Panther bashing at truck stops?

[fortwayne]

Independent contractor: One who can think on his own, one who can work on his own, one who can work in conjuction with someone while maintaining his or hers independent business plan while reaching his or hers independent business goal, one who does not need such nonsense information explained to him or her because he or she is blinded by such self-imposed limitations.
Hope that helps - but I doubt if it would in your case.

Fort Wayne
Stop The Mexican Truckers!

 

[wallytrucker1]

I think we get a pair of gloves at landstar after 10 yrs, cloth...

 

[kangar0085]

lol wally

 

[Moot]

I got a vinyl coat from Con-Way after 7 or 8 years. I think the name and logo change were already in the works so they began dumping their supply of obsolete coats. Its water repellant so it makes a great rain coat.

 

[wallytrucker1]

Another good sign of upcoming changes are when they attach the names and logos with velcro

 

[theoldprof]

Was contracted to the Big Kitty for 'bout two years. Never had a problem with them. Got a jacket after one year. A NICE jacket. It was made somewhere called USA. Didn't think USA made clothes anymore. Anyhoo, the only problem I ever had with Big Kitty was they didn't want me to retire. I tried QC messages, phone to the dispatch, emails, etc. I didn't get a reply for about two or three weeks. I guess when you're as valuable to the company as I was, they were in shock that I was leaving them.
:+ :+

 

[kempers_gramp]

>Independent contractor: One who can think on his own, one
>who can work on his own, one who can work in conjuction with
>someone while maintaining his or hers independent business
>plan while reaching his or hers independent business goal,
>one who does not need such nonsense information explained to
>him or her because he or she is blinded by such self-imposed
>limitations.
>Hope that helps - but I doubt if it would in your case.
>
>Fort Wayne
>Stop The Mexican Truckers!

Whew, I'm glad I got the official defination from you! Had I actually gotten it from someone who knows something about expediting and being an "Independent Owner Operator/Contractor", I would probably not felt insulted in the end. I really don't know who you are and really don't care! I am quite aware of the defination of an independent contractor. I was merely trying to raise question in others point of view as to what Panther really does and what their "business model" really entails! For those of you unaware read on.

What I do care about is the fact that what Panther is looking for are "puppets". "Independent Contractors" that they can direct as if they were their own employees. Most people don't understand that to be a true "Independent Contractor" there would be no penalty based on load acceptance. "In Service" percentages would not matter. You could not be placed out of service for refusing a load that some dispatcher or supervisor thinks you should take just so they(Panther) can cover the load, to make the "customer" happy. You as an "Independant contractor" are expected to cover a load to make that customer happpy. You loose money on that load, yet Panther still makes a profit. You sit in the middle of nowhere waiting for an empty move or reduced rate load while they still have 1499 other trucks available for dispatch somewhere in the "Primary" freight area. They do not care. Yet they penalize you for refusing that very load that will put you in the middle of nowhere.

Not with Panther, nor will I ever be again!

Disgruntal---YES!

Taken from Wikipedia.com

Who is an independent contractor?
The general rule is that:

If the one who pays for the labor and services of another has the right to control what will be done and how it will be done, this other person is an employee. This will be so even though the employee has been given some degree of freedom of action. The key determinant is the existence of the right to control the details of how any work is done. Whether such control is actually exercised is irrelevant.
If the one paying for the work does not have the right to control the day-to-day working but merely to direct the desired result, the person supplying the labour is an independent contractor. For example, if a builder uses the in-house employees for basic construction but hires in specialists for electrical, plumbing, plastering, and decorating work as and when required, these are likely to be independent contractors. One clear sign will be whether such individuals are entered in the payroll system and paid as other employees, or paid when the work contracted for is completed and certified of satisfactory quality.

 

[guest]

are you drunk?...I met drivers and they are not very happy with 25 cpm...with 3.49 gas price I doubt drivers are making any money in special with PII ... FSC 10 cents per mile

 

[guest]

they stil asking for you

 

[nightcreacher]

I shouldnt say anything,but,come on,25cpm.

 

[lonercom]

.10/mile is generous. I've had NLM loads to Canada for .04/mile. Guess y I'm not there anymore.

 

[fortwayne]

kempers_gramp

dude you just sound like so many disgruted ex-panther drivers who could not take the ups and downs of working with a large expediting company.
yes there are ups and yes there are downs - here and every other company.
but do not sit here and blab this bs just because your to sensative of a little contracter to take the downs with the ups.
does panther want puppets - i do not know and really do not care. all i know is MOST of the drivers that want to work actually do work and get their loads. those that want to work 3-4 days out of the week in return sit - play their video games, then come on here complaining and whinning like a little school girl.
get a life - take responsibilty for your own actions or the lack there of!
i am not saying panther is for everyone - but it has been the right fit for me. for others - its tri-state, fedex, express-1, etc etc.
best of luck to all those who want to work - to those that do nothing but complain when they fail - SHUT UP MCDONALD'S IS HIRING!



Fort Wayne
Boycott The Flyless J!

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Only one on here who is whining is whining about the whiners. Just because you get a warm fuzzy feeling about Panther doesn't mean everyone drinks the same kool-aid you do.

-Vampire Super Slooth Trucker!!!

 

[fortwayne]

Hawk -
Dude, take a look at what I was saying. I said Panther may not be for everyone but it has worked out for me. I said it was nice to find out that all the bashing of Panther was not true at least in my case. I SAID IT HAS WORKED FOR ME BUT MAY NOT BE FOR EVERYONE. Sorry you missed that. I will try to explain it slower next time. I didn't say one bad thing about another carrier - not one - yet some of you people will bash Panther just to bash. I said everyone has to make their own decision and not always base it on rumors and ex-driver comments. Next time I will tell everyone to just ask you before they do anything.

Fort Wayne
Boycott The Flyless J!

 

[blizzard2014]

Why would a college professor need to take up a job as an expediter? Is there a problem with the fat pensions that you college professors get; the pensions that are paid for by unsuspecting college graduates that leave America's institutions of higher learning with (three hundred thousand dollars in student loan debt)? lol. I guess you see everything out here on the big-road, even the educated like to become driver...just so they can be treated like ##### and experience what it is truly like to struggle to save a dime.

But i'm on the other side of this coin. I've experienced just about all of the ill's of expediting that one could possibly encounter. So, in response to the countless woes of the professional driving industry, I think i'm going to throw in the proverbial towel and go back to college to become a sociology professor. that way I can secure a place for myself as the next author of one of the most prolific and beautifully written (sociology text books of my generation) thus solidifyig my name in the pages of history along with countless others like the great, C. Wright Mills...commonly refered to as - -the angry sociologist. Then I will, for my great services rendered, receive a super-sized-big-old-fat-cat "pension" as my due reward for helping to shape young minds...the minds of those that will grow up to become our nations future.

May god help me if I ever end up workig as an expediter durig my golden years. Working for wally-world commands more respect and carries more prestige than sitting around in a parking lot waiting for a gray box to beep. But, hell, that's just my opinion on the matter. We all have our individual perspectives on the world and how reality is, could, and should be.

lol, i'm just busting your chops about the pension thing. But, as an intelligent chap, I would have to say that colleges are more so in the business of making money "off of the students" than they are in educating them. In the world of academia, even the sociology professors and commy english teachers are all pawns in a capitalist mans world. But, what the hell, i'm just a glorified steering-wheel holder at the moment; how much weight could my splended observation possibly hold?

 

[blizzard2014]

But, despite my cynical and biased opinion about college professors and the transportation industry as a whole, I would have to say that the world is what you make of it. If you truly want to be an expediter and, yes, (even a successful panther driver) you will figure out how to accept the good with the bad. Every career has ups and downs, but only the strong can weather the storm and continue on the path to success. Expediting is kind of like the business cycle; you have your up's, then your peaks, and surly enough; your lows. But such is with any occupation that you may choose to get involved in.

How many of you disgruntled panther drivers would trade in your two months of yearly vacation time in order to go to work in an office (where you are confined in a cubicle for 9 hours a day, and only allowed two weeks of vacation time per fiscal year)? And vice versa; how many coffee-chugging-pencil-necked dispatchers do you know who can handle being on the road for 6 weeks at a time (living like vagabonds and puttig up with a world full of psychotic four wheelers and the occasional nut-case-super-trucker)?

So, there you have it. The ignoramouses that complain all of the time and jump from one company to another are just too impatient; or in the wrong profession. Regardless of what company you may choose to contract with; if you are truly interested in success, you will find a way to achieve it. And, like-wise, if you are not interested in being successful, you will find a million excuses as to why you are unable to succeed. Which is to say, you will more than likely blame the company for your failure rather than face the fact that you are probably not cut out to be an expediter.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Wayne... Dude... hear me now or listen later. You might not know this, but this bashing or whining, as you would call it, serves a purpose. If you get past the name calling and obvious anger in the posts, you get to the meat and potatoes of what these ppl are saying. It's called reading between the lines. Have you ever had a eureka moment where someone said something, and you thought "Wow! I thought I was the only one who believed that."? That's how this site works. Ppl . Ppl who've had same experiences join in. Then we have a discussion about what's going on at XYZ company. Then someone at ABC company jumps in and discusses what goes on at their company. Then everyone sings kumbaya and the thread dies a slow death. Then someone wondering about company XYZ or ABC does a search in the archives months or years later. They learn from the whining, bashing, whatever, by weeding out what they don't need and absorbing what hits them as important.

I don't know how long you've been in expediting, and it's really not relevant here. But you haven't been on EO long. One thing you will learn by sitting back and reading day to day is that there are serial bashers, then there are those who don't bash normally, but once in awhile bring up legitimate gripes. Serial bashers either fade away, cause no one takes them seriously, or they get ejected for taking things too far. Until you can identify who belongs to what group, you're making yourself look like a fool by branding anyone who says anything negative a basher.

I'm glad you're doing well with Panther. No negative experiences with them? Great! But I'll guarantee if you read what ppl say here, you'll have a better knowledge of what to expect. You'll know what questions to ask if something does happen that you've never experienced. You'll know what to do in certain situations when the dispatchers are going "Duh... I dunno." And you'll know who to ask on EO to clarify the post they made a month ago that mirrors your then current situation.

Like it or not, EO is not a -free zone. If it became one, no one would learn anything. We're not here to roast marshmallows and compare weekly checks. This is a venting site, as well as a support and learning site. Hope you are able to leave it at that. Enjoy.

-Vampire Super Slooth Trucker!!!

 

[fortwayne]

hawk -
i have no problem with people venting as you call it, but, the problem comes when certain people on this site in control allow to much of it to go on past the point of trying to 'inform' others of what goes on behind the scene. heck, you have no way to verify if that person 'venting' is even telling the truth about their so-called run in with a particular carrier, but you allow them to ramble on and tarnish the chacter of the carrier. unless of course it gets to the extreme that the carrier may get offended and stops advertising on this site, then of course the thread is stopped and locked. in this thread i simple came on here and gave panther a heavy duty 'job well done' rating and then several people came on here and attacked me for doing so, adding that while panther maybe my fit it is not a good place for everyone. heck, i agreed with that thought, and that was my point. before we take any notice to all this bitching of a carrier that is allowed on this site everyone should do their own research and the method of research they use should be decided by them as well. my main point is people should take responsibilty for thier own actions and their own decisions and not wait or allow someone else to dictate to them what their next move or action should be. ignore all the negative talk we hear everyday about carriers, most of that comes from lazy deadbeat ex-drivers of the carrier that are incapable of doing any serious hard work in this line of work. it is just easier for them to blame others for their failures instead of looking in the mirror and taking note that they need to make some personal changes if they are ever going to reach their target, and very few of them have set a target or goal - those that fail in this business tend to just live day by day with no long term goals. so before you at me next time, read between my lines as well, and see what i am saying. unlike you who belives people should research this site for the complaints and failures of others at a carrier,I believe people should get off their tailbones and actually go out and research carriers by speaking with current drivers, research the history of the company, research the market development of the carrier, research the market trend of the company. it serves no purpose to anyone to speak to former drivers who have nothing but negative comments about a carrier to say - when in fact their failures mean nothing to the prospective driver as most failures are self determined by limitations brought on by the driver themselves, aka turndowns, refusals, hometime, etc. So before some how I am made out to be the bad guy - remember instead of enforcing the research of all the negatives why not try to research the positives of the carrier - change the thought process from negative research and the dulling of the attitude and mind - to the positive research and the sharpening of the mind and the change to a positive attitude. who was the last person you knew that had a negative attitude that was succesful? dah! no one! but you can mention someone who has a positive attitude that is succesful - correct. nothing is positive with a negative attitude, it is self defeating.....but a more positive attitude brings on changes and the ability to reach your target is much more reachable, is in your control.
Fort Wayne
Boycott The Flyless J!

 

[Tennesseahawk]

There's a big difference between a negative attitude and a negative comment. Also, some of those you claim have a negative attitude may just be disgruntled. All the talk on here about so many doing great with a company could trigger comments from those who believe they've done all they can, but aren't making good money. When things are going good, ppl don't tend to bring out the negative aspects of their carrier. But when the freight dries up, EVERYTHING comes out at once. I'm guilty of it myself. Doesn't mean we have a negative attitude, it means we're frustrated that our experience can't overcome whatever situation we're talking about.

As far as Panther pulling the plug on EO. Believe me... the mods at EO know when to warn or lock when things get too rowdy. They have a lot of experience in sniffing out trouble. I've been here almost 3 yrs and think they've done a great job weighing the usefullness of the message against the advertising aspect of the target company. When something is deemed flaming or a potential bomb, it's taken care of before it takes off.

-Vampire Super Slooth Trucker!!!

 

[are12]

Driver's seem to forget, the FSC is not to cover the cost of the fuel but to "help" with the cost of fuel.

If you want someone to pay for your fuel than you need to be a company driver.