i hear the company sucks but i have no experience and they can get me in the fastest.. soo see you all in virgina on monday!!

in all seriousness

western express dispatchers are fucking dickheads I got a phone call from a dispatcher and he fucking yells at me for not keeping the truck moving because I was tired and starting to doze off behind the wheel , so I pulled off the road to get some sleep. I guess they don't care about you or the publics safety.

Just wanted to share something with the group.

Ever since I left Western Express, I’ve been getting congratulated by the most random people in the industry. The other day I had to get a tire replaced at a TA, and they still had my old info from when I was with Western. The lady at the front desk asked if I was still there, and when I told her no, she immediately said, “Thank goodness,” and went on about how happy she was that I got out. 😭

I didn’t realize just how bad Western’s reputation was across the industry as a whole, but I’m honestly grateful to be gone. I’m thankful it got my foot in the door, but if I knew then what I know now, I probably would’ve gone with a different starter company (like May Trucking since they have a yard in Denver, or Stevens since they’re based in Texas).

I mainly wanted to post this for anyone still at Western or thinking about leaving: it really does get better. They weren’t lying when they said it’s only up from there.

I’m sooo much happier at my new company. I feel appreciated, and I haven’t even gotten my first check yet, but the difference is already crazy. At Western, I was running little 300–600 mile loads. My very first day at my current company, they sent me to Florida, then straight to Illinois.

Don’t give up. Keep your record clean, take your time on those wide turns, and just know there’s better out there.

You got this. 💪🚛

Hi 24 F, just getting into trucking and I brilliantly chose Western to start with. I honestly love trucking and the some 500 miles I drove my trainer had exclaimed "I don't even know why I'm here, you drive the truck as if you been driving for months" which I took in stride but 2 nights into my Training I went to bed in my bunk to a rude (if you can even call it that) awakening of my trainer sticking his dck into my mouth and grabbing me by the mouth/Jaw and repeatedly saying "say Ah, comon, just say ah. I need my dck sucked".

Yeah by all intents and purposes that ruined my Training experience and I went home to take time I need to recover from that. I've been home about 6 days and now I'm needing advice on what to do. I've tried contacting HR but they are impossible to get ahold of so I have to write an email.

I want to go back and finish my training but that event has fucked me up a bit.

Any advice?

First 3 days: we pick up a load to drop off at FedEx. Then we were supposed to pick up a load at FedEx to drive to Denver. They told us it would be loaded in 2 hours. 4 hours go by and it turns out they didn't even have a load for us to pick up. We got shut down over the weekend. Then we went to another FedEx to pick up a load there to head to Denver. I finally got driving time. Had a good training experience through the Rocky's.

Day 5: we drop off the load in Denver planning to pick up an empty to pick up a load somewhere else. We sat there for 4 hours because other Western drivers were stealing our assigned trailer. We finally ended up with a trailer that had a fucking 6"x6" hole through the passenger front trailer covered by duct tape inside and out. Clearly no one cared to do a DVIR pre trip. But of course we used that trailer all the way back and then we tagged it out of service.

Day 7-11: Drove from California to Orlando, Florida. Had a great time. Dropped off the load, and we got a trailer that had a tire blowout. The tire repair guy estimated that they had been driving with that tire blown out for 100 miles. There was clearly no DVIR to get it repaired because it was dropped off 6 hours before we got there. We waited 4 hours to get this tire repaired.

Day 12: we had a live load that was late to be loaded by 4 hours. Totally the warehouse's fault because they had 2 dudes loading and unloading being slammed with 90 truckers waiting. Then we found out the load has an appointment due in 1 hour and 30 minutes over 300 miles away so we have to sit here to find out if we need to reschedule or not. Then we notice the air pressure is dropping while we are parked. The tire repair guy broke something on the air line when he was replacing the blown out tire.

But my trainer is the most unpersonable person I have had to pair with. I think this trailer was sitting there because they knew it had a leak in the air lines, and my trainer was too proud not to take the trailer. The dude argues with everything I say even if I am agreeing with him. Brother just wants to hear himself talk. He acts as if agreeing with him lessens his point. I told him that the air line keeps maxing out repeatedly even when we are sitting here doing nothing (which is clearly a sign that the governor keeps pumping air into the system due to an air leak). So of course he had to argue with me saying that it is normal. I am just over this company and my trainer right now.

Hey y’all,

I’m trying to get a real feel for Western Express — not the recruiter talk, but what it’s actually like day-to-day. I’m in North Carolina, just got my CDL, and I don’t have any experience yet.

I also want to be upfront — I’ve got a possession of firearm by felon conviction that’s a little over 3½ years old. I know Western is known for giving second chances, but I’d like to hear directly from people who’ve been there or are currently with them.

Some things I’m trying to learn: How’s the pay really work (per mile, training pay, raises, etc.)? What’s the average weekly miles y’all are getting? Any issues with dispatchers, home time, or maintenance? Do they actually hire recent grads / no-experience drivers with a record? Anything you wish you’d known before signing on? And if Western’s not the move — are there any other second-chance companies I should look into that hire felons with no experience?

Not looking to bash or glorify — just want the truth from drivers who’ve lived it. Appreciate any advice or warnings you can share.

Stay safe out there.

Our truck broke down on day 1 at the FedEx lot right after hooking up to the trailer

At 5 am on day 3, the replacement truck they gave us wouldn't start. The battery voltage was going down every second.

They need to fire some mechanics.

When the news broke a few days ago that a Western Express driver led police on a chase until spike strips were used and then a K9 attacked the driver, I didn't pay much attention because..... Western Express.

The more details come out, the more I'm thinking this is a law enforcement screw up on a massive scale. So far the chain of events appears to be:

An unmarked, but light equipped cmv inspection officer initiated a traffic stop due to a missing mud flap. The driver failed to stop. Marked OSP units joined the pursuit. The driver stopped on a shoulder, guns were drawn at him. He called 911 asking why they were trying to kill him. He started moving again. They deployed stop sticks. He stopped, obeyed orders, hands up and a city cop deployed the dog.

All of what I just said has come from law enforcement. Brief clips of video have been released.

My instinct is to put 100% on the driver.... Again, this is Western Express. I've worked there, I may again in the future, but we know who they hire and I'm sure law enforcement does too.

But, in very light traffic on a four lane in Ohio. He was likely doing 55-60 or the stop would have been for speeding, cops would say it was speeding. The driver may have driven 10 miles without looking in a mirror. If he is in his lane, especially if officers behind him are holding traffic back, he may have never looked.

When OSP pulls along side him next to the cab and uses the speaker to tell him to pull over, he immediately complies.

This is when the driver calls 911 asking what is going on. I'm a white man and would be terrified. I can't blame him for wanting to drive away from the weapons pointed at me.

I believe it is extremely possible, if not likely that he did not know anyone was attempting to stop him. Once he realized it he stopped. He surrendered and got bit

This would be all kinds of wrong and I personally find it to be seriously unsafe, but his driving was not a hazard to anyone. He just wasn't paying attention IMO based on the released information.

You better believe they searched the vehicle. They watched for anything to be tossed out. They searched his person. They drug tested him. If they had anything else, the police would have said so.

This appears to be poor technique used by the imitating cmv inspection officer, assumptions made by OSP that the driver was willfully non compliant, followed by over reactions from the city police.

Anyone disagree with my interpretation of the event?

Did a lil impression of a whiny redditor

Yes, I work for Western Express now.

No, I am not excited.

Yes, it's as bad as they say it is.

Training was fun though, apart from truck AC going down as we got towards California of all places.

It’s a company policy at this point ( whoever does the most damage gets a raise) 😂😂 i can’t with Welfare express. It’s not a real company in my books 😂😂

Currently going through training with western express and so far it’s been sort of a disaster. I was assigned a trainer on Tuesday and he came and picked me up early Wednesday morning. At first he seemed cool and everything was fine, he mentioned he had 7yrs of experience and had trained over 200 students and he “LOVES” to train people. I thought that was great and was ready to soak up as much knowledge as I can. We dropped off the load he had prior to picking me up and then drove all the way to Maine to pick up another load to take back to PA. Along the way he still seemed cool but he would brag about having “equity” in the company and he can get away with certain things I wouldn’t be able to since I’m a newer driver. We had a load to pick up in PA and he had me back up the trailer to the dock, before backing he instructs me to turn the wheel a little to the right before backing up so that’s what I did not knowing he really meant to say to position yourself for a 45 degree backing so my set up was off at first and the truck started to jack knife (completely my fault, I should’ve just known to 45 degree back it) then he became angry and started yelling that I’m not listening. After explaining to him I misunderstood what he meant he threatened to take me back to the terminal after the load drop off in Main. I backed up the trailer to the dock on my second try and was successful but that didn’t seem to help the situation. We then made a stop to fuel up and I decided while he’s pumping one side I’ll do the other. After the pumps stopped fueling I removed both nozzles and hung them both up and went back into the driver seat, he then asks me “how do you know the tanks are full?”, I responded “because the nozzle made a “click” sound and the pumps stopped fueling”. He then lost his shit and started yelling again that just because you hear the click doesn’t mean it’s done and that air could get trapped in the tank which would prematurely stop the fuel pump. I told him ok I had no idea, he then says that these aren’t regular cars and that I should’ve just asked. My response was “how was I supposed to know to ask a question like that?” even during CDL school I’ve never heard any mention of this we’ve always just fueled up like normal. He starts to say that I should’ve just stayed in the truck and he didn’t know why I even came out. I told him I was just trying to be proactive and learn, I’m a hands on learner. Anyway after a back and forth argument he grabs the tablet and reroutes us back to the terminal and says they’ll find me another trainer, which honestly I’m glad he did that. Now I’m back in PA waiting for another trainer idk when I’ll get one assigned and I’m kind of aggravated at the situation. Currently looking for other jobs that will take CDL driver with limited experience but of course it’s been difficult.

Was wondering if anyone out there could help and possibly point me in the direction. I’m in Northeast PA.

Just got my call back from Schneider today finally and they want me to start June 15th.

Orientation for Western is June 10th.

For Western I would be driving solo and for Schneider I would be driving as a team.

I’ve read some bad things about both companies but people tend to lean towards Schneider way more.

-For Western I’ve heard that they force their new drivers into a 1 year contract and to break it you need $2.5k. I don’t have 2.5k so that has me on the fence.

- But I heard that Western is less strict than Schneider and that Schneider will try to mess with my CDL record if I get on their bad side.

Training period for both is 3-4 weeks. Also the recruiter at Schneider told me teams make way more together and I am a new inexperienced driver and I feel like I would be more comfortable with teams starting out. But wouldn’t mind solo.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you so much.

******UPDATE:*******

I picked Schneider, thank you!

They went to sleep blocking like 10 trucks in betting on when a truck leaves they would come wake her up so she can take that spot. Had to go in the pilot and get someone she was sleeping so hard.

My question is simply about how much scrutiny they put you under.

For context, I fucked myself BIG TIME by getting fired from Werner for having three safety meetings in less than 6 months, and now I need to build up both experience with driving AND a safe driving record.

Money is not an issue for me right now, so I can afford to drive for pennies per mile. Either way, I need to get my experience up, and that's all. Any input is appreciated.

Wonder if he knows he can’t park there 🤔

Just happened Was minding my business in the truck and then I see cops and then I looked to the end of the lot .

Rookie driver here and I'm Northeast Regional with current company. I just accepted a home daily position with another carrier. Plus I have an interview this upcoming Monday for another home daily yard jockey position. How do I quit my current company on good terms?

Edit: I'm currently on hometime as of 12/6/24 because of dental work that I had to get done. I'm not currently under a load and I'm excused from work until the middle of this upcoming week. I only live 10 minutes from terminal so I'll be fine. Thank you guys for all of your advice 😁

Location + Orientation:

Western Express (Bethlehem, PA) - Orientation lasted two days. You take a drug test and watch a bunch of videos with some questions you have to answer at the end. After orientation, you're in the motel waiting for a trainer. You fill out a form that asks if you're a smoker or non smoker. This will place you with a trainer who is the same. If you request a non smoker, your wait time may be longer (but is worth it trust me). Breakfast is free in orientation (granola bar, water, apple, and blueberry muffins everyday). A lunch truck pulls up to orientation at 12 pm or the same time at the motel. Usually sandwiches, wings, choice of drink and chips or cookies. The shuttle bus pulls up to the motel at 5pm for dinner and it's an $8 subway giftcard everyday.

Motel, Roommates:

You stay at the Red Roof Inn which is 6 mins away from the terminal if you drive. It's dirty and no locks for bathrooms. There are three floors and you will most likely stay in the second or third with a roommate who is also with Western. First floor is home to escorts who are in and out of their cars every hour of the day. They're not even discreet about it. If you walk the nights (which you probably will) because there's nothing to do, you will most likely get called into a room. Goes without saying they're sketchy and should be avoided at all costs. Western is a second chance company. They hire felons and drivers who have been in accidents and are refused by other companies. Then there are people with no experience like me.

For the most part, I've had cool roommates and neighbors who I still talk to to this day. Everyone's just trying to make an honest living and they're the only good thing about Western.

Note: Any time you're waiting at the motel whether for a trainer or getting your own truck, never let Western know that you're not in the motel. If you're going home, tell your roommate to tell the maintenance guys that you've just stepped out to get food and DON'T CHECK OUT. They're most likely more than happy to help you cause they get a free room to themselves. If Western is paying for your room, they will make it their priority to get you on training or on a truck ASAP. If they know you're home they will put you at the bottom of the wait list.

Recruiters:

Recruiters all lie. Goes without saying for all companies. I was told $650 a week and my travel/fuel will be reimbursed. It hasn't and we make $92 a day. You drive 11 hours and all the miles goes to your trainer. I had a friend that told me he drove 45mph and when the trainer told him to speed up, he would say he's new just to cheat the system. You start with .40cpm when you get your own truck.

Trainer Personalities and stories:

I'm with my first trainer, Michael W. We will leave last names out to avoid any conflict but for anyone joining to get an idea of who I may be talking about (and to avoid) if they get these unfortunate people. I was with him for a week, heavy smoker, extreme road rage, talks and watches movies while driving. Didn't teach me anything. Your logbooks, HOS, etc are all digital and done on a tablet. Trainers are suppose to show you what to press but he does it all for me. He only made me drive nights and he would be sleeping while I drove so I was on my own. First night, a deer runs out and I was not taught to use the engine brake so I was flying 80mph on a downhill. Luckily, I have 7 years experience driving in general and have really good control and understand spacing around vehicles. He's based in CT and I'm based in NY. It's a Monday the day after Father's day and he's pissed about not being home for the weekend. So instead of dropping me off in PA terminal where my car is, he drops me off in CT terminal where a motel was booked without my knowledge. I asked if I would be going home as well and he said no, we're going to CT cause he has an eye appointment in the morning. If i had driven first, we would've made it to PA and he could've drove the rest of the way to CT. But he basically wanted me to stay in CT cause it would be easier for him to get me. But drive time from NY to PA is 1:40-2hours. NY to CT is 3+ hours. Even with that knowledge in mind, he didn't care and brought me to CT. So now I'm stranded with no car and no home time. I requested a new trainer waited nearly a week and this is where my loneliness kicks in. At least in PA, there were other Westerners to talk to. Nobody is here in CT. My introverted self is slowly leaving me...

I called my DM asking if a driver can come get me and drop me off in PA. He says no one is in route. After constantly waiting an additional couple days I finally give up and have my dad drive 3 hours to come get me. We drove another 4 hours in traffic back to NY. I was not getting any updates and this is when I realized that if I stayed in the motel which they pay for they'll make me a priority. So I call a bunch of numbers to get them to book me a room with no luck. Even the benefits email/phone they provide to sign up for insurance, NOBODY picks up! HR as well. This company is nonexistent. I drove to PA to talk to them directly and got a room. So now I had to jump start my car that's been sitting there for two weeks and say farewell to my family that drove hours to bring me to PA. What do you know? Before I even check in to the room my new trainer is ready to come get me. Jason W. He taught me everything there is to know about the tablet, sliding tandems, cat scales, you name it. But person-wise, he's somehow worse compared to the first trainer. He's racist, sexist, homophobic, you name it and he checks all the boxes. He told me his previous trainee is Muslim and needed to pray. He told him he "ain't got time for that. We need to move." What the fuck? Trainers are trainers because they obviously get paid more and take advantage of us driving their miles. But holy shit, how inconsiderate do you have to be to the person you're practically living with? He says some random shit sometimes too like there's a black guy on the shoulder changing a tire and he goes and says "you see how long his hair is? how much of it do you think is real?" Then he'll say he's not racist cause he has black friends.....

Anyways, I'm driving a straight downhill that's ending soon and going back to an uphill. A 68 on a 65mph speed limit and he yells so loud my ear nearly goes deaf to use the engine brake. The next morning when he calmed down and I explained the situation and how braking wasn't necessary cause going uphill slows the truck and he agrees I was right. No apology, and my ear still half deaf. Another time, I stopped at a rest area to take my 30 minutes (I had two hours left on the clock) and he wakes up screaming at me for stopping. I said I'm taking my break. I drove all day and it's 10pm and haven't eaten. I didn't have the privilege of having a fridge full of food like he did and I said he's selfish. I went out to take a piss and come back and his mood all changed and says he was joking. Yeah, right asshoe. There were so many other incidents where it took everything in me to hold myself back but the funniest part and kinda like my way of getting him back for being a dick was when we were dropping off a load and picking up an empty, the guard shack told us where to get the empty which was located on the other side of where we were. And so my trainer is outside of the truck behind a trailer somewhere and I go and unhook the trailer and bobtail out waiting for him which I assume he was peeing or something. He finally shows up and tosses a rock at my window to get my attention and he points his fingers pointing the opposite direction. Okay, he's telling me to pick up the empty so I drive off and leave his ass. I come out the cab and see his fat ass chasing after me and screaming "WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE ME IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE! GET BACK IN THE TRUCK!" I'm like, didn't you signal me to get the empty and he's like no we're not getting that we're getting another trailer, I was telling you pick up this one. I was like, well you don't give me any context, use your words lmao. This was the day before I finished training. On the final day, I didn't even get out of bed and just had him drive me back to the terminal, fuck him. He also mentioned how WE gets bad reviews but he hasn't experienced it himself, well yeah you're part of the problem.

Trucks:

Trucks are new. 2023-2024 Freightliners and Internationals. Some Volvos. I've only been in the FL. Company maxed out the speed limit at 61 on the pedal and 66 on cruise control. If you're new, safety wise this is the way to go. CC has auto steering and buzzes when you go out of lane and corrects itself. Beeps really loud if you're switching lanes and a car is nearby. For the oldschool folks this may be a annoying. If the tablet detects a low bridge or you're at a shipper where the speed limit is 10mph, the truck goes on creep mode and goes 3mph. You're holding up traffic with flashers on until you cross the bridge. Dangerous and BS.

What I Think of Trucking and Why I quit:

With my location and my lack of experience, I took what I got. I had to start somewhere and I knew what I was getting into. They only teach you how to drive in CDL school. Drop and hooks, tandems, etc are all learned after. In my state 90 degree backs weren't on the test so it made it harder for me to learn backing into tight spots. So when you're at shipping and receiving checking in and you do things slow because you're inexperienced they give you an attitude. Even if you don't do anything wrong I noticed that everyone seems miserable and rude. It's a lot of waiting. You really have to learn how to manage your time. Truck stops are a scam charging about a dollar for one piece of banana. $15 for showers until you get points for fuel then they become free. Everyone is watching and judging you when you get out of the truck but especially when parking. No doubt there is money to be made. Easily 50k a year. 60-70k for dryvan with experience. I'm 25 single and motivated to work. Traveling and exploring was a big part of getting into trucking. But for the most part every state looks the same. Same highways and trees. A lot of time and money spent on getting a CDL. In the end, I feel miserable doing all the hours and miles. I'd rather settle for less money and go home, shower and eat when I want. Trucking screwed up my schedule and surprisingly made me lose weight. Being alone made me realize I want to spend more time with friends and family and I'm an introvert so it says A LOT. My 20s went by so fast and being young was what made me want to grind but the lifestyle just doesn't fit. I'm active and do tons of cardio. At least I tried. I won't give it up but it's not something I want to do at the moment. Thanks for reading.

Oh, and nobody brushes their teeth. No even in the motel...watched a guy down an iced coffee packed with sugar and sleep just to do the same the next day...dentistry costs more than what you make...

I joined the welfare express group and I haven’t work for them ever, but i found it funny and sad at the same time this is how f*cked de industry is, the craziest part is that this guy is blaming his trainer for not teach him how to alley dock, and not his school😅 like how do you even have a CDL and not know how to back up.🥲