truck driver

driver

Melton-Truck-Lines

A typical GOOD day would be having your Driver manager on the same page as you. But most of the time it’s not like that. I had a great dm but they made her quit unfortunately. But if it’s going good your dm is communicating what’s happening for your next load and you get the load with no issues. 

Now as far as what i learned, they’ll teach you how to over secure stuff lol. But you’re confident in the securement. And I learned how to deal with spread axle trailers. 

As far as management be ready to constantly have disagreements. Communication will suck most times no matter how clear you try to explain something they won’t understand because they never been behind the wheel. Be ready to do yours and their job because it’s hard to reach them and by the time they reach you, you could’ve been 30 miles up the road. They’ll throw you under the bus and belittle you and make everything your fault as well. 

Now as far as the work place the terminals were nice the Ohio and Birmingham ones could use slight updates. But the people at the Ohio and Birmingham one are really nice. Some of their million milers are jerks but don’t let that ruin the rest of them for you because there are some really cool ones that’ll help you if needed. 

The hardest part about the job is tarping. And yea I understand it’s flat bed but melton does A TON of Unnecessary tarping to the point I’ve had multiple shippers ask why are they making you tarp this. And their tarps are heavy. You’ll struggle trying to fit all 3 in the small tarp box. But they also haul stuff they should be hauled in van trailers only that you’ll have to tarp. 

The most enjoyable part was my DM before she quit and the traveling. Like I went to all states except a few. And you meet other cool drivers and people that you deliver to. 

It’s flatbed. Tarps are heavy. Comes with the job. OTR is self explanatory. Comes with the job. Planning department can’t plan next loads. Some days it’s 2 hour wait, mostly it’s 4-6 hours. And at least once a month you’ll wait a whole weekend for another load. Great job to get into the industry for the experience but long run/end game, don’t retire here. They promise 2500+ a week and I’ve seen that one week out 3 months. Average miles is 1600-1800 at best. I stay out 2-3 months at a time and for every good week I have 3 weeks of 1400-1600 miles. Tarp pay is trash. Weekend office crew is useless. Night office crew is “figure it out” or “we’ll leave a note for your DM in the morning”. Get lost somewhere? Need help? Call another trucker. Given wrong addresses in wrong states, sent to wrong sites, BOL says tarp but Melton said no tarp didn’t get paid. Need added equipment for a load? You pay “maybe” they’ll reimburse you. Can’t plan OD loads for anything. Get permits hours and hours after you’ve arrived at shipper. One thing you’ll learn here for sure is what your patience limit is. 
Also, heads up. More than half of the people in the office have never seen the inside of a semi, never mind know anything of our lifestyle. This is NOT a job for the out of shape trucker, you’ll sweat, you’ll freeze, just to tarp a load. You get NO added compensation for difficulties of anywhere you deliver from “in the middle of a blizzard” to 115 degrees in a mud pit half way up your shins to untarp and unstrap. Complaints end up in the trash I promise. I wish all the new guys the best of luck. Enjoy your first few months of 3000+ miles because after that, you won’t see it again until another 200 drivers quit. Again.

I will be doing a 1 month, 6 month, and 1 year review of Melton Truck Lines. So far I am very pleased with this company. They run a really good orientation and training period with great compensation while learning how to be safe and successful as a flatbed freight hauler.

After orientation/securement and tarping training I was paired with a trainer. Melton went the extra mile to pair me with a trainer who was also a young military veteran. I understand this job isn't for everyone but as a Marine Corps veteran I appreciate the physical labor that goes into proper securement and tarping. I personally find it very satisfying when I have to problem solve on how to properly and safely secure freight. And our safety team is a phone call away if there is any question of how to secure a new load safely.

Drivers are given plenty of time to get their load from shipper to consignee on time and the drivers aren't micromanaged. I've already seen in the first month that great time management and arriving early at shippers and consignees is not only appreciated by them, but it also allows the driver to maximize his weekly income. 

The good collective CSA score with Melton allows for certain perks that save alot of time on the road such as catching the bypass for the DOT scales and trucks governed at 68mph. I've already discovered how to maximize MPG which is also rewarded by the company. Melton has great tarp and detention pay as well.

My trainer has done a great job teaching and relaying information to help set me up for success when I get out on the road in my own truck. I believe personally that Meltons time off and Road Warrior pay are absolutely awesome. 

I am aware that "Melton Truck Lines" has a right to be a safe company but at what cost? Melton's "back-up" beepers are waking drivers up in truck stops. We have the right to a good day or nights sleep. Drivers using back up beepers moving up and down trying to get into parking spaces are hindering our right to sleep. This makes us unsafe drivers do to a lack of sleep. I submit to Melton this information. When a Melton truck wakes up four drivers in the four spots next to the space, he is trying to occupy as much as 120 drivers per day per truck are upset with Melton. In an industry where good safe drivers are hard to find and getting much tougher to enlist this would to kill Melton recruiting efforts in five years. I have an excellent safety and on-time record and would never call Melton for a job after being woken up three times this month by their "back-up" beeper. I know other drivers feel the same as I do. 3. We all know that drivers take a lot of stuff out here. Companies expect us to get things done. Professional drivers go to great lengths to get good sleep. Displeasing a driver by "pounding on his door" or using a "back-up" beeper will upset an operator at the very least. I have seen trucks towed out of a truck stop because a new driver riled other drivers off. We all know there at least nine things a driver can do to a truck at a truck stop that will disable a truck from leaving that parking area. Sabotage that is expensive to fix and will hinder a driver from making his appointment on time. The last thing I would do if I owed a trucking company would be to put something on my truck that makes other company mad.

If you don’t have any experience this is a good company. If you already have experience don’t waste your time. None of the promises that were made to me have been fulfilled. I actually made more money before they gave us a raise than I do now. Loads inconsistent, too many days spent sitting around. They want you to be on board during holidays but you just end up sitting thru the holidays. The appointment times don’t take traffic or weather into account. Managers are more concerned with leaving early than helping the drivers. Extended coverage normally has no clue what is going on. They hire drivers from places they don’t have freight going to so getting home is like pulling teeth. I wish I never came here. I’m too 1/3 in the company by the way. I’m just here till I get my 6 months so I can go to a real company. Use this company as a stepping stone. They use you As a recruiter. They don’t even have enough freight for their current fleet yet they always want you to help bring in more drivers. I sat the entire thanksgiving weekend. I’m just counting down the days. If you need a job then I get it. But don’t expect any of the “bleep” they promise you. Be ready to not get any help.   Soon as winter hits be ready to have $400 paychecks even when you deliver a day prior. Early Delivery doesn’t help anything. It’s just more time for you to sit. I wish I never came here but now I’m stuck for a couple more months. My truck is trash. Every other week there is a mechanical issue. I was given a truck with 340k miles. It was also 3 years old. Don’t expect anything from them. Just get your experience then leave because they don’t give a “bleep”about you.

They are an excellent company to learn the flatbedding world at. You got to be willing to learn and take instructions and you'll do well.  
The trucks are okay, its luck of the draw what kind of truck you'll get though or what previous issues it had. I did a full year with a truck that had no AC in the bunk despite mentioning this problems it never got fixed. The mechanics shop have awful attitudes, its like they hate their life and they are bad at communicating with the driver. lots of wasted time because of that.
Road wise you'll get good miles and the deliveries and pickups are pretty easy.
I had a great driver manager who had tons of experience and she never micro managed me because I was just doing my job and stayed punctual. 
Upper management seems to be making lots of controlling changes that make life hard for the driver which is why this rating isn't 5.0 stars. They say 68 miles an hour but they changed it recently its 65 and passing speed is 68. They will yet at you if you go over 65 mph and say you're over speeding. There is a guy in charge of fuel conservation who will bug you about truck idle time and that felt micro managy too. 
Home life balance is pretty average for Trucking, meaning non existent. never felt like I had a life I was just living to work cause you have to be out a week to get 1 day off so you do the math how long you have to work to get any decent time off.

For the most part, this company is overall good. Orientation experience was slow, but fluent. Pay's pretty well, especially for an intro company into flatbed. Staff is respectful and friendly, and just like anywhere else, you're gonna have sour apples. But the overall good out weighed the minimal bad. When I spoke to other drivers, it's a 50/50 chance that their DM is one that cares about you and clearly shows their effort in helping you succeed. Or you'll get one that will help you out, but their tone and attitude says otherwise. Hometime depends on home location, and there will be times that you cannot make it home on time. Sometimes it's unfortunate and it's beyond the power of the staff, and sometimes you can get home early. I will say this though. The technicians that work on their trucks. They are the heart and soul of that company. Never had a single complaint with them. And to be honest, the hardest working people in the entire company. They will bend over backwards to make sure that your truck is at their best possible performance. All in all, though, as long as you're working hard and showing that you take pride in your work; it will be smooth sailing. Communication is key with this one, and if you or them leave each other in the dark, it will only get worse. 

I have to admit that the hiring process was extremely difficult and painstakingly annoying. 5 days of which one day in class the rest outside which was honestly what most people needed.  I included to their ways of doing things.  

But why I am writing a not so good review is because I was terminated even after speaking with upper management about a situation that could have been bad. I.e. a small pickup waited til a driveway and slammed on the brakes to turn. Roads where wet,  caught me off guard as I was picking up something off the ground. A minute earlier my phone fallen off the dashboard. I had my girlfriend next to me and it startled us both. But accident avoided. I went about my week working like I said after speaking with safety and taking my licks. 

I get to a small terminal outside Youngstown ohio to drop a trailer so a new driver can head home to get his stuff and get pulled into the office to tell me that I need to return my keys. Now think I am 5.5 hours away from home after being told I am to pickup an empty and head to the local truck stop. Instead of having a game plan on a Friday evening at 1630 after just about every rental place is closing. 

So I leave it up to you. If you like jumping through every hoop they want it is a good company. But they will lie to you to save themselves.

Melton is a great place to get started in the flatbed world. As long as you get a good trainer, you will learn a lot about the job, however, it is up to the new driver to continue learning and building their skills!  If you don’t have the hunger for knowledge and the motivation to keep building on what you learn, you won’t be successful!  

Melton has plenty of resources for new drivers, including training videos of different loads, access to mentors, etc.  no one can help you if you don’t ask!  Management also frequently interacts with drivers on social media and keep drivers informed on what’s going on in the company

Freight and miles is pretty hit or miss but that’s anywhere you go right now. Some shippers and receivers waste a lot of a drivers time but that’s trucking for you. A lot of your earnings depend on your motivation and mastery of time management, but don’t be expecting 3500 miles every single week. 

Overall, Melton is a good company if you are looking to get started in flatbed or just trucking in general

NOTE: You will tarp loads. ALOT!!!!!

Its a good place to start but with loads the way they are now, they have a hard time finding good loads.  
They will fly you to tulsa for orientation for a month, where you will get assigned a hotel room for yourself, on the first 2 weeks. Then on the 3rd week you will have to share a room with someone else in orientation where they teach you the "Melton way" of tying down on a flat bed. Just beware, they do Hair follicle Drug tests! SO many people in my class failed because of that. Then they send you with a trainer for 3 weeks. Then you come back and wait for your truck and keys.
In my experience with working with them for a year i got less than 10 loads that were over 1k miles. So theres that. The office people will help you out and are really nice, when theyre in a good mood.  
They have 5 terminals in the US, with varying quality, the lowest one I've seen is the el Paso terminal, which is basically a dirt lot. 
The pay is alright for a starter company, most i made there was 1600 in a week, but mostly i was getting closet to 1k weekly because of how much time wasting there is, which was my main reason for leaving. 
Like I said, its a good starter company, especially if you havent done flat bed before.

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