is 29,000 a year job worth leaving to drive trucks?

What about, say 3-5 yrs down the road?
Whats the earning potential with a little experience and a much better company?

Trucking is hurting right now, and everyones hit hard, but that $26,000 to start would hopefully translate into something much better with 3-5yrs in?
Theres a lot more out there than the starter otr companies.

For someone with the desire to drive, a guy that chooses trucking as a career!
(Many jobs out there (like mine) u start out making $9.50/hr and if you are a good boy and get your 2% raises each year you are looking at $12/hr after 5 yrs, no promotions in sight. Thats sad! Just think, in 10 yrs you'll be topped out for you job description making $14/hr and be 50 yrs old. $29K after 10yrs. and i went thru 2 yrs school for this! *sigh*)

 

3-5 yrs you can expect to make about .32 a mile or $33,600 a year. I've been doing this 18 year and I get around $48,000 a year. like I said before. This is not a job where you will make allot of money. But you will work hard for what you do make.

 

Only if you are a self-loathing masochist.

 

The OP didnt say in his question if there was a wife/kids involved. If you have either or just good relationships with other people, DO NOT GO INTO TRUCKING!
NO AMOUNT OF MONEY will buy back the missed Little League games, Cub Scout trips, dance recitals, school plays, tea parties with my granddaughter, or what I miss the most, the hugs from my kids.
NO AMOUNT OF MONEY makes up for the times I needed to be home to fix a broken down car or quiet dinners away from the kids, just my wife and I.
NO AMOUNT OF MONEY is worth the heart break and anguish I would feel EVERY TIME I had to leave the house, not knowing when or even IF I was going to be home again!
Sure, your wife and kids may understand you have to leave to provide for them, but that doesnt really take away the sadness they feel when they watch you leave.
If I had it to do all over again, I would have never gotton my cdl!

If I could, I would gladly return all the "extra" money I made to get back all the time I lost with my family!
No one evers says on their death bed, "I wish I could have spent more time at work, away from my family!"
Why start now??? If you are sensitive enough to be asking the question, then YOU ALREADY KNOW THE ANSWER!
This job is not worth selling your soul to the steering wheel! The lies these recruiters will tell you are just that, LIES! Yes, you might make more, but you will also spend more too.
I better stop now before someone trys to insult me for telling you the truth about trucking.

 

There is so much we don't know about your current situation. So we can only provide input from one prospective or the other. Either way, they're our prospectives.

I'll take this from the "single" with very few bills view point.

If that's you're position. I say go for it. The economy will recover eventually, and you'll make good money all the way around. You'll also be able to enjoy yourself in different parts of the country from time to time. Although it can/will be expensive.

$29K isn't much in the overall scheme of things. But it's a decent living in many parts of the country. I know couples who don't make that much a year combined.

But long range planning must be part of your future. States that set their own minimum wage, are starting to lower them back to federal levels. Wages are being pushed down in much of the private sector...and we're going to see the same thing happen within trucking before we're done.

At your current age, there is much time to recover from a mistake, unless you're married with children.

Choose wisely.

 

How many hours do you work per day to get that $29k?
Is it a 9-5 gig?
Weekends off?
Sleep in your own bed every night?

In trucking, you can legally work 70 hours, but you will be on the job 80-100 and the truck will be your home on wheels for weeks at a stretch.
Many/most weekends, you will either be working or sitting in a truckstop waiting for that Monday 7am delivery.
Even if you eventually earn $50k in trucking...it's really like working 2 full-time $25k jobs.
There are some niche segments of trucking that still pay good but it is VERY difficult to get these jobs and even if you land one...you will be at the bottom of the seniority board getting all the crap runs/hours, working the dock, etc.

I would advise getting a part-time job if you want to supplement your current income.
Or even better...enroll in school and learn a trade/skill so that you can earn more money and make yourself more marketable.
Health care industry is the way to go: radiologist, MRI tech, etc...

 

Or get a job working for the government !!!

They're expanding and hiring .....

 

man, its a wonder they get anybody to drive truck otr!

 

They're giving raises too

Actually they don't. OTR is a myth created to make you feel special. The actual term comes from the old "long haul" designation. Which still exist, although it is a dying part of our industry.

The majority of mega companies are regional companies, with no true OTR work. They simply move you from one region to the next, run you a few days there. Then move you to the next region over the weekend....repeat as needed.

Most companies could leave you in one area. But it's more economical to allow you to stay in the truck, waiting for loads.

 

LONG TERM? That's going to be several years from now! This BS that the current administration is feed us saying the job market is "bouncing back" is just that, pure BS! All it is is the Christmas hiring season and it'll be over in about another week and then watch the figures!

You have a better paying job right now so keep it! This job right now is nothing but a cesspool! Yes being a "big time super trucker" gets into young peoples brains and it's a pike dream right now! Just keep "dreaming" about living in a closet smelling the piss coming off the asphalt, the over priced food, the morons walking the parking lots waking you up trying to get into your wallet, putting up with idiots calling them selves dispatchers and getting into your wallet if they take a dislike to you, companies telling you to freeze or roast your arse off in a truck to save a few gallons of fuel and yada,yada,yada...

You didn't put your age in your profile. You didn't say if you are married with children, or if you have a house payment or car payment or what your expenses are. You HAVE a GOOD paying job why give it up in this pisss poor economy? Why make thing hard for your self or your family? Do you REALLY think you will do better that those of us who have ben around this block a few times and have seen what is going on right now? Being young is a time for listening to your elders and those who know what they are talking about!

My OWN son wanted to drive and I threatened to duct tape his arse to the wall until he got that out of his system! He now realizes that listening to the man who was never home for most of his life who is now home due to this mess of an economy actually knows what he's talking about! You should listen to those of us who know!

WAIT till it clears up but not before then! Keep that $29,000 job! You'll get a raise!