Disrespected company sometimes deserves it sometimes not
Swift is a large trucking company that appears to be fighting for its life. Rife with accident prone drivers and run-down terminals, it's the remnants of a large entry-level trucking company that still manages to hold a top spot in tractor trailer shipping.
Driving a truck in general has gone downhill from a unique job where mavericks go out to work alone and not worry about annoying co-workers or bosses. All that has recently ended with the installation of driver cameras.
Most trucking companies aren't as desperate as Swift to improve on their accident rates, however I can't just pick on Swift, because almost every significant carrier has signed on to electronic driver surveillance, so I give them more than a bullet. Trucking companies in general have subscribed to the idea that all traffic laws are in complete logical sync with safety - something common sense tells us is simply not true. Companies selling the devices have conned desperate safety departments to use technology to filter out drivers - promising lower accident rates by removing drivers of all competence levels from behind the wheel - sometimes for good reasons, sometimes not.
I managed to get a slew of so-called safety violations from Swift despite never even coming close to getting into an accident! Not even getting into what you might call, a near..near miss. The devices are designed to bust you for going mere inches over a limit line, coasting downhill too fast to save fuel, making u turns in places wh
Great caring management for the most part. Opportunities to grow within the company
The good :
I have felt like I have been treated well as a person by this company. I have seen this company make the right choice for its employees even when they could have saved a few bucks and made the wrong one.
The company is very understanding when things come up that require you to miss work. You are treated like a adult and are not micromanaged for the most part.
The drivers we hire are treated as the most valuable asset in the company as they should be.
There pto policy is ok but could be much better however your pto time is treated as earned time and I have never been treated like an inconvenience for using it.
The not so good:
The pay is pretty poor for the job you are doing. This is nearly full cycle recruiting, from sourcing, interviewing qualifying, presenting job offers, scheduling orientations and travel for new applicants. You could easily get a entry level recruiting job that only requires sourcing and scheduling interviews for hiring managers for nearly any company that has recruiters and it would pay more then this company The pay over my time has been incredibly stagnant in fact I made more money my first year here then I did my last all while producing at a higher level in most of my metrics.
During covid working from home was the expectation, however more then once through covid we were asked to come in for weeks at a time only to be sent back home due to everyone getting sick. Over the last year while working from home our company produced one the
ProsGood on the job training Good management Treats their employees like adults
ConsPoor pay Bad metrics system Bad healthcare plans
Not sure who is giving them 5 stars unless they are new to the trucking industry, worked slave labor prior to coming to Swift, or actually work for Swift and trying to raise their review score, but the place is a joke!! Just search for Swift Accidents or Reviews and you'll get the idea!
I was hired as an hourly paid Shop Foreman from 7am to 5:30pm 4 days a week. Within a week I was told my hours are actually 6:30am to 6pm, and possibly later, with is no overtime pay and no lunch break or coffee / rest room break.
Out of 10 mechanics in the shop, only 2 actually know what they are doing, a 3rd is learning good, and the rest are lazy who like to falsify work performed and create drama within the shop. 1 mechanic who had no formal mechanic training on anything mechanical actually went to the local tech school and asked to take a diploma test because he's been in the truck mechanic industry for a year and knows what he's doing. They laughed at him and said no, yet he became offended and said the tech school doesn't know what they are doing! Seriously??
Dispatch is also a joke who think they run the shop. They call them selves "Driver Managers" but If they were TRUE Driver Managers, they would know what driving is like, and also be familiar with the shop work load and all environments of trucking, not just dispatching "steering wheel holders" as they call the drivers. The dispatch team also expect you to take care of load transfers at the terminal and take care Overag
ProsClose to home
ConsEverything else. Doesnt follow DOT rules, expected to have no life.
At Swift Transportation i worked as a safety compliance associate working with recruiters and processing new applicants.The recruiters would bring in new drivers for orientation that was held once a week.I was responsible for making sure all orientation paperwork and DOT docs were in order, checking backgrounds and driving records.I learned alot about the trucking industry and recruitment of new applicants.The Management situation was somewhat poor though. I was assigned to a manager in memphis TN. So the only time i spoke to this person was over email or on the phone. My review yearly for a raise, ( if i was lucky to get one) was conducted by someone who has never met me or seen how i work. To make matters worse, during my 4yrs with the company I had 4 different managers. They always seemed to quit. Operations management in the terminal was of no use either. Whenever I was confronted with a dilemma , onsite management would only help me AFTER they made me feel I was incompetent. When all of them are just ex truck drivers with no form of higher eduaction. My coworkers were a mix of good and bad. When the company hit hard times even the good people i thought were my friends turned to be snakes in the grass just to save their own jobs. The hardest part of the job was being laid off and then being asked to reapply. I reapplied and had to interview for my old job i did for 4yrs ! I wasnt rehired and found out they hired someone else for less money. Who does that? Why lay me off?
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀-
•Beginning with the cons because there are not many of them. I’ve heard that pay is low, but that only applies to those not taking full advantage of the available benefits. For those not interested in the college tuition reimbursement offer, then it may not be the position you’re searching for.
•If you are a non-smoker, please make sure to ask before hand for a smoke-free truck to be available after mentoring. I was able to find one without smoke, but a lot of the cabs do have smoke clinging to the fabric.
•Many of your co-workers and people you will meet these times, are yet to find Jesus. Many of them are middle-aged men who are yet to find the light in life. That means that when you stop at a terminal or are being mentored, you may be spending time with people who do not have respect for your ears, and will use explicit language. That is the same with many jobs. Just shine your light and you will be fine!
•Mentor’s can vary! You may have an experienced and polite one, or one who may throw rocks at you along the way. Either way, take it as a leaning experience. You are 30 days from having your own keys and traveling nearly anywhere, watching the brightest of stars ✨ during the peaceful night. You’ll be alright.
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•The pay is so much greater than most other jobs in America when it comes to semi-entry position jobs. Gross weekly pay is minimum $1000 and can be around $1500 with your bonuses. Monthly bonuses for beginners are around $600/month! I received t
ProsPaid college, loads, reward program, meet new people, travel
If you like like to drive, meet amazing people, and work outdoors go Flatbed Division!
A lot of people and I mean A LOT of people talk about this company. I learned that it is due to getting and/or having a bad experience driving. I would tell people, that as long as you do your job. You deliver freight on time. Don't cause an accident. You will be praised for doing a great job and paid bonuses for doing so! If you get into an accident and it wasn't your fault. You'll be fine! Yet if you were at fault, well... Actions have consequences.
In my 4 years working for them. I did flatbed hauling for the flatbed division. It was difficult, honest, work. After a year of solo hauling. I became a Mentor and trained other folks to become professional drivers. I'll tell you what! The training in the FLATBED Division is 100% legit. They will train you to succeed and be SAFE! Safety FIRST is always a motto at Swift. I'd recruit drivers to go Flatbed and leave Dry van/Refrigerated to expand his/her knowledge if they had the physical capability to do it. Because it was a very rewarding career.
A typical day at work is to wake up. Do a pre trip inspection of your truck, trailer, and if flat bed to double and triple check your securements. You'd hit the road and can legally drive for up to 8 hours before your first DOT break which last of at least 30 minutes. After 30 minutes or so of a break. You can hit the road for up to another 3 hours giving a total of 11 hours per DOT to drive that day. Through out the day you'll do micro breaks/stops to check your trailer often, get fuel
Office people were impressive and polite,especially during orientation process,driving school sanely managed.For 6k I'd expect more time behind the wheel not just 3 40 mile trips behind the gate.Offensive guys,who belong in a halfway house,foul smelling and yelling profanities are allowed to be mentors.I'll write a book about it,but if I omit all the swearing it will look more like the brochure.Verbal,emotional and physical assault is common.How can we become best in class if we are trained by the worst C students at best?In less than 5 weeks OTR saw mentor backing up from the on-ramp,making illegal U-turns,having troubles staying in lane,driving on my time after using all his and breaking at least 3 other DOT/FCMSA rules.Another mentor threatened to break trainees' arm in case he turns the wheel the wrong way and used metal wire to hit trainees' hands,making trainee drive 200 miles on a flat tire,mocking student's national origin etc.Planners having no idea about planning f.e. dispatching dry van to pick up fresh meat.Coordinators telling one person one thing and then turning around and asking the other person about the opposite.Yelling obscenities at students,hitting them physically and threatening with physical abuse refering to them as crazy and other epithets over and over again does not help anyone to succeed in any manner.People who are upset and intimidated can't function properly.Noone aspires to put up with that or suffer just for nothing,but getting rid of the
ProsOffice ladies were nice, school guys friendly
ConsCriminal mentors given free pass to do anything
May want to avoid this conflicted company altogether.
Going into the company and position, I thought it’d be an exciting opportunity to delve into a different industry and try my hand at something new. However, after only a few months, I’m pretty unsatisfied with my experience. I’ll just highlight the main points.
- The big one is culture. During my orientation and later during the company trainings, it was preached that maintaining an overall positive culture throughout the company was crucial. My cultural experience? More or less opposite of this: quite a bit of disrespect, a bit of condescension, and wishy-washy consideration for others. It was a shock to the system.
- Good luck having much of a life, especially if you have a family. You’ll be expected to work 50ish hours per week, which isn’t even the bad part. Expect those hours to be constantly stressful most of the time, on top of having a laughably ridiculous workload (considering the low pay).
- Poor communication was commonplace.
- Leadership needs a considerable overhaul. Without going into great detail, I will say the company needs to invest in creating/developing more capable leaders. Sure, it’s great to have a leader who’s adept with the technical side of things in their area, but what about those soft skills? There needs to be better development/focus when it comes to those. If you’re going to preach about being a good leader in general, it should apply to all leaders throughout the company.
- Training. While I was given a messy (and often frustrating) crash cou
ProsCo-workers, on-site cafeteria, OK (not great) benefits, company training (by the learning consultants, not so much “training” provided by manager/supervisor)
ConsPoor work-life balance, poor communication, very conflicted culture (pretty negative in many ways), poor management, pay-to-workload/stress ratio
I regretted joining Swift Transportation, and getting my CDL thru them.
Expect to sacrifice your time off in exchange for the unpaid burdens that come with trucking. Especially if you are just starting out as a company driver. You will get little compensation for learning how to drive while with a mentor, and could lose a lot of money if you decide to go thru their CDL school, and you don't make it for 1 year in trucking do to all of the pitfalls and mistakes you'll make when starting out. You will have a learning curve, but it depends on how fast you improve thru the curve. If you make too many mistakes like I did, you won't make it in the first year. The tuition alone last time I went thru it in 2016 was around $3,000. Other places will be a lot cheaper if you get yours from somewhere else. Expect to be out 6 days a week and off 1 day for every 6 days out. It averages out to be around 5 days off per month as a company driver. And only around 52 days total out of the entire year if you survive and thrive. And you only get about 1 week of paid vacation after you achieve your anniversary date. You won't get paid holidays, etc. when you're a OTR driver. Pay extra attention to port of entries and weigh scales: you can easily get a ticket. And if you're serious about making trucking (esp. OTR) you need to make it your lifestyle and expect downtime when you're still working and not getting paid for it. Too many examples to explain. And I would highly recommend also getting a CDL Defense Insurance to protect your CDL from any possible tickets. I highly
ProsSometimes there's long easy loads that pay well for hours of driving.
ConsTrucking may not be for you, and you might find out the hard way if you try it.
Orientation was a joke and once you start working for them they will say you get $150 for orientation. This only applies if you live 50 miles or more from their distribution center. Problem is you cant work for them on this account if you live more then 30 miles from them so don't expect to see that money. They will also tell you that you will make $450 a week while doing 5 weeks of training. This was a lie based on my experience and only saw $100 - $150 a week. After my first week after training i got one good check then was making a weekly income of about $350. I stayed because i was loyal and didn't believe in cutting and running. I asked for all the long hauls they had that no one wanted.
This all went downhill once they told me i was on safety hold because their computers had stated my license was suspended which it was not. I went and got documents from the DMV showing I was current and they said, "Ok we'll handle it". I sat around for a week and a half no phone calls from them or any contact. I called and they said i was still on safety hold. They had made it seemed like they fired me so i looked for another company to work for and was immediately hired.
The next day I received a call from the terminal manager who was angry and said, "I've been calling you everyday but i see you left to go work for (Company)" My reply was "yes i have a mortgage and you haven't allowed me to work for the last week and a half, i received no phone calls or voice mails from you and
ProsCant think of any....
ConsLittle pay, Beat up and abused trucks, incompetent management
Questions And Answers about Swift Transportation
How often do you get a raise at Swift Transportation?
Asked Dec 6, 2020
Yearly
Answered Mar 23, 2023
Every 6 months. Fiscal year payments
Answered Mar 20, 2023
What is the promotion process like at Swift Transportation?
Asked Sep 14, 2020
Very slim
Answered Mar 23, 2023
Promotion based on position and time,
Answered Mar 2, 2023
What is a typical day like for you at Swift Transportation?
Asked Mar 18, 2020
Driving a semi
Answered Mar 13, 2023
Driving to and from Walmart retail stores
Answered Mar 13, 2023
What is the best part of working at Swift Transportation?
Asked Jan 5, 2020
Gaining the class A experience, very friendly and positive work environment
Answered Jul 2, 2022
I am always stressed in working with this company and the staff
Answered Jul 1, 2022
What benefits does Swift Transportation offer?
Asked Jun 20, 2018
Health insurance bonuses
Answered Mar 20, 2023
Full benefits after 90 days. Dental not untill 1 year completed
