Any bored trucker want to answer a few questions?

I dont know that its the case here, but Labor Departments require stuff like this if you are going through them to gain employment. They want students to know what they are getting into before they get into it.

 

It should be noted....... (negative side of trucking)

If you are claustrophobic? This job is not for you! You will be expected to live in a eight foot wide by eight foot deep and maybe (depending on truck, not your control) six feet tall dark closet. In this closet there is a windshield with doors on either side that you can enter egress from. There are no bathroom facilities. Only creature comforts you will have is a bed and a seat for which your job is expected to be performed. Some companies will supply a meager inverter of 1500 watts.

Now just because you live there does not mean you have the right to tell the police they cant search the truck at their discretion. It is a company truck and you are there at their leisure. That truck is open to public display anytime the police (D.O.T.) wish to inspect it. It could happen because where you chose to park at night. It could happen when you roll across a scale. It WILL happen when the police have their national inspect every truck out there week.

Just because you work for a carrier doesnt mean they will remember to pay you. There will be weeks when their cash flow isnt happening and they will forget to pay you. Then you get the joy of trying to reason with them as to your missing pay. Many companies will pay you in time. Just dont expect a steady paycheck like your 8-5 job.

Your work for the company doesnt mean that you get to stay in that job. The company reserves the right to remove you from that truck WITH OUT notice. If their money is short and they want to cut back on their workforce? Dont be surprised if they ask you to bring your truck in for service, then decide to give the truck to some one else and your stuff is in a box.

You are a representative of the company. You need to be 100% for the company as their representative. You should not have a lead foot or expect to be able to keep up with traffic. Alot of the company trucks out there are governed. Your top speed is what ever they set it at. This might be 62 mph. If you work at Prime your max is 55 mph.

You are expected to be able to read maps, to read street signs and remember them. Wonderful things like no trucks allowed. That bridge your about to go under, does it have shiny scrape marks (meaning it has been recently hit and you wont fit under it).

Some companies want you to practice their reasoning of company mantra. CR England for instance puts great emphasis on avoiding aggressive driving. If you get reported for aggressive driving you can expect to get kicked off the truck.

Road conditions might seem bad. Yet if there are other drivers making deliveries and you want to sit during a snow event? Dont be surprised if you start getting some angry phone calls from dispatch telling you to get off your lazy bottom.

One last thing. You need to ask the company how long their training is. If it is less than a week, I hope you are a VERY fast learner. I can remember many people at CR England that had their 3 day test that were brought to tears because of the mental load that was exerted on them to remember everything that is required in trucking. The school I went to, it was 10 hour days over a 4 week time.

 

Regarding winter storms.

I was a asset to dispatch because of a sub specialty in ice. Deep snow too. Within reason.

Any time chains are required, we have none and get to rest a while until the chain requirement is lifted. No amount of screaming by dispatch will change the fact the company was too tight fisted and too cheap to equip us with chain. Oh well. We get to sleep in a little bit, cook some nice square meals hot choclate watch some movies and maybe shovel the windshield now and then. Possibly pack the pre-bedded snow down a bit deeper by rocking back and forth 100 feet in our parking spot that has a slight downgrade to it so we can humor the big rig out of there when it's time to go.

Little things like that requires critical thinking pre-storm so that you are prepared before you hit it or it hits you. that way you are snugged down resting and building hours back up rather than being say stuck in Buffalo in the center lane in 7 feet drifts because you tried to outrun a lake storm that was being broadcast 15 hours before you finished unloading or loading.

 

Lets hear more plz

 

1) Wake up. Piss. Pre-trip. Drive. 30 minute, maybe take a dump. Drive some more. Smoke. Load or deliver, maybe both. Stop. Read. Sleep. Repeat.
2) Patience. A thick skin and a wont to be good at what you do... some self respect and confidence.
3) Less than a year; longer than 6 months.
4) PAM - Penny A Mile. No, I don't work for them.
5) Abnormal is the normal. You can often shape it toward your preference.
6) OTR, 48 States. Outlook is fine.
7) It's getting dumber by all other accounts... I suppose that's a decline. I know nothing of the 'renegades' or the hay-day. I'm new breed - often disparaged.
8) As many, if not more than have been terminated.
9) See above.
10) Zero.
11) Working alone. Seeing parts of the country I otherwise may not have seen.
12) Neither nor. It just is.
13) Home-time & pay.
14) See above - the lack of those.
15) Again, I work alone. I get my directions and do my thing. That's satisfying.

KillingTime
Portland, Maine
48 States Driver (OTR)

Those are the short answers.
x1Heavy is working on his book... or better be.

 

Tell us more! More! Lol Thanks!

 

I don't know why, but I feel compelled to reply. Maybe because my situation is a bit different than the standard driver.

1) What do you do in a typical day?

Well, I get up, shower, eat, drive 3 minutes to work and park. I walk over to the shop and grab my key to the truck I am driving that day. I look at our dispatch board for anything that was not on there when I left the previous day. Then i'll go to my truck, check the oil, hit the tires, and hook up to my trailer if I didn't do it the previous day. I'll let the my trailer(s) air up and grab the paperwork out of the air box. I'll do a little pre-trip, fill out my log book, and depending on the time/ where I'm going, I may walk back to the shop and gab a couple water bottles out of the fridge, or talk to someone while my truck heats up. Then I'll hit the road to go load or unload. Depending on what I am doing that day I could drop a trailer in a field, load corn at an elevator, or go dump fertilizer at a plant. When my loads are done and my boss says bring it home, I'll head home, part the truck, drop the trailer and hook to tomorrows load. I might wash the truck if it's a Friday, but I'll usually talk to the boss before I leave or see the mechanic and shoot the ####. I'll put my paperwork in my box, put the key away and head home.

2) What skills and personal characteristics do you need to do this job?

It depends on what job you are doing. Personally, I think you need to be patient and kind to the people you interact with, especially when you are with a small business and go to places that know every person in your company by name, because they will complain about rudeness. But with every job, a sense of pride in what you do will always protrude through your character.

3) How long have you worked in this occupation?

I am 21 and have been doing this for a year, part time and seasonal. My dad has done this for 45 years and I knew how to drive long before I got my license.

4) What is the rate of pay for entry-level workers?

I made 17$/hr, because half my job is washing trucks, but I got upped to 18 recently. This guys who run New York state get 19.25.

5) What are the "normal" work hours/days?

Depending on what we are doing and how busy we are, a slow day could be 8 hours, a long day could be 16.

6) What is the outlook for work in your area?

We are very steady, but there is a lot of competition from the solo trucks.

7) Is the industry growing/declining?

The trucking industry will keep growing at a steady rate, as long as the population keeps growing. However, the rates are dropping, and companies are not training as well as they used to.

8 ) How many people have been hired [at your company] in the last six months?

3 people including my father.

9) How many people have been hired [at your company] in the last twelve months?

I believe 4 or 5.

10) What are the chances for promotion?

Well, Promotions are different in the trucking world. You get a small raise and you get better loads or more responsibility. Or in my case, as insurance allows, pulling B-trains, or running to New York.

11) What are the most interesting aspects of your job?

Being able to pull 140000 lbs up a hill while using all the power you have is addicting to me. Cruising around the country side is awesome, and meeting a bunch of people is interesting. You never know what you will see.

12) Do you like the working conditions?

I love them, but I could see how someone could hate them. A lot of times when we are loading, corn slit or wheat dust over powers the air, and a mask is needed. I get sweaty and dirty and everything sticks to me. I have to climb and craw and use a lot of energy, but it's in my blood.
13) What would you change about your job?

I wish my company had nice Peterbilts and chromed out trailers, but the trucks we have are decent enough for me.
14) What are the disadvantages of this occupation?

Long hours, inconsistent hours, delays, traffic jams, basically nothing is guaranteed.

15) What do you find satisfying about your job?

I love being trusted to do my job without being observed by cameras or elogs. My boss being like a second father to me, and being able to run with anyone in the company and talk like best buddies, and I just love trucking.

 

I'll add to this thread later when i can format text. I'm a local guy in the Twin Cities. Did a year OTR

 

Hope you pass. It will be hard work. Well, I lost a friend he was in a semi truck wreck. We went to school together we were good friends. I don't know what cause the wreck but that what broke my heart. I have a lot memories of him. Including pictures we did when we were in 3rd grade. Toys he give me and I hang stuff over close to my windshield.