I should start by sharing my initial pay when I was hired at Overnite Transportation. Although it was less than what I earned at my previous full-time job, there were more benefits involved. Overnite was a family-owned, employee-friendly company and, in my opinion, very compassionate when it came to their employees.
Even the trailers and straight trucks used for linehaul and city pickups and deliveries bore the slogan on their doors: “Our People Make The Difference.” Despite the pay gap between union drivers and us non-union drivers, the company’s more humanistic policies made it worthwhile. My starting hourly rate in 1982 was $10.50, with no overtime pay (time and a half).
Overnite Transportation was founded by Harwood Cochran of Richmond, Virginia, in 1935. You should look up Overnite’s history. It was truly amazing. At the time of my hiring, it was the largest non-union trucking company in the country. They ranked seventh in size, with an operating cost of approximately 84 cents per dollar—if I remember correctly—and did not operate west of Kansas. I believe Kansas City was their furthest western terminal, and they didn’t reach the Los Angeles market until 1984, with sleeper teams handling linehauls.
During my employment, Overnite became the fourth-largest LTL company and was consistently the most profitable, all while maintaining employee wages close to union scale. I was extremely proud to be part of a company experiencing such growth and success. In my opinion, the pay was fair, and the optional stock purchase plan for employees truly set the company apart.
The Move to West Morris Street Terminal
When it was announced that we would be moving from the small terminal to a facility twice its size, I was initially unsure and a bit wary. Major change doesn’t come easily for me. But Mr. Williams assured me that this move was a positive step for everyone. We shut down the dock operation on Saturday morning and spent the weekend moving all equipment—though, due to the small size of the terminal, there wasn’t much to move.
By Monday morning, the inbound crew was breaking down trailers and loading city runs on schedule—if I recall correctly, there were no delays. Some of my fellow coworkers from the beginning of my time at Overnite included Saul and Joe Montez (brothers and super nice guys), Eddie Divelbliss (who was, I believe, the top road driver), and Joe Brown (one of the top city drivers), just to name a few.
I wasn’t on the dock at the new terminal very long before the inbound city freight grew enough to require additional city bids. But that’s a story for the next chapter. Working on the dock during those short months was very educational.
The crew I worked with helped me understand many basic, common-sense practices to ensure the load was ready for a 500-mile journey. Things like placing cardboard sheets under 55-gallon drums to prevent them from scooting, using adjustable load bars and plywood to secure high and tight loads, and loading heavy freight on the bottom with lighter freight on top to prevent claims and damages.
These lessons on properly loading freight for long hauls have stuck with me for 43 years—impressive, isn’t it? Of course, we weren’t perfect in our methods, but we always tried to save the company money.
My Trucker Life 