Everyone!

If you are dissatisfied with your current position, then you are in luck. Everyone is hiring and you will get a new position almost immediately. That is good news for you. Bad for your current employer.

I caution you that before you go jumping from where you are to your new home, it would be helpful for you to know what it is that you like and dislike about your current employer. This will help you to know what to look for at your new place of employment. Remember that not everyone likes the same thing. As an example, I was talking to one driver who loves the place where they work. I asked, “what is so great about your trucking company?” The driver answered that they give out the dispatch and then they let the driver figure out the rest. This driver loves being their own boss. In this company, if the driver delivers the load on time, dispatch leaves them alone. I ran into another driver that I knew from the same company and asked how things were going. Well, it turns out that they were looking for a new job. Since I had just had the conversation with the other driver about how much they were enjoying this very company, of course, I asked why? It turns out that the freedom that the first driver enjoyed was the very thing that the second driver hated. The second driver felt that the company was unappreciative. The company gives you the load and expects you to figure everything else out. The driver must schedule the departure time, what route to take etc. This driver called dispatch ‘lazy’. So here are two drivers working for the same company; one was in love with the system and the other was soon to become a past driver.

I suggest that before you take any action to move to a new position, you analyze what it is about your current place of work that you don’t like. How about the place you worked before your current employer? You need to do the same exercise for both places – why did you leave there? You need to do a complete review and inventory of the why’s and then try with your new company to find your forever home. Every time that you leave one place and join a new company there is a cost to you and your family. Even if you were able to not miss a day’s work, there is still a financial cost. You are now at the bottom of the seniority list and that costs something. You now need to get used to a new environment and dispatch team, plus new runs, and new destinations. You are unfamiliar with the ‘ins and outs’ of the new company. These are all items that will have their own small financial impact.

What do you expect from your new place of work? What questions are you going to ask at the interview? You should ask probing questions. I’m suggesting that you make a list of questions and write them down so that you get to ask the questions that are important to you. Some questions that may be important are around the subject of home time, waiting time, how many days on the road at a time, what are the major routes, and will you have a dedicated route? Make a list of what is important to you. Each driver and family are different – their needs are different. For one person, home time may be the most important thing, for others, it may be all about the earning potential or how many miles they may receive. Each of us are in different stages of our life. Also, do you like planning your own routes? Some drivers do. They want to decide when
to leave, what highway to take etc. Others want it all done for them, especially if they have never been to that area before.

Your job when looking for a new home is to find a company that suits you. It is great to work with friends, but many of our friends want and have different needs. So, my suggestion is to look closely at your current employer and discover what it is that you like and dislike. Make a list of what you want in the new place and then start your hunt. Everyone can find a great home in trucking. The transportation industry is one of the very best places to work.

Stay safe out there.

Chris Harris
Top Dawg, Safety Dawg Inc.
905-973-7056
chris@safetydawg.com
@safety_dawg (twitter)