Walking Floor Drivers?

Minimum wage on an eight hour day is $58. So below MickyD's wages and less what the law says is good for operating an 18-wheeler under DOT guidelines?? You open the doors, you engage the PTO. What's to learn?? How to engage the PTO? How to turn a handle to roll the tarp? I made $150/day 12 years ago in poor old TN.

If you are willing to work for pennies, you will make pennies.

 

Really hare to get in with someone down there. Everything I did has shrunk because of less dairies. I could stay bouncing from thing to thing (silage, wet citrus, haylage, peanuts, cotton seed, citrus, fertilizer, silage..........) However everyone I knew including me stopped as dairies closed, trash haulers got in the silage harvest's, and soy beans started replacing cotton.


If you set on moving to Florida you could get your foot in the door with a Scwend, or maybe C+W (forgot about them thanks TT) as a lease operator until you could get some contacts. Wood hauling in Fl is cheap. No I mean cheap cheap. Boggles my mind on how they make it.

Realy wish I could recommend something else. Well maybe Southern Ag out of Ga. Be warned they will keep their trucks moving first but during Ginning and or Peanuts they use anybody they can get. They used to pay pretty good. The guy I knew there either retired or left.



Pretty bleak even for dumps down there. I can think of twenty small companies doing rock, sand, gravel.

Wish I could be more help.

 

Wasp, I've been reading this thread and I think this sounds like a good opportunity for you. I know guys that run walking floor trailers around here that make good money, and even if you don't break the bank right off, who cares? You're doing the right thing by getting in and getting your experience, then you can pick your job.

If they train you for a week or 2 all the better, just get in there and sponge up as much knowledge as you can because it will help you in the long run.

Good luck to you.

 

OW if you fell you need the time retraining it is good you found someone to give you the opportuntiy.

However I do understand CC's point. All to often "trainee's" are used to cover for cheap freight rates because they work extra cheap. Along with the "refresher course" bs.


I have never understood this whole training crap, I probably never will. Guess it comes from being raised around farms. Training meant a couple minutes not days. If a person couldn't pick up how to operate equipment in the few minutes they were placd somewhere else. My Dad always said "Need poop shovelers too".




Good luck. Biggest thing about live floors is drag rag, and if hauling high volume a pull over roap on the tarp.


Good luck.

 

I've been pulling a walking floor for 7 yrs here in Mo. $1000 a week and home every night and weekends off. Far better than them otr days pulling a flat or step.

 

I drive an in house truck hauling chips in NH. The margins are really tight all around. My boss tries to avoid hiring outside trucks because it kills his margin too. There were times last summer when we shut right down because the mills & plants weren't paying enough to cover the cost of cutting, chipping, and shipping.

Good luck, it certainly is tough out there.