If your new to trucking; DO NOT driving Knight/ Squire; it's been a horrible eye opening learning experience.
Pros
Have met a lot of good drivers who are willing to help you as a new person to the profession. They seem to understand the crap management puts you through.
Cons
The truth about Knight Transportation/Squire program is that you are a Squire driver for the first 30,000 miles (90 days has nothing to do with it) and are treated differently than a Knight driver. The truth is Squire drivers are treated like this: • RECRUITERS LIE!!! These are Knight exclusive recruiters who know what the Squire program is and what Knight really does for its drivers. Knight management even compared them to “car salesmen”. • Recruiter said that since I already had my CDL and some experience I would not have to do the 30,000 miles before placing out. That my start in the program would be accelerated and I would only have to do 3 months (maybe) after training of 2 to 3 wks. NOT TRUE. 4 days orientation, 1 wk yard training, 3 wks on the road w/trainer. MANDATARY! • Your orientation pay of $100 for 3 and half days is less than minimum wage for the time spent in orientation. Training is paid at $400 wk but the miles you do with trainer do not count towards the 30,000. You are paid on a sliding scale starting at 27 cents a mile for miles over 500, while Knight drivers are paid 35+ cents a mile for the same loads • You are forced to sign pre-filled out forms in orientation and not allowed to correct the information despite the errors or you can buy your own bus ticket home. And don’t ask for copies of anything you sign, because it is all property of Knight Transportation (remember you work for Squire) and you have no right to it. Not even the long form from the chiropractor who does your physical. If you want copies it will take 2+ months of fighting with management and Phoenix HR, and you still don’t get copies of everything. • Logs – forget asking for copies of those. If you have Qualcom problems and have a question about them you will be ask “did your trainer not show you how to edit them” and finally “just approve them; DOT only cares about the last 7 days”. No one has the time to print them off or sit down and go over them with you. I have been told by some Knight Drivers they have copies of their logs sent to their home. • As a new hire you are forced to take per diem pay that reduces your and their input into Social Security and Medicare and Unemployment should you need it. This precludes you filing an itemized tax return for your actual expenses. When requesting to be taken off per diem you will be put through questioning, “Why do you want to go off per diem?” To get off per diem you have to go through your Terminal Manager and have him sign a form; it’s not as simple as calling payroll or signing an online form about your pay. • There are No True Regional Driving Positions despite what the advertisements and recruiters say. I was hired as a regional driver but now am told that the company is doing away with regional positions. That all drivers are now being hired and required to be OTR, even if you were not trained on it by Squire or anyone else. • They tell you “No Forced Dispatch”. But, you must take the loads offered or you will be treated rudely to the point of hostile and told if you don’t you will sit without pay for days (up to a week) because they don’t have any other loads available. • Un-reachable dispatchers. Sitting for hours (12+) waiting for loads or instructions or directions. • You have to find your own empties, despite that the recruiters claim that this is the job of the planners/dispatchers to assign empties. Knight does not keep track of where empties are located. In fact you may be given a list of where you can go to find one; which does nothing for your fuel bonus. Oh I forgot as a Squire we don’t qualify to get bonuses. • You are not Guaranteed Home Time. Even in good weather, even when not broken down, and loads are on time. If it is 5:00 pm and you need an empty so you can go home for home time; well hope you can find one. Because even if you put in a request for one 3 hours earlier, it is not their responsibility to help find you one. And you will sit until you find one; without pay; and get fired if you bob tail home without one. • All new hires are considered ignorant and are given old or broken down equipment. When request are made for repairs you are treated as if you don’t know the difference between an oil leak and a flat tire. • My truck is older that the ones they have up for sale, but because the mileage is low it is still in use. Now I know why! It has been down more that it has been running. And some of the things wrong have made me feel it was unsafe. I was given a newer truck – a Volvo Automatic with 43000 miles. The service on it was due at 37500 but I was told I had to take it as a loaner or sit because there was not another truck available. • Appointment times are incorrect a lot of the time. Just when you think you are 2 hours early you are informed you are just on time. When arriving at customers with loads you may be confronted with “this was supposed to be here yesterday” or when picking up ”this load was scheduled for pick up last Friday”. . • And forget getting paid for being broke down or their not having any loads available. This has been my experience as an employee of Squire. Yes, I work for Squire. Because whenever I ask a question about something I have been told, the answer is always, “OH, I forgot you are a Squire; you don’t have access to that information on the driver portal or that doesn’t apply to you!!” And by just asking questions you are labeled as having a bad attitude and told you may want to consider if you want to drive for Knight or not. Since I am not a Knight driver and have never been a Knight driver; it is something to consider!!!
