Ok let me start off by saying that I used the search feature before I posted this and came up with every answer under the sun, so im just gonna shoot straight and see if I can get some realtime answers.
I drove a lowboy beverage trailer for 10 years and I still have my Class A CDL with no endorsements. But it has been 10 years since I have driven as I left to try something new. Well, that has failed and now I have a "job" but its a dead end with no future at all.
So now Im looking for a "career " again and my idea was to start driving again cause I have a CDL and spotless MVR. Boy was I wrong.
So what Im asking , is getting back into driving worth it now ? With all of the government regulations coming into play as well as the electronic tracking it doesnt seem to be worth it.
Do I want to pay @ $3k to go to a school and then only make $40k a year and be gone all the time. I cant get a straight answer about going OTR which do not want to do at all . Im 44 years old in good health , can somebody tell me what the trucking industry is like now? I was talking to our Averitt driver at our shop and he said he made $47k last year and worked over 60 hours a week. Also no overtime and the 401k and other benefits were terrible.
Can you guys set it straight? Thank you in advance , im sure this happens all the time on this forum , which is very good btw.
Should I start in trucking business? It seems to be not worth it....
Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by garciaman, May 29, 2013.
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There might be local jobs in your area that wouldnt need you to go back to school for and could keep you home. I would look into something like that instead of the OTR options. I am OTR but doesnt sound like you want to be so why be miserable? The new regs and things will need some catching up but nothing you cant handle
Dan.S Thanks this. -
The new fed regs are nothing to worry about, and the industry hasn't changed that much since you stropped driving. You will have to answer you other questions yourself, we can't say "DO IT" or DON'T DO IT" for you. If you are looking at it purely as a financial decision there are a lot of ways to make more money with less hours. Is it worth it? Depends on how bad you want to drive and sleep in a truck.
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Come back to trucking if you love it! If you are just coming back for anything else, you are going to be miserable and end up leaving.
Get behind that steering because you love that dam truck and find something interesting to pull or something interesting to do. Otherwise it's not worth it.Puppage Thanks this. -
2) Do you have something else you can do where you can make as much or more money?
This is something you will have to figure out yourself. You are right with the regulations though, it sucks and it just gets worse. I've tried to leave but can never find something that pays as well as driving. Things that have changed in ten years are as follows.....Newer EPA crappy engines, more regulations i.e. CSA 2010. and ........it seems like every small town has a "friendly" DOT officer now just waiting to take your money and impact your driving career. -
I can't get it through my head that "only" 40K is bad money. 40K is GREAT money for someone who only spent 3K on an education.
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So no 40k isn't great money at all for 70 hours worth of work per weekSplashDogs, jlkklj777, Florida Playboy and 1 other person Thank this. -
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Garciaman, if you are working a "dead end job," but are making good money, with benefits and are home every night, why in the world would you want to trade that for another "dead end job," where you will be starting at the bottom. Unless you are very lucky, you will just be trading one DEJ for another DEJ. One that requires a whole lot of you. It is stressful, and will likely be very physically demanding, if you get a local job.
Sure, there are good things about trucking. I loved it, for the most part. But fighting traffic all day, dealing with shippers and receivers who have the intelligence of a retarded chipmunk, and the personality of a weasel, coupled with a dispatcher who is always going to be pushing you, is not a lot of fun.
Bottom line, of course, is that it is up to you. -
Thank you guys and gals for your input. I too think that 60-70 hours a week for $40k is crap too. Yes I have made way more that $40k per year previously in sales and management positions and my current job now has no benefits , no insurance and only 32 hours per week , so Im underemployed as well.
I have looked around locally and I have been told by local companies all the way to Schneider and I have been told that to get my DOT card I will have to take a refresher course which I did find today at the local Votech for $1700. I guess my heart is torn between waiting for a job that I like again in sales/marketing or just going ahead and putting aside what i like for what I need to do, which is at least earn a living , which $40k is a decent living. Obviously the decision is mine . If I knew I wouldnt have to go OTR , I will sign up today. I am going to go talk with the instructor tomorrow and see what kind of placement is happening with his graduates.
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