Cowan Systems reviews

3.0

41% would recommend to a friend

(286 total reviews)

Joe Cowan

49% approve of CEO

38% positive business outlook

Cowan Systems has an employee rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars, based on 286 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Cowan Systems employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Transportation & Logistics industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

286 reviews
1.0
Feb 8, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The pay is ok if drivers don't mind transporting freight to the Northeastern corridor on a regular basis.

Cons

I can only speak about the way I was treated while employed with this company. Most of the dispatchers that I worked for in this company were the most rudest and disrespectful that I have worked with in my 13 years in the trucking industry. There is just an overall climate of disrespect. I got the feeling that the dispatchers and management felt as though all truck drivers were not truthful. That's an hard environment to work in.

1.0
Nov 7, 2014

Do not work here

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Newer trucks, trailers in good condition

Cons

Early start times, bad runs to NYC, moron dispatchers, drivers treated like crap. Get paid terrible pay for doing the city. Forced Dispatch

1.0
Oct 17, 2014

Your ticket to an early grave.

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Terminal bathrooms were recently moved inside. The foreigner that used your tractor during the night shift is usually thoughtful enough to leave chicken bones and fries all over the floor.

Cons

A thankless and dead end "job". If you yearn to work 10-15 hours a week without compensation this is the company for you! When it comes to robbing, fleecing, ripping off, and flat out stealing from their drivers, Cowan takes a back seat to no one. Before you start driving for Cowan you might want to getting divorced, put your kids up for adoption and take your pets to the shelter. Their dispatchers favorite catch phase is "Look's like you will be using your 16!". I know of one driver that actually retired from Cowan. They prefer that you die over the weekend so they have time to find another chump to cover your low paying load. You are paid PC MILER fraud miles. That cheats you out of $100+ a week in pay. Out of route, detention, breakdown......FREE FREE FREE! Another $100+ a week out of your pocket. One last thing. For my last raise I received a half a cent a mile. Let's say you work a 15.5 hour day. You are expected back in 10 hrs. BECAUSE WE LIKE TO KEEP OUR GUYS MOVING!!!! And you are expected to be well rested and ready to do it all over again. Sign on now and receive a $2000 bonus. Guess what, you won't be there long enough to collect it. They offer benefits but none of the drivers can afford them. The work/life balance is 85% work.

avatar
Cowan Systems Response
11y
Thank you for your commitment over the last three years at Cowan Systems. It’s true our drivers work incredibly hard to meet the transportation needs of our clients, especially lately, due to the amount of freight and the shortage of Cowan-quality drivers. But, for the record, I’d like to clarify some of the facts. Drivers in our fleet who are paid mileage or trip pay receive detention pay after 1 hour. Our drivers also receive Breakdown pay after 1 hour. More importantly, our pay programs are designed to result in a competitive weekly wage. The average age of our fleet is less than 1 ½ years, and the majority of our drivers are home every night. In short, we offer very good jobs and competitive pay. As a result, driver turn-over at Cowan is among the lowest in the industry. It’s true we slip-seat our day cabs, and it’s true that some of our drivers don’t always leave the trucks the way they found them. In the future, please alert your fleet manager or the terminal manager immediately if a driver does not properly clean the truck interior and dispose of all trash. I sincerely apologize for the condition of the truck you mentioned. Trash should not be left for the next guy or gal to clean up. Finally, I took this opportunity to look at the use of the 16 hour exception by our local fleet to determine whether you are correct that the rule is being abused. Our company fleet is using Omnitracs elogs, so there is a record of each use. In the last 60 days, the 16 hour exception has not been used by any driver in our local fleet more than the permitted once in 7 days. In addition, it was used a total of 9 times per week in a fleet of about 91 drivers. That means about one driver in ten used it each week. All of that said, the bottom line is you have had a bad experience and we’d like a chance to make it better. Please call Eddie Crooks in our driver retention department. He drove for us for many years and now he works with our drivers to address issues like the ones you have raised. Many drivers have found his insights helpful. One thing is sure – saying nothing and getting mad doesn't fix anything.
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Glassdoor has 299 Cowan Systems reviews submitted anonymously by Cowan Systems employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Cowan Systems is right for you.