Is Trucking a good job for a young, single guy?

I'm a 23 year old single male. I have a college degree but the job market is poor and I HATE being in an office.....not to mention truck driver salaries on par with or better than many entry level degreed jobs these days.

I have a lot of debt and what i'm really looking for is a gig that I can do for a few years that will really allow me to put away some money. I need a little nest egg to help pay off debts and give me some capital to work with down the line. I don't see myself making a long career out of it.

I like driving, the highway, and deal with "boredom" fairly well. I love being on the road....even the boredom part. I would not be to beaten down by being on the road and away from home for 5 weeks at a time. I would be able to attain free housing from a family member in this situation when i'm home.

I feel like being on the road so much working would really keep expenses down and allow you to put money away if you don't have a family (and assuming that you cook for yourself/stay away from buying useless crap at stops).

The downside is that I do not have a CDL and from what I understand would have a hard time finding a job outside of the much maligned Swift, England, and JB.

The other downside i've considered is that at my age I would miss the social scene of my age group, meeting people and such. But you gots to do what you gots to do sometimes.

 

Hell man I still don't know what the social scene is for guys between about 18-25. If you are worried about the social scene trucking definately isn't right.

On a side note I was in essentially the same place you are when I started (although I had a decent 40 hr a week job clearing about 2g a month). You sound like your lifestyle COULD fit the mold to make it, but it doesn't mean you will like it when you start. I'm not trying to tell you it's right or wrong for you, but it's definately a love/hate job/career.

 

If you are seeking a "job" in the trucking industry, you will absolutely HATE it.

If you want to make a "career" out of it, you WILL hate it...yet love it, at the same time.

If you want to be out here for just a short time, to pay off student loans, etc. ,plan on being out here a MINIMUM of 4 years. BECAUSE, in order to get your CDL, you will HAVE to do one of two things..

Pay an exorbinant amount of money to a good, REPUTABLE private trucking school, OR, go through one of the major companies, such as Prime, Swift, etc.

Either way, you will still spend up to 18 months, on the road in "training", and then another year or so, driving to pay back the loans you got to get your CDL.

Don't get me wrong, there IS money to be made as a driver...if you want a CAREER as a driver...

If you just want a "job" as a driver, there are less expensive, less time-extensive "jobs" you might can do?

Judi Kay

 

My question is about the same. I figured my bills come to around 650 per month. I hope even the newest most inexerienced driver/trainee would make at least that. Right?

 

I got my CDL when I was 21.
I had a few offers from company's out of training but elected to run team with my Cousin, who had been driving for my 4th cousins company for years.
I hacked it for about 6 months.
There were several reasons why I went home to a local driving job.
1 my cousin was hooked on speed. He could solo drive that truck as many miles a day as we did team the way he was lol.
He was really into Lot Lizards. Lucky for me he only did this when parked at the border for a few days waiting for our trailer of produce to come back over.
The small sleeper we had in that cabover would not have gone well with crabs in it.
The last reason was that I was 21.
I wanted to be at home where my friends were, going out partying and playing with any girl I could get to play.

If I had gone solo at that time and not gone out with my cousin I may have done better. I really do not know, since it did not happen.
If you do not have many bills at home, like mortgage, rent, car payment, insurance ect. You can save allot of money when working on the road.
If your bills at home include a car and insurance. Then I would sell them if I am single and going on the road. Why pay for something that you are not going to use more than a few days a month. I could rent a car for 4 days a month at home for allot less than a car and insurance payment.

 

Social Scene will not lower your debt? Plus how much of going to Fells point can you handle? That Scene will be there when you get home.

 

If you are comparing trucking income vs. income from a city job you need to also count the dozens of free hours you will throw away while trucking.

If you get paid per mile and nothing else, you need to consider all the free time you will work while unloading, loading, road delays/closures, mechanical breakdowns, waiting for loads. Some weeks it might only be 5 free hours, and other weeks you will work way more. Last week I worked 38 hours that I didn't get paid for. I started the week off with my oil drain plug falling out thanks to the lube #### that didn't tighten the plug. That was 4 hours on the highway until they sent a mechanic out to fix the situation. I then had to go and wash the truck (not paid for that either). I also went to 2 unionized steel mills that took their sweet time loading/unloading me. At the end of the week it ended up being 38 hours spent working that I didn't get paid for on top of all the driving time too.

The income looks pretty good when you work out how much you make per hour while cruising at 75 mph but things go downhill from there. Other truckers will tell you not to focus on how many hours you work and just look at the overall picture.....but honestly dude, you could work 2 full time jobs (80 hours/week) and be able to sleep in your own bed at home every night and make the same amount of money as you do driving a truck and for the same/less amount of work. You might even make more working those hours in the city as you can get overtime.....which you won't get trucking.

 

It's only up to you. However for a young single guy the best job I see is a "Sponge Boy" in a cat house. Those babes need to be cooled down if they're working hard.

Trucking is not the type of job you'll want to look into right now. There's too many drivers waiting for jobs and the companies know this so they don't pay nothing. I don't know what you're basing your pay scale on but the only real picture you can get is from the drivers out there and if thery're willing to tell you. Never ever believe recruiters or the CDL schools. They lie and do not work for you. Just spend some time on this board and go back and look and you'll see new drivers making $150 to $200 a week. It's not all the drivers but I would say most do not make enough to make it worth wild. That's my opinion.

 

go for it. you need to get your CDL first, but I can tell you a decent company with a terminal in B'more. you'd be home every weekend. in fact, this terminal also has local work. probably a waiting list for that though.

 

Drive 1000 miles, paid for 900.
Work 15 hours, paid for 7.
No overtime after 8/40 hours.
Hometime a crapshoot.
No set schedules...the irregular workshifts will age you beyond your years.
No friends, family, or social life whatsoever.
Worthless health bennies with high co-pays.
Log 70, work 80-100, paid for 50.
Poor health from sitting all day.
Hostile 3am warehouse deliveries.
Pressure to run illegal.
Exorbitant truckstop prices.
DOT, fines, traffic, tickets.
Lack of parking.
Treated like dirt at some shippers/receivers.

Trucking was once a respectable middle-class profession some 25-odd years ago. Today, it's steadily venturing into the realm of the working poor. "Sweatshops on wheels" is an apt description of the conditions that today's truckers face.

Bottom line: this job SUCKS unless you're a little crazy and have nothing to lose. It's an irresponsible career choice if others depend on you or you want anything like the "normal life" so many truckers come to miss after the novelty wears off. Open your eyes and see the reality: the turnover is way over 100% a year...even higher among newbies because most first-year drivers realize they've made a mistake and leave the industry, a little embarrassed and a lot poorer having been fleeced by a truck school and everyone else along the way.....