I figured I would come and share the most recent up to date experiences of Western Express. I understand that diaries and journals can be used in the court of law so I will be sharing my experience so far and answering any questions that come up.
I am currently at the end of week one training. I am NER and I drive flatbed.
Orientation:
PreDay 1- I arrive late Sunday evening at the days inn in Richmond. It’s so trashy and sketchy that they lock the lobby at night and you can walk up to an outside window to check in. I try to buy half my room but the man at the counter says I have to pay $100 a night for the room because it was completely booked.
Whatever so I take the key and go up to my room. When I open the door BOTH beds were occupied. I go back to tell the clerk and fuck face makes it seem like there’s no way in the world that it’s possible for people to be in the room. I thought about how easy it was to walk in on someone sleeping and realized that that is the most unsafest thing on the planet. BTW I’m a lady so it adds a layer of terror. Needless to say I left that hotel and booked my own. I was told I would not be reimbursed.
Western And The Lies. Me
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Day 1:
Fortunately I drove down in my personal vehicle.
I arrive and breakfast is served- or that’s what they call it. I’m pretty positive they contract with Aramark which provides a sort of tiered food service to schools, hospitals, prisons etc. The lowest tier being the prison food. The one you pay the cheapest for but is only supposed to keep you alive long enough to finish your sentence. I was in the military and some bases use Aramark for the galley. Odorless flavorless oatmeal and fruit cup.
Lunch is a ham sandwich. I told them I don’t eat pork. They told me they don’t serve any🧐
To this very day I’m not terribly sure what the two scoops of slop were that was served for dinner. I’d heard Alfredo and I’d heard beef stroganoff. Those things should never be confused with each other for any reason. I had to pay for my meals to avoid upsetting my diagnosed IBS. No free meals for me.
Western And The Lies. Me
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Mostly sitting and watching videos. Rinse lather repeat for days 2 & 3.
Day 4
Load securement. Watch videos, take a test. I got lucky and got a trainer early. BUT THERE’S A GOTCHA!!!! There always is. Every single shit filled day you go to orientation you sign in with your name and if you smoke or not. I used to smoke before I became a mother but now, a decade later, the smell is nauseating. And he smokes more than the tailpipe of our truck. I mean literally every 10-20 minutes. It’s so regular we ride around late fall, all over the northeast with both windows open. When it’s my turn to go into sleeper I can barely sleep bc it’s cold and my nose is blocked from the smoke and I have a slight persistent headache that probably won’t end until training does. Whenever that is. My trainer loves my driving which means I’ll get exploited as long as he, and the DM, wants. Predatory is an understatement so far. Because of the occasional young male brain’s inability to see women as full blown people I don’t think my trainer believes that I urinate, like ever. Even after mentioning multiple times we gotta stop. Maybe he thinks it evaporates out of me. Even knowing I had to pee one time, he had me get out of the truck to do something on the flatbed and he used a bottle. Lmfao here I am dying and leaking. Oh yea and we have yet to stop and shower. I was going to consider training for the sake and safety of women but I think I should warn them instead at this point. The pay is incredibly exploitative for the trainee. Just got my first pay stub after 2 weeks and
-$400 later I made a whopping $89 🫠
Western And The Lies. Me
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Well I’ll be here to continue letting you know how it goes. Being from a military family there is literally no quit in me. I’ve cried already to my partner about a testing experience I had on (definitely not my) home time, stuck in the middle of nowhere with no Uber expansion. They did have Instacart though. Thank Pete!
Journey with me through the highs and lows. Worst case scenario I guess I die. I did get that 20k life insurance policy though😉 now my child can buy groceries for a year if I pass. I’ve also never sued an employer so I should start by saying the pay they promised is already a lie.
Western And The Lies. Me
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UPDATE: **removed for specificities too… specific.
It’s too late to run. I think if I have to ask for a new trainer I will Stay tuned
