Dealing with the gen z.......I swear some days I just want to say f*** it and head to the woods and be a hermit.

[Woodsloafer]

It's not low for the job (though your annual summary included OT) but it's low in comparison to alternative jobs. You're not competing against other CDL driving companies, you're competing against Raytheon, BAE, Lockheed, etc which will pay $85k/yr for a mid range union position doing semi-technical bench work. And they provide all the training. $60k is bare entry level for one of those jobs. I'm not terribly surprised you're having difficulty finding people, CDL driving is way more stressful than that.

It's not that nobody wants to work anymore, there are just few people who are willing to do the job you're offering for the amount you're offering to pay them.

No, there is a lot of people that don't want to work anymore, and it's getting worse and worse everyday. A lot find ways to live off the system for various reasons.

 

[Roadglide]

I've been dealing with the same garbage for almost 30 years myself. Caught in the middle between lazy workers and clueless upper management who cant make a decision if their lives depended on it. I gave up a long time ago and decided to simplify my life. I just assume everyone is an incompetent lazy slack ass. Saves me a whole lot of disappointment.

 

[JRLB]

I'm salary so I take calls anytime even at night (I'm responsible for 2 shifts).

Hourly guys.....I'd never expect them to take work calls while at lunch. My lead receiver is an awesome dude....but during his 30 minute lunch and 15 minute break he is incommunicado......and I respect that.

If they’re hourly, then is t it technically a wage law violation to make them take calls when on break?

 

[whacko]

If they’re hourly, then is t it technically a wage law violation to make them take calls when on break?

Probably.....but in reality only if they complain about it lol. I don't push that issue.

 

[Mountain]

I work in the industrial sector. Our plants do have a hiring and retention challenge with the latest generation. Finding someone who can pass a drug test, shows up consistently, and puts in decent work is getting more and more difficult. The ones we keep are awesome, there are just fewer of them. Wu Flu bullsh!t made this orders of magnitude worse.

The newer generation engineers, CSR's, office staff, etc. are awesome. Our recruiting and hiring is solid plus we have a strong team culture, so that's what we get.

 

[Rockrivr1]

What do you consider to be heavily compensated, $100K, $200K, $300K? People say these things but don't put numbers, or even a range, to put it in true perspective, one man's heavily compensated is another man's shit pay.

Pretty close to $200k and the phone thing was mention in the hiring process. No excuse.

 

[Woodsloafer]

Pretty close to $200k and the phone thing was mention in the hiring process. No excuse.

Do they have contracts that outline/list this responsibility?

 

[Wickedcoolname]

Funny. I'm in charge of 23 people. The guys 45 to 60 years old are my best guys. Period.

Have I dealt with some gen x that are tool bags....sure. but for the most part they work well and don't need their hands held.

When I'm looking for help I won't interview anyone under 50.

 

[Asaltweapon]

a little bit off topic, up in north maine woods I saw the best sign for a truck I have ever seen, max gvw 210000

On the Golden Road it was very common to see trucks running wide and tall loads on double and triple trailers into the mills. Not so much now with the mills closed.

 

[Woodsloafer]

On the Golden Road it was very common to see trucks running wide and tall loads on double and triple trailers into the mills. Not so much now with the mills closed.

There were/are no weight restrictions on the papermill roads, the loads that I would see up there were scary. They would offload at yards where public roads started. Those trucks owned the roads, you had to get out of their way.

 

[Asaltweapon]

There were/are no weight restrictions on the papermill roads, the loads that I would see up there were scary. They would offload at yards where public roads started. Those trucks owned the roads, you had to get out of their way.

The trucks have the ROW at all times. Our secondary roads do not have the 80k GVW limit like the interstates. I think they can get as high as 130k.

 

[Rockrivr1]

Do they have contracts that outline/list this responsibility?

Yep and it was in the job description they signed when interviewed and hired.

 

[Qwikdraw45]

In most cases..not all...but the bad actors that don't show up or do their jobs are all 30's or less. And some of these bad actors with the boss's ear.....

Always been that way. I worked as a cashier at a store at 26. The boss' niece was hired. Useless 18-something. (This was before cell phones - so she'd just chit-chat with everyone). Lousy at it when she had to clean. She got caught stealing, but Auntie still didn't fire her.

I'm not in that boat with hr fortunately. My issue is really finding another cdl a driver if I term him. Hard to come by these days.

Thank the Feds. Every week it's some other requirement added.

How much are CDL jobs paying these days. Also, how does one get a CDL?

Fill out an application. Reading-Is-Fundamental here (but don't worry if you don't know how to spell your own middle name). Make sure you have ELDT training (online; extra money). Make sure you clear the Drug/Alcohol clearing house list. Pay a fee. Take multiple tests. Re-pay and re-take the failed tests. After 10 tries, pay for a license (in advance) and go take a road test. Several times. Don't bump that curb with a tire, or forget to mention a missing valve stem cover! Those are fails right there. Don't forget to buckle up before starting your truck, or you'll fail for that, too. Fail the test; repay; test again; fail; repay; test again. Oh, and if you're adding Hazmat, don't forget to pay for fingerprints first, wait days for the result, pay more and take another written test. If road testing with a Haz-mat vehicle, make sure you've got your "purge" certificate first, showing every nasty thing has been cleaned out of your tanks or whatever. See, easy!

 

[MickeyD’s]

Pretty close to $200k and the phone thing was mention in the hiring process. No excuse.

Should have lead off with the

“phone thing mentioned in hiring process and part of the job description”

 

[MC56]

The newer generation engineers, CSR's, office staff, etc. are awesome. Our recruiting and hiring is solid plus we have a strong team culture, so that's what we get.

Nailed it. A positive, supportive and collaborative work culture is extremely underrated. It can really make all the difference for stressful roles with high attrition rates. Hiring based on the intangibles that can't be trained, such as character and integrity, really makes all the difference.

 

[Mountain]

Nailed it. A positive, supportive and collaborative work culture is extremely underrated. It can really make all the difference for stressful roles with high attrition rates. Hiring based on the intangibles that can't be trained, such as character and integrity, really makes all the difference.

Amen.

We are a lean (aka smaller LOL) division of a very large global company. Advancement via merit collects outstanding people from other divisions that have entrenched politics and internally focused competition. Our people are extremely competitive but with all the focus on competition. Seems like an obvious strength but so many organizations can't pull it off.

 

[pewpewpew]

I'm too much of a dumb millenial to read four pages of this thread, but I will say it's sort of fascinating how invested Gen Z is into being fat, gay, and mentally unwell. I say this as a millenial knowong full well that my generation is severely messed up too; not me though, my boomer parents told me that I'm perfect -- it's why I have so many trophies.

 

[whacko]

I'm too much of a dumb millenial to read four pages of this thread, but I will say it's sort of fascinating how invested Gen Z is into being fat, gay, and mentally unwell. I say this as a millenial knowong full well that my generation is severely messed up too; not me though, my boomer parents told me that I'm perfect -- it's why I have so many trophies.

I'd agree that gen z has taken a liking to being a victim.

 

[MC56]

Amen.

We are a lean (aka smaller LOL) division of a very large global company. Advancement via merit collects outstanding people from other divisions that have entrenched politics and internally focused competition. Our people are extremely competitive but with all the focus on competition. Seems like an obvious strength but so many organizations can't pull it off.

Agreed. I think it's because it takes strong leadership who are willing to make difficult decisions in the best interest of the team, and it's a trait that's becoming rarer and rarer these days. Nothing kills a culture faster than a leader who tolerates shitty behavior. It's challenging to balance empathy and accountability, it takes practice and experience, and not enough "paper leaders" are willing to put in the effort. It's way easier to play stupid and turn a blind eye...

 

[Mountain]

Agreed. I think it's because it takes strong leadership who are willing to make difficult decisions in the best interest of the team, and it's a trait that's becoming rarer and rarer these days. Nothing kills a culture faster than a leader who tolerates shitty behavior. It's challenging to balance empathy and accountability, it takes practice and experience, and not enough "paper leaders" are willing to put in the effort. It's way easier to play stupid and turn a blind eye...

My wife's old company is the worst cluster I have ever seen all due to weak leadership.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

Boomers and older aged X'ers love to hate on millennials and zoomers, yet constantly want us to go fight "for their freedumz".

25 years of war. You should learn to respect your warrior class.

 

[whacko]

Agreed. I think it's because it takes strong leadership who are willing to make difficult decisions in the best interest of the team, and it's a trait that's becoming rarer and rarer these days. Nothing kills a culture faster than a leader who tolerates shitty behavior. It's challenging to balance empathy and accountability, it takes practice and experience, and not enough "paper leaders" are willing to put in the effort. It's way easier to play stupid and turn a blind eye...

Problem for even good leaders......is there's alot of younger workers that know how to play the game.....the game of playing the line between empathy and accountability. I mean......as a leader you can only get to really know a person thru what they tell you......so.....a guys asking to leave early cuz reasons......asking for extra days off cuz reasons......boss I'm gonna be late today cuz reasons. If you don't have the empathy the guy calls you a toxic leader......you don't address the attendance issues and the rest of the team calls you a pushover.

Being a manager is a no win situation most of the time......and there's a ton of gen z that know how to play that f***in game.

 

[whacko]

Update on the original issue

Told this kid at the end of the day.....

You losing the card isn't the issue here......ffs I've lost company shit before and everyone has a bad day......on occasion. Should have just told me and I'd have gotten you a new card.

The issue is you lost a piece of equipment you need to do your job.....and didn't tell me.....and instead chose not to do your job because of the lost card.....which put extra work on the other drivers.

He head nodded the whole time......said "yeah i got you.....when do i get the new gate card"

I said I'll get it to you Monday afternoon use penske till then.

He said ok......can I go home now.

Yeah.....go home.



I think he gets it.....but there was no real emotion in this kid that told me he really understood that he was f***ing his team mates.

Whatever.....

 

[weekendracer]

Or the jobs are fake and you’ll never hear from them…maybe a canned response 6 months from now. When you question yourself “ did I apply there” ?

I think I'm running into this. Either they are looking for a complete 100% match, or not even actively filling the position. I've had quite a few 'high responsibility' positions in my past. I may not be a 100% match, but no one wants to train to the position. I wish my body wasn't wrecked, I'd take a welding class and do something I've always wanted to do, but honestly, I'd last a day on a real job site at this point.

 

[weekendracer]

Probably.....but in reality only if they complain about it lol. I don't push that issue.

Just so you know, the government loses court cases all the time when they abuse workers. All it takes is enough people and the right lawyer to make your company's life miserable.

I got a 10k check because supervisors were making us show up before 'clock in' and do paperwork on non-paid time. Official stuff like time keeping, checking official email, pulling gear from the armory, stuff you by policy can't do if you're off the clock. Eventually, the check got big enough a law group that hated the government took the DOL case.

edit: multiply that check by 20k employees, and it would wreck a small to medium sized company. This policy went on for over a decade, we could only go back 5 or 10 years for the case.

 

[SHOCKNAWE]

Update on the original issue

Told this kid at the end of the day.....

You losing the card isn't the issue here......ffs I've lost company shit before and everyone has a bad day......on occasion. Should have just told me and I'd have gotten you a new card.

The issue is you lost a piece of equipment you need to do your job.....and didn't tell me.....and instead chose not to do your job because of the lost card.....which put extra work on the other drivers.

He head nodded the whole time......said "yeah i got you.....when do i get the new gate card"

I said I'll get it to you Monday afternoon use penske till then.

He said ok......can I go home now.

Yeah.....go home.



I think he gets it.....but there was no real emotion in this kid that told me he really understood that he was f***ing his team mates.

Whatever.....

I bet the entire time he was thinking "WTF is the big deal, hurry the fk up so we can end this stupid conversation"

 

[LT5]

Update on the original issue

Told this kid at the end of the day.....

You losing the card isn't the issue here......ffs I've lost company shit before and everyone has a bad day......on occasion. Should have just told me and I'd have gotten you a new card.

The issue is you lost a piece of equipment you need to do your job.....and didn't tell me.....and instead chose not to do your job because of the lost card.....which put extra work on the other drivers.

He head nodded the whole time......said "yeah i got you.....when do i get the new gate card"

I said I'll get it to you Monday afternoon use penske till then.

He said ok......can I go home now.

Yeah.....go home.



I think he gets it.....but there was no real emotion in this kid that told me he really understood that he was f***ing his team mates.

Whatever.....

So no apology or “it won’t happen again?”
Sounds like the kid’s a douche who couldn’t own a simple mistake nor accept accountability for it and learned nothing from the ordeal.
Unfortunately, you’ll be in a similar situation with him again.
I’d start looking for his replacement.

 

[whacko]

I bet the entire time he was thinking "WTF is the big deal, hurry the fk up so we can end this stupid conversation"

That was the feeling I got.

 

[MC56]

Problem for even good leaders......is there's alot of younger workers that know how to play the game.....the game of playing the line between empathy and accountability. I mean......as a leader you can only get to really know a person thru what they tell you......so.....a guys asking to leave early cuz reasons......asking for extra days off cuz reasons......boss I'm gonna be late today cuz reasons. If you don't have the empathy the guy calls you a toxic leader......you don't address the attendance issues and the rest of the team calls you a pushover.

I agree, and there will always be manipulators, but I also don't think it's an impossible task, it's just a PITA. Documentation and approach is everything, at least in my experience.

Edit: Read your convo, if that was his response then he's uncoachable and has no consideration for his teammates. See ya later in my book.

 

[Woodsloafer]

Boomers and older aged X'ers love to hate on millennials and zoomers, yet constantly want us to go fight "for their freedumz".

25 years of war. You should learn to respect your warrior class.

Boomers are the ones who served and died in Vietnam (and, no, I'm not a Boomer).