Time and 1/2 for truckers

I would give up Kansas, some will never get it mate.
There are some that just started driving @1yr ago that have remarked on here, but seem to feel the need to "pad" their experience level too, so take their remarks for what they are worth.
There will always be the good companies, and the rip off companies, regardless of your pay schedule.
So are the labor "experts" saying that getting paid minimum wage is better that @.50cpm and getting miles? How about getting that minimum wage vs a % of a good rate? Hell, even way over minimum wage wouldn't cover the pay of company drivers at the place I am leased onto\, never mind minimum.
For those that have "been there and done that", we dont mind just getting paid for what we do in the traditional sense. I get paid percentage, and always have. I also dont just sit around swinging van doors neither. Do I get paid to secure a real PIA load every time? Certainly not. But I do get over $3 a mile to throw chains onto a basic and easy to secure machine and put it in the wind too. See, for those that KNOW the job,we also know it all balances out in the end.
This is starting to sound like the union mentality to me. Get paid regardless, whether you do anything or not. That did the country as a whole, a great big favor didn't it....
I have been self employed since leaving college, so I firmly believe in getting paid for what you do, not for sitting around and whining about your job. Thus why I run on percentage, and do the job I do, in the weather I do it in, and deal with the idiots (mostly big trucks if I have to be honest) I have to deal with on an hourly basis.

Martin

 

With all this talk of hourly pay I have to ask.... Why the heck would ANYONE use minimum wage as a starting point?? Is that all some feel this career is worth? I'm quite happy running on an hourly pay scale but it sure isn't anywhere close to minimum wage, I get time and a half over 40 hrs, double time for Sundays and on call work and I'm home everyday, $1058 for 50 hours, No, that isn't huge money by any standard, but for only 50 hours, 13 hours of home time everyday, sleeping with mama every night and very little BS to deal with. I'll take it. That's not including the $125 I get paid just to sign up on the on call list. If I get called out, I get another $50 and double time for all time worked which does include travel time to the site. My last spill paid $406 dollars for 6 hours work (4 hours on site), I sign up every week, I don't get called out every week though

I was told years ago that, fueling, time spent at a shipper/receiver, in traffic jams, going through DOT inspections are all included in the mileage rate, some days you make more hourly pay because you don't get delayed, some days you make less if you must look at it that way. So the way I look at it is, if you want to be paid by the hour for EVERYTHING you do associated with the truck, and get overtime, you pretty much HAVE to run local, but keep in mind, even some local jobs do not pay overtime until you have a certain amount of time in, my last LTL carrier was 3 years before you got OT. If you must stay OTR, just remember that your mileage rate IS paying you for line 4 time

I used to play that same OMG I'm making $5.00/hr out here for all my hours game too, but it doesn't get you anywhere. Either you like your job enough to accept it or move to greener pastures with the knowledge that any OTR gig is going to pay the same way or you go local. A good hourly pay scale is not coming to the OTR world anytime in the near future, heck there's so many immigrants, newbies, unemployed folks (no dig on being unemployed or new at all inferred) and those with less than stellar records willing to drive for peanuts one should be happy just getting a good mileage rate and not sweat the fact that you don't think you're paid enough hourly. Only you can change that. It's the way the industry has been for decades, it's not changing anytime soon.

When I was in the process of looking for a different job about a month ago, I'd interview potential employers that claimed to pay good money and had to hold back my laughter when they would tell me their mileage rate was .35-.38 cpm for experienced drivers running OTR, home every weekend or every other weekend. For me, that's no where close to what I believe an OTR gig should pay me for my experience, so I choose to stay local making money for every minute I'm clocked in.

 

I wouldn't count on anything happening in congress soon, at least not as long as the tea party wackos keep blocking everything that might benefit workers.

 

If you would like to move this topic to the Political Forum I would be GLAD to discuss it with you!

 

I get my regular hourly wage for 50 hours and everything above that for the week is time and a half. When I was highway I'd get screwed more often then not by cpm