ABF Freight Review Local City Driver/Dock Worker

Just my opinion on ABF Freight
The Army Vet Trucker YT - / @thearmyvettrucker5410
Local Truck Driver
ABF Freight Review
Hope you enjoy,
God bless!
If you have any questions don't hesitate to leave them in the comments or shoot me an email, I'll answer to the best of my ability!
Truck Driving
CDL

[@Musictroper76]

I agree with you. I struggled with the fork lift and was ridiculed by everyone on the dock and the supervisors. They expected me to be a bad ass with only a few weeks in. Like you, I just wanted to drive, and didn't get a CDL to work on the dock.

[@Trucking4America316]

Bro I did regional for a week but it’s a whole different ball game. I’m back local now delivering beer, hardly any driving. I wish I was driving more, but at this point the pay and benefits are really good for my family and I’m home every night. God bless your journey friend!

[@thearmyvettrucker5410]

Great video, brother. Thank you for sharing your experience and opinions. Stay safe out there!

[@Trucking4America316]

Yooo appreciate that Sarge! Thanking God I left ABF man. Much more joy where I’m at now, better pay, and same benefits.

[@TheDequaleant]

Hang in there. I’m out of Dallas 070. I’ve been there 3 years as a city driver and dock worker. When the work picks us..the dock is the best spot. Unlimited overtime. As a driver you’ll be capped. I use to work 100hrs a week on the dock with the 7th day being double pay.

[@Trucking4America316]

Yeah, already made a move and regretting it. Might go back, the insurance is the biggest thing for our family. On the road currently with a regional company, hopefully going to make better $$.

[@Dawgpound205]

ABF is the best LTL company to work for, second to none. Period. And here’s the thing, I’ve never worked there. However, I have worked at Yellow and imo yellow was 2nd. Not many companies offer overtime after 8, free insurance, and a pension. If you get an opportunity, RUN. Also make sure you get there early on day 1 so that if they hire anyone else on the same day you will be higher in seniority, only if you are there and clocked in before them.

[@Trucking4America316]

Yup I agree with showing up early. I’m delivering beer locally now and so thankful to God I left ABF. Much happier now with better pay and same benefits.

[@husariaairsoft]

Comments are back on, good video man!

[@thomazz1976]

I feel your pain brother. After Yellow closed I went to TForce. Stuck on the dock for almost 6 months going back and forth between linehaul P&D. I went to a non union regional carrier making more money and no dock work. Keep your head up.

[@Trucking4America316]

Yeah man a lot of the yellow guys that came to ABF got screwed hard being on the bottom of the list. Few got laid off, others on call bids… I’m back union delivering beer, hardly any driving, mostly physical labor. But awesome benefits and $36/hour.

[@thomazz1976]

@@Trucking4America316 I'm glad for you brother. Keep your head up. I know for a fact some of us at our barn did not have the same luck and still struggling.

[@Trucking4America316]

@@thomazz1976 thanks dude, you as well man, God bless. I’ll do whatever it takes to provide for my family the best I can.

[@thomazz1976]

@@Trucking4America316 I completely understand. We do whatever it takes.

[@mrfixitm3345]

Amen brother. I work for ODFL and I'm in the same situation you were. It will be 2 years in April and I joined dock with intentions of the dock to driver program (have had class B since 2004). I got a spot within a few months and got the class A with flying colors the first shot and did my 1 year of "combo" status which ended in September so on paper I became a P&D driver but like you I've driven maybe 2 months total time in 2 years. We have had many leave in that time but they have brought in 0 since my hire so I'm the last to be hired and the last to go through dock to driver. The seniority thing sucks unless you have a million years in. I'm 40 and don't want to wait 8 years to get the bottom driving spot it's very frustrating. Like you I didn't get my class A to drive a forklift and we don't even have bumpers around the doors here in Ohio you'll watch snow come in one side and blow out the other. You'll need at least 2 pairs of pants, wool socks, insulated boots, 4+ shirts, 2 hats, 2 gloves, and a face mask just to make it some days and you're still frozen. Our freight when I came in was about 800k lbs a night and now it's like 350k lbs nightly. We are non-union but still have the same drama.

[@Trucking4America316]

Yeah bro, I knew I couldn’t be the only one. It’s rough man, on one hand I have to put supporting my family over my enjoyment of vocation, I was miserable at ABF. I just finished regional driving for a month, and can’t do that either, wife and I want me home everyday. Going to another union local gig starting tomorrow. At this point 2.5 years with my CDL, I’m just going to have to stick it out here. It’s beverage delivery, specifically liquor. But there is no dock work for the drivers, strictly deliveries. Not a lot of driving, and super physical work, but I can get used to that. Good luck brother, God bless. I wouldn’t stay miserable at a place though.

[@mrfixitm3345]

@Trucking4America316 best of luck on the new gig! I have a wife and 3 kids and I completely understand the need to be home for them. I was at the same place for 17 years and was always off by 4pm m-f but grew tired of the place and needed a change. Right now I'm stuck on 2pm until around 11pm (or whenever we are done) m-f and it's killer on the family routine. I'm stuck on staying or leaving as I like the job itself (driving not dock) but it could take many years to get to a half decent schedule and the money is good. The job market also sucks right now for anything.

[@mikeholbert1958]

It's seems like the road driver position is the way to go at Abf. Especially at the larger road centers .

[@Trucking4America316]

Yeah if your goal is like mine in you want to mostly drive, it definitely is. I shouldn’t done that from the gate, but now that spot is filled. I’m doing beer delivery now at a local union gig.

[@barnabasmorton6795]

I was interview for city but want to do linehaul. If hired can i switch to linehaul before i start with the city ? Plz advise

[@Trucking4America316]

Hey I believe so, probably depends on the terminal and what the needs are there. If they have line haul openings and you want to drive I would recommend that. If you don’t mind working a dock and waiting to move up to drive, then you could do city.

[@barnabasmorton6795]

@@Trucking4America316 Thanks, ran linehaul at Yrc for 9 yrs until shutdown. Really don't want to do city/ P&D.

[@Trucking4America316]

@@barnabasmorton6795 oh yeah brother if you did line haul at yellow then you know how it is. Yeah just for sure if you apply or interview, just ask the terminal manager if they have a spot on line haul. If they don’t and you don’t want to do P&D, then I don’t recommend. One of the reasons I left was our terminal only had 13 line haul drivers and weren’t adding any so I could never get over to there.

[@user-lc4vc3hq9h]

For the maps st.paul egan hub how likely is it to get a road job?

[@Trucking4America316]

The terminal manager said earliest they’d have a new road position would be possibly this summer but no guarantees. My buddies that still work there say it’s still really slow, possibly more lay offs coming.

[@HeyArnoldGotAFootballHead]

LTL in a nutshell. I was at FXF doing P&D for 2 years and i drove all the time but barely got 40 hours a week. Covid period they hired too many drivers and bottom Linehaul and city drivers would work the dock 4 days a week and only driving once. When i first got there i was getting 50 hours a week at starting 23$ an hour. Got maxed out at 33$ an hour in 6 months and of course soon as i got top pay it slowed down and couldn’t get any OT

[@Trucking4America316]

Yeah I’m doing beer delivery now, union and local. My buddies at ABF saying it’s still super slow, hardly getting 40, no overtime. Not sure if it’s going to pick up anytime soon either.

[@HeyArnoldGotAFootballHead]

@@Trucking4America316 how is that ? Do you intend on staying ?

[@Trucking4America316]

@@HeyArnoldGotAFootballHead it’s very physical, not a lot of driving. But home every night, very good pay and benefits. Raise to $36 an hour next month, double time on Saturdays. We really need the good health/dental insurance for our family so I plan on staying.

[@itisim]

Is ltl worth it? I haul fuel

[@HeyArnoldGotAFootballHead]

@@itisim once u get some decent seniority in a get a good bid run it definitely is. A 8 hour drop and hour run pulling 2 set would gross 100k once topped out at FedEx Freight

[@improvisedsurvival5967]

Yellow went down and abf is next. The teamsters will sacrifice freight to save ups at all costs

[@Trucking4America316]

ABF celebrated 100 years, and that doesn’t just magically happen. But the union footprint overall has been drastically shrinking in the industry over the decades.

[@improvisedsurvival5967]

@@Trucking4America316 yellow was 99 yrs old. Abf isn’t safe from being next.

[@Trucking4America316]

Oh I didn’t know that about yellow, yeah you’re right. The manager said during my exit interview all the reasons I gave for leaving, are the same for everyone, so ABF knows why ppl are leaving, but they’re not fixing the issues. He said the retention is horrendous for them ages 19-35, which is literally the next generation work force.

[@improvisedsurvival5967]

@@Trucking4America316 freight volume is down in ltl. The union will protect ups at all costs. The freight will go to ups to keep it going.. ups is teamsters bread and butter

[@gomezx6056]

Taken from your other comments you already resigned, brotha.. every job has its politics, and “the bad eggs”. Some more than others. You’re not there to make friends you’re there to work and bring the bread home to your family. Seniority seems like it’s your worst enemy at first. But as you put your time in, it’s your only protection a guy that’s only been there 9 months isn’t gonna understand that. I’ve been here 12 years and plan to retire, you can choose to engage in any politics or ignore it all together. However this isn’t a job that you ignore it all, you have to get involved because it’s our lively hood. Time on this earth is all we have of value. And we are investing it in a company that you hope to retire from so knowledge is power to protect it. There’s so much I can type but I’ll keep it short, for those looking to get hired at ABF, just know this job is a unicorn job but like anything in life something worth having isn’t easy. Gotta put your time in, learn and grow.

[@Trucking4America316]

All you said is true. I’m going back local to haul liquor, union gig. I get the retirement outlook, but at this point in our lives the health/dental insurance is what we need now.

[@indo3052]

@@Trucking4America316i thought abf has great healthcare?

[@Trucking4America316]

They do, they have the absolute best to be honest. But I’m not gonna work at a shop my whole life where I’m miserable because of what I’m doing or the people I’m working with. Too many opportunities out here for my generation to do that.

[@indo3052]

@@Trucking4America316 i'm confused I thought ABF was a really good company. You can always transfer into another position with that company

[@Trucking4America316]

@@indo3052 it is, but with the economy where it is, this terminal doesn’t have full time spots left. It’s better this way, God always has a plan. Like I said, I’m not a fan of the freight or some of the people there. Where I’m going has the same union benefits, higher pay, and 4 day work week. 7 a.m. start Tuesday-Friday.