I am posting stories from my job, because I think they're funny. I've done my best to disguise my company name, even the industry, and to keep the people I write about and even some details of the situation anonymous. If you know me, and know where I work, please don't include details in your comments. I'll have to delete your comment and reconsider posting these stories.
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A truck driver just came in the building through the main door instead of the one clearly marked "Shipping/Receiving," and asked for "Shipping/Receiving." No big deal, happens all the time. We pointed toward the area he needed to be in to sign the log, etc. He pointed toward the restroom and said, "over there?" No, over where we pointed. Pointed again. He started moving toward the restroom. I got up from my desk and physically SHOWED him where he needed to be. Okay.
We asked where he was headed. "Somewhere in California." Um, yeah, nearly all our loads go to California and it's a BIG state. The city or name of the customer would be helpful. "Um, I think it starts with an A." Well, considering there are cities/towns in California from Arcata to Anaheim, and plenty of places in between, not to mention potential customer names, that still doesn't help, and we have two different loads leaving today, on his trucking company, going to California. He promised to check when he got back out to his truck.
While he was signing the log, he mentioned that it had been really treacherous getting here today. I asked where he was coming from. His response was, "Um, some highway." Wow, so descriptive, this guy! "I think it started with an S." Santiam Pass? "Uh, I don't know."
Then he mentioned that his dispatch said he was picking up a trailer that was already loaded, but he didn't see any trailers from his company on the lot. Considering we have at least two (the two loaded ones, and possibly an empty as well), he's not very observant, but after the interactions we'd already had with him, I think that was the least of our worries.
My boss then gave him the usual schpiel about dropping his empty trailer, which one to pick up (he wrote the number down on his hand, but since my boss kept on talking while the driver was still writing it, I told him with all seriousness that we should probably have an employee check that he picks up the correct trailer), and how to proceed over the scale. I'll be extremely surprised if he manages to retain all of that information and follow all of those directions successfully (not that it's hard, but I've seen drivers with a few more brain cells to rub together than this guy seems to have fail at following them).
So the guy came back in before driving over the scale, to let us know he was headed there (most drivers don't, since they've been given the directions, but again, whatever). He gestured in the opposite direction from how they are supposed to drive over it, so my boss reiterated that he needs to drive over the scale while going TOWARD the street. He still didn't seem to understand, so I also reiterated it. "Oh, going TOWARD the street?" Then he proceeded to ask where the nearest truck stop is (oh, about 70-80 miles away), because he needs to have a certified weight ticket. Well, that's all fine and dandy, but we prefer to weigh them on our on-site scale so they don't drive those 70-80 miles with a truck that's over the limit, then have to drive all the way BACK here to get it fixed.
He kept mumbling stuff about whether our scale was certified (no, but it is calibrated, and again with preferring them to be the right weight before they leave), and blah blah blah, basically just being argumentative about whether he should even drive over the scale here, which takes less than five minutes, including the time to come back in the building to get the paperwork. Finally, my boss said that no truck leaves here without being scaled, because we don't allow tickets on loads that leave our lot. Oh! That seemed to register with him that we were actually trying to HELP him. Wow.
Then, after two of us giving him directions on how to drive to the scale at least three separate times, he still managed to mess that up, and apparently backed over the scale (not the best thing for its calibration) before finally pulling across it properly.
To top it all off, according to the employee who came in behind him while he was standing near the driver log, then left immediately, gagging, the driver literally smelled of feces. So awesome. But that's pretty much beside the point--I was seriously tempted to call his employer and report him as too dumb to drive, but I don't think you can do that.
Watch out, folks...these people are driving 40 tons of steel and who-knows-what around at 60-70 miles per hour.
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