Anonymous
Florida,#2Author of original report
Mon, August 15, 2011
Well, its now been a month since my initial post. I just thought I would followup for the sake of any future reader(s) that may come across my story.
At the time of my last writing, I was still waiting to get paid for trips I'd made for this company. Long story short, it was nearly a month before I saw any money. They still haven't paid me all that they owe me, but, at this point, so much time has passed I figure to just cut my losses.
In the five (5) weeks since I've been on "home-time", my Fleet Manager has never attempted to contact me. I have called repeatedly (and, when I say repeatedly, I really mean every two or three days) in attempt to make contact with him. I've gone as far as:
- Leaving my name and phone number with H.R. with their promise to pass the note along to him. No one called.
- Leaving my name and phone number with H.R. with their promise to email him and his immediate supervisor with my name and contact information describing me as a "stranded company driver" without a partner and in need of return to a terminal for pairing with another team member so that I could continue to work. No one called.
- Calling my Fleet Managers back-line extension...only to find out the line rang into a voicemail system telling me that their was no voicemail box setup for that extension. Unable to leave a message.
- Emailing my Fleet Manager at his Corporate email address given to me by Human Resources. My email never received a reply from my Fleet Manager.
By the way, this would make sense if my Fleet Manager had either changed positions or sought employment with another company. But, this is not the case. He still works for them, in this capacity, to this day.
As far as ever being able to reach the Payroll Department. I was never successful, hence, the reason(s) I always ended up speaking to someone in H.R., since they were screening all the calls. (And still are today, I phoned Chattanooga this morning).
This is a bad situation.
Reader, I'm not a crack-pot. I'm not some irate idiot babbling about some nonsense resulting from a possible misunderstanding between two people and then taken by one and blown way out of context.
Everything I've reported in this post is the absolute truth.
I spoke to H.R. again this morning. I asked if the Payroll Department was receiving phone calls. She told me they weren't but she would transfer me to that extension anyway, but, with no promises that I would get through and be able to speak to anyone.
Reader, I have no further plans to continue to update this post. I felt obligated to any future readers to create this update as a followup to my original post to offer some closure for those that may have read about my initial experiences and wonder what may have ever resulted.
I phoned this morning and spoke to H.R. again. (after another futile attempt trying to contact my Fleet Manager). I gave them a brief synopsis of my recent experience(s) leading to my "home-time" in early July stemming from my partner's illness and subsequent medical diagnosis/treatment which has now precluded him from any future driving. I explained to H.R. my numerous unsuccessful attempts in reaching my Fleet Manager and informed them the reason for my call was to let "someone" know what has happened to me. I didn't want to leave Covenant on bad terms or have them think I simply abandoned them...that's not the case at all. I have simply had to find another job in the time I've been home. I have a family that needs support and I had to get another job in order to be able to provide for them. I have no hard feelings, but, just simply wanted them to know what was going on with me. The H.R. representative I spoke to told me she would forward that message over to my Fleet Manager. Reader, I seriously still have my doubts. But, I've done all that I can and I can live with that.
On a more positive note, I've signed on with another outfit much closer to home that doesn't require I be out OTR for three weeks at a time. I drive a "reefer" with a teammate making runs to the West Coast. We are paid a percentage of what we haul and in the last three weeks or so (that I've been on-board with them) my weekly pay has been consistently averaging a little over $1000.00 a week. So, I've been very fortunate. The owner of the company is himself a long-time trucker and its nice working for someone that knows how our job is and really appreciates the job that we do.
As far as the future of Covenant, I have serious doubt. If I equated all the ineffective business practices I've witnessed with physical symptoms, I would believe Covenant is seriously ill. Not a good thing. These traits are not earmarks for a successful, thriving company. So, take it for what all of this may be worth to you. Good Luck and God Bless.