Werner Enterprises Reviews

Current Employee – been working at Werner Enterprises full-time for less than a year

Pros – great starter company, Learned a tremendous amount about the job, opportunties to advance into different divisions while staying with the same company.

Cons – long hours, communication between planners, dispatchers, and drivers needs much improvement

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than a year

Pros – Accepted right out of driving school. Good exercise, lost 20 lbs. Good on the job training. Trainer was kind of crazy, like me. Generally, 34 hr. resets are at home.

Cons – Pay turned out to be only about half of what the recruiter said it would be. Health insurance lacked. Fleet Manager was just plain mean most of the time. Dollar General buildings seem to be built without any consideration that tractor trailers would be delivering the freight. Had to push 1200 lb. rolltainers up unrealistic delivery areas. It was like the Mechanic's where doing you a favor to get trucks repaired, usually with a delay. If you started feeling good about yourself, either Werner or Dollar General would put you right back down with some sort of an issue. It's a job or a game that just can't be won by drivers. The job kept getting worse instead of better even though I worked my ass off regularly to the point of exhaustion. Too many people there saying, "Just be glad you have a job." If you allow that, that's what you will always get, a crapy job. At the end it was like "Fool me once, your fault. Fool me twice, my fault. Keep fooling me over and over again, I have to be a moron to stay, so I left. Last words I heard in the office, Another fleet manager saying to another driver, "We have been fooling you for years" and then laughing...

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Werner Enterprises full-time for less than a year

Pros – They have some very nice people working at some of the terminals, my trainer was a very experienced driver of fifteen years, I got a pretty good DM who while very serious was able to get me good miles most of the time and overall helpful

Cons – You will not be paid what you're worth. As a new driver and doing the math at the end of a seventy hour week and depending on miles, expect to be paid about $12/hour, give or take a buck. The trucks are in shoddy shape, the mechanics are not paid enough to care. Expect to get home late on an every frequently growing basis. If you are Western 11 expect to be in Chicago and the north east.

Advice to Senior Management – Take a chill pill, pay your drivers more, quit outsourcing the mechanics and pay them a livable wage too.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than 10 years

Pros – Great learning company, it is possible to get your miles up if you work at it

Cons – No real long term potential, training for them can be a nightmare

Advice to Senior Management – Pay for trainers is entirely too low

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Solid stable company, you wont have to worry about losing your job for the most part

Cons – If you are in a field office not in the corporate office expect no chance to advance

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than a year

Pros – Miles and training are good they will get you the experience you need. Pay could be better I average about $600/week as a solo otr driver. Also, they honestly to try to get you home on time it just doesn't work out sometimes

Cons – They try to get you home EXACTLY in your day you request. So if your in your home area the day before your requested day expect to work doing shags or sitting at a shipper all day to get loaded just to drive and split the load at the terminal. Also, the pay could be a lot better.

Advice to Senior Management – Listen to the drivers requests and don't advertise that you have local work available when you do not have any local work anywhere in the nation and what local positions you do have available have a 25 person waiting listi

Current Employee – been working at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than a year

Pros – Great place for Dedicated Drivers. Although the work is hard the staff has programs in place to take the stress and anxiety out of the drivers daily work routine.

Cons – It is hard work but hometime and office staff support is great

Advice to Senior Management – Kepp up the good work

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Werner Enterprises full-time for more than a year

Pros – When your equipment is running good, and you are assigned a dedicated route you can make a living......BUT.....

Cons – Astonishing lack of urgency to repair equipment.
Strands drivers for days at a time essentially stealing their time ($20 per day breakdown will feed you and that's about it, it doesn't feed your family or pay any bills)
Indirectly penalizes drivers for doing the right thing which increases the number of CSA violations Werner and their drivers incur and also increases the danger to the general motoring public.

Advice to Senior Management – In my 11 months experience with the company, any road breakdown will reduce my check at the end of the week. A problem with a trailer will cost 6-18 hours which are hours of earning potential Werner doesn't compensate me for and I'll never get back. This leaves drivers with a "maybe-lose vs. a definitely-lose" choice to make. "Maybe get caught pulling a trailer with a bald tire" or "Definitely lose a 1-1.5 days wages?" Can you blame so many drivers for opting for the "Maybe?"
And you wonder why your CSA score is "UNCOMFORTABLY LOW" was the phrasing I think you used in your Q1/2013 safety training...really, you can't make that connection?
Maybe if you offered a bounty for fixing trailers so Drivers had a "WIN-LOOSE" choice in the favor of fixing the trailer...and improving your CSA Score at the same time.....just a suggestion (that I've made to both my dispatcher and to your Driver's Relations Dept).
A problem with a truck will SIGNIFICANTLY impact my paycheck as it will take me off-line for 4-6 DAYS. This has happened to me 5 times in 11 months (Exhaust Regen issues, bad coolant level sensor, pin-hole leak in radiator, suspension issues with a truck re-issued to me after previous driver was in a wreck, bad starter) each time it has taken 4 days or more to either get the repair done, or be issued another truck.
Maintenance issues are not your fault, but stranding drivers for large chunks of time WITHOUT commensurate pay while their bills and family obligations exceed their reduced paycheck is GALLING!

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Werner Enterprises

Pros – This must be a joke!

Cons – Don't get injured on the job with this lousy company. They will make sure they don't pay your medical bills and deny your workers comp claim. They are under no obligation to send you a copy of your denial in writing. This is a Totalitatrian regime, very dictatorial! You seriously injure your back, and they ask you to wait until you get approval to see a doctor for medical care. Once you injure your back, they still expect you that day to deliver a load. That's an insult to injury!!!! What part of injury do these guys have trouble comprehending???? Perhaps Werner is waiting for you to die before they take any immediate action to process your workers comp claim and pay it. This company has a complete disregard to assume responsiblity and pay for their injured employee's medical treatment. Get a decent employer that knows how to take care of its employees when they are injured on the job. Otherwise, you will live in hell not having access to medical care because of a greedy company such as Werner refuses to take care of its employees when they are truly injured on the job. Thanks a lot Werner, you suck as an employer! Working for Werner is like signing a deal with the devil! Werner, I hope you find more idiots to take advantage of!

Advice to Senior Management – Be a responsible employer and make sure you treat employees with dignity and respect. If an employee gets injured on the job, don't automatically deny their claim because you are so cheapskate to even take care of your injured employees!

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Werner Enterprises full-time for less than a year

Pros – Very quick hiring process, hotel is paid for if your in orientation and waiting for a trainer, nice equipment

Cons – Hiring massive amounts of drivers without enough trainers, when your training your only getting paid $400 a week no matter what your trainer is making because you make on time deliveries, drive thousands of miles or save gas, wont always pair you with a trainer that is running the same route you signed up for, e.g. I was signed up for a western dedicated family dollar, i was put on a OTR which wasnt really OTR cause we drove straight from Arizona to the east coast and spent three weeks stuck there driving in the snow during christmas and new years, DISPATCHERS! they are horrible managers, when your about to make a delivery and you tell them three to four hours in advance that your ready for another load after delivery why would they not have a planned pickup ready and waiting, no just sit there and waste the rest of your hours. When they call you in for a new truck while training, be careful, they pulled my trainer aside and suspended him from training for some DOT trailer ticket that he had gotten months ago, then expected me to just go with it and waste more time in a hotel waiting for a new trainer after we just spent three days in the hotel two days before for mechanical repairs. No thanks I have better things to do with my time

Advice to Senior Management – Treat your current employees who are training your future employees with a little bit more respect and obviously keep them busy with loads

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend