Pros
Great staff at terminal level and middle management, office staff, mechanics, and drivers alike. Type of work is interesting and engaging, meet and talk to lots of interesting clients and it's a good starting point to learn about the transportation industry. Career opportunities aren't bad if you are willing to relocate, but you must know the right people at mid & upper management level to even get your name in the conversation. Compensation is okay for someone in their 20s or early 30s, but it is not a salary you can live off permanently. No annual raises for cost of living which should be required, but I did ask for multiple raises during my time there and presented my case (ie: how much work I was doing, and what responsibilities I had inherited) and was approved every time.
Cons
Upper management does not care about problems at the terminal level, only the bottom line. It can be a struggle to correct pay issues, and unfortunately there are MANY pay issues every week in terms of improperly paid demurrage, layover pay, etc. Impossible to contact anyone for a straight answer when it comes to safety/hr/payroll/etc. Anything that is done at the corporate level, you will be playing phone tag for days or weeks trying to talk to the right person to correct a simple issue or get clarification. Some in upper (corporate level) management positions are borderline bullies. Their HR team is there to protect the company, not the employees and they will let good employees go at the drop of a hat if they call attention to certain problems like this. Unfortunately something I witnessed with multiple coworkers over a period of time. Lots of subpar terminals, leaving the well-run terminals to clean up their mess in terms of poor maintenance, uncovered loads, etc. Then they turn around and hold the terminals that actually put in effort to a much higher standard instead of focusing on the problematic ones. Most of the problem terminals seem to be legacy Heniff terminals vs. Miller & Superior Carriers which were purchased.
