hi. my name is Laree D. i drive truck for a local rendering plant. i have held my licence for 4.5 years and have worked for this company for 3 years as of dec. 13, 2008. I have just returned to work from a 6 mo. disability, jan. 6 2009. as of feb. 6 2009 i have just been informed that my company is trying to terminate me on grounds of dishonesty and willful distruction of company property.
here's what happened. i was informed upon my return to work that i had been bumped off my route by a senior driver. fine. we are union. so, i went to the union and my boss had to explain himself 3 times that first week to the union because "I just don't get it" (his words not mine) I did what they asked me to do. though the start time sucked. whatever.
i came into work on or around jan. 20, 2009 to start my day and was informed that i should have not come in until i had heard from my foreman/dispatcher. since we are union they can not work out of seniority. Yet, the dispatcher had called in a junior employee to take my load. i called the union on him and the rep followed up. after that it seemed he made sure i got both my loads and was called in to work according to senioirty.
jan. 26 2009 i pulled a load 100 miles to another location. once i unloaded and retarped my trailer i headed back the 100 miles. enroute my tarp blew up on me and was damaged. i reported the damage to my foreman/dispatcher.
i stated that the ratches were worn out and needed replaced is why the tarp took off.
f10 days later, feb. 05, 2009 they decided to do an investigation and placed me on suspension the length undetermined. feb. 06, 2009 they decided to try to terminate me on grounds of dishonesty. yet, they have a bill for the repair work done to the trailer. they are accusing me of lying about how it happened and trying to cover it up. they are accusing me of not doing a proper pre trip and not reporting a possible problem. in my oponion the tarp should have held. i have dragged trailers in worst condition than that one. in my experience i fore saw no problem.
other guys have had the same problems. one happened today, feb. 06, 2009. the same thing. a tarp blew up on him.
a few months back another tarp blew up on another guy. same situation.
sat night. jan. 31, 2009 a guy got distracted and forgot to lower the bed on his trailer. he took off with the bed still in the air and hit some low overhanging pipes. damaging a flange and busting some bolts. he was suspended for only one day....pending. (at the company's discretion)
another guy forgot to lower his bucket in a small town and did over $250,000 dollars in damages. got a 5 day suspension and did not serve one day.
another guy has served 27 suspensions, has had 42 write ups and has been drug tested for tripping on a curb.
i have one verbal in my file for some landing gear that i did not roll up all the way.
i have a statement of facts when the dispatcher was harrassing me and using another emplyee to do it. whenever he gets a buddy or a friend a job there he seems to go after me. the new guy always ends up with my stuff. back in may-june of 2008 his little buddy had set his sights on my route and the dispatcher did everything he could to run me off the route. he even went as far as stopping me in the middle street amd accusing me of not taking my lunch at the proper time.
i also have pictures of sub haulers abusing our equipment and not washing out the trailers. the trailer i picked up on jan. 26, 2009 was being hauled by sub haulers before we started picking up the loads. they take our equipment, tear it up, then they give it back. when it breaks on us they try to blame us for it.
here's something else. they waited 10 days to investigate my faulty equipment claim. they never drug tested me like they always do. and they never wrote me up. on the day that they placed me on suspension they still did not have the paper work ready to suspend me or fire me. again, i only have one infraction in my file. the rest is hearsay or a matter of oponion. terminating on a clause of dishonesty is a matter oponion. in the company's opoinion i am lying.
what do you think? is this harrassement/discrimination?
one more thing. i am the only female. the don't even have a wide selection work boots and will not pay the extra fot the boots they want me to wear. i have to pay for that out of my own pocket. yet, the guys have a wider selection and are able to use the voucher that the company gives us.
Laree D.
here's what happened. i was informed upon my return to work that i had been bumped off my route by a senior driver. fine. we are union. so, i went to the union and my boss had to explain himself 3 times that first week to the union because "I just don't get it" (his words not mine) I did what they asked me to do. though the start time sucked. whatever.
i came into work on or around jan. 20, 2009 to start my day and was informed that i should have not come in until i had heard from my foreman/dispatcher. since we are union they can not work out of seniority. Yet, the dispatcher had called in a junior employee to take my load. i called the union on him and the rep followed up. after that it seemed he made sure i got both my loads and was called in to work according to senioirty.
jan. 26 2009 i pulled a load 100 miles to another location. once i unloaded and retarped my trailer i headed back the 100 miles. enroute my tarp blew up on me and was damaged. i reported the damage to my foreman/dispatcher.
i stated that the ratches were worn out and needed replaced is why the tarp took off.
f10 days later, feb. 05, 2009 they decided to do an investigation and placed me on suspension the length undetermined. feb. 06, 2009 they decided to try to terminate me on grounds of dishonesty. yet, they have a bill for the repair work done to the trailer. they are accusing me of lying about how it happened and trying to cover it up. they are accusing me of not doing a proper pre trip and not reporting a possible problem. in my oponion the tarp should have held. i have dragged trailers in worst condition than that one. in my experience i fore saw no problem.
other guys have had the same problems. one happened today, feb. 06, 2009. the same thing. a tarp blew up on him.
a few months back another tarp blew up on another guy. same situation.
sat night. jan. 31, 2009 a guy got distracted and forgot to lower the bed on his trailer. he took off with the bed still in the air and hit some low overhanging pipes. damaging a flange and busting some bolts. he was suspended for only one day....pending. (at the company's discretion)
another guy forgot to lower his bucket in a small town and did over $250,000 dollars in damages. got a 5 day suspension and did not serve one day.
another guy has served 27 suspensions, has had 42 write ups and has been drug tested for tripping on a curb.
i have one verbal in my file for some landing gear that i did not roll up all the way.
i have a statement of facts when the dispatcher was harrassing me and using another emplyee to do it. whenever he gets a buddy or a friend a job there he seems to go after me. the new guy always ends up with my stuff. back in may-june of 2008 his little buddy had set his sights on my route and the dispatcher did everything he could to run me off the route. he even went as far as stopping me in the middle street amd accusing me of not taking my lunch at the proper time.
i also have pictures of sub haulers abusing our equipment and not washing out the trailers. the trailer i picked up on jan. 26, 2009 was being hauled by sub haulers before we started picking up the loads. they take our equipment, tear it up, then they give it back. when it breaks on us they try to blame us for it.
here's something else. they waited 10 days to investigate my faulty equipment claim. they never drug tested me like they always do. and they never wrote me up. on the day that they placed me on suspension they still did not have the paper work ready to suspend me or fire me. again, i only have one infraction in my file. the rest is hearsay or a matter of oponion. terminating on a clause of dishonesty is a matter oponion. in the company's opoinion i am lying.
what do you think? is this harrassement/discrimination?
one more thing. i am the only female. the don't even have a wide selection work boots and will not pay the extra fot the boots they want me to wear. i have to pay for that out of my own pocket. yet, the guys have a wider selection and are able to use the voucher that the company gives us.
Laree D.
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