Saturday, 11-19-16
This is in reference to PAM Transport with the office location in Tontitown, Arkansas.
My fiance is a driver for said company and for the last two times he has been put on the road (last time for 5 weeks, this time for 6 weeks) he and his co-driver have encountered problems with coordination of trailer pick-ups, trailer drop-offs, payroll, delays and misinformation regarding truck to dispatch reports, company policies they were never informed of even at the level of triaining school, and now, their lack of ability to work with a family member who has witnessed this continuing and worsening work environment. I called the office on Saturday night after having heard the stories consistently for the last month. When I called, and my fiance did not know I was going to call, I could not reach the
weekend evening driver manager so I called the 800 number. The gentleman at that number hung up on me but managed to connect me with an unknown female. I was very put off by being hung up on and would have acted with less anger had I been treated with respect. The female was very rude and told me I had already called on the 18th with the same complaints. I told her that the person she had spoken to on Friday night was not me and noted that the additional same type of contact from another family member should tell the company something. I explained that I was unable to reach the driver manager. She told me there was no one there on Saturday and Sunday and to call back on Monday.
She did apologize about having mistaken me for the woman the night before. I told her that I would definitely call back on Monday to speak to higher management. As a last resort I re-dailed the night driver manager explaining the situation and asking him one pointed question. He said he could tell that this was not going to be a good conversation and that I was going to "wallop" him. I replied no, that I just wanted to ask him again why the drivers had been sitting at a PAM terminal in Texas where they were supposed to pick up a load before lunch and it was now 7pm. He again told me he could "tell" that the conversation wasn't going to be pleasant and that he would find them another load. He put me on
hold and during that hold, within 5 minutes, my fiance called me asked me to work in the transport management department as they had found them another load. I told him I'd call back, went to the call on hold and realized that I was still listening to elevator music. I held for about 10 minutes and the manager never followed up with me. When I heard from my fiance in a few minutes he said the loaded trailer he was given, per the dispatch mgr. at the PAM hub, had, in fact been waiting there since 9am this date. In addition, the PAM driver manager contacted my fiance and told him to tell me not to call the office anymore. He was told not to get involved with how his family participates in his work situation.
The PAM worker apologized and the driver received more "suck up" emails as well as aknowledgement by the driver manager that what had been going on for the last week and a half was indeed not appropriate. Now, I noticed on the PAM facebook page that they lost profits in the third quarter. I think I can help them figure that out. Poor middle or lower management which is not overseen by upper management. They just settled a lawsuit regarding their payroll issues. I would think they would keep a closer watch on themselves to avoid yet another lawsuit. My understanding from my fiance is that drivers are quitting left and right for these very issues OR that they have to call the office in Tontitown and
pitch a fit just to get a load. Even the payroll checks are incorrect almost every pay period. This is unacceptable. As of right now, my fiance and his co-driver have had so many delays in the last week and a half that they haven't even earned minimum wage. Unacceptable again. I suppose it is because they have these driver "mills" where they are turning out men and women hand over fist who have high hopes as the gentlemen mentioned in this posting did. They want to drive. They want to follow the guidelines for their safety, the safety of others, and to keep the company in good standing. This current situation is neither isolated nor reasonable. These drivers might as well be flipping hamburgers instead of
supporting supply and demand of the United States and wherever else they go....Mexico? Canada? I will be contacting the home office in Tontitown on Monday and if anyone would care to share their story with me please do so. I will gladly forward anonymous information. If we on the home end can't stand up for our drivers then who will? They have to follow so many guidelines and don't want to be fired. They WANT TO WORK! SO LET THEM!!! Please feel free to email me or post to this and let me know your feelings, whether they be supportive of my complaints or not. I'm a big girl. I was a white collar worker in management for many years in many capacities and hold college degrees. I know how to handle myself. Thank you for reading.