Davis Express Shutting Down After 44 Years Of Operations

That's the facts. You gotta run an ungodly amount of miles to have a chance at profit. I'm guessing that's why many companies either go to teams or force lease purchase.

 

Domestic cheap labor is a finite resource. People who already speak the language and have higher expectations won't easily put up with the BS that is every day trucking for the poor wages/treatment that is prevalent. Foreigners are fine with it because it's a step up from where they were. The easy and sensible solution here is we don't need to import more drivers.

 

You think all domestic drivers have these high expectations? That's funny. So many of them come on here thinking they're going to get rich. They get their own authority with little to no capital, maybe a couple of credit cards. Maybe of them get into trucking, see a paycheck that's a 1000 bucks for a weeks pay, and that's more money than they've seen on any paycheck. Many drivers are ignorant to how the industry works and accept cheap loads because in their mind, it's a "step up." Foreigners are not the only ones who have "deteriorated" the trucking industry. An example: I remember a green American driver who was leasing a truck, took a load from Roseland, LA to Portland, OR for 3500 bucks...huh? What? He really thought he was getting a sweet deal, but the whole time he was telling me I needed to get my own numbers and start making some "real money." Most of these owners, domestic or foreign, are more along the lines of that guy. It's probably a small percentage that actually understands how this works. Many of the foreigners team drive, keep the truck moving, because that's the only way to offset cheap rates.

 

Yes. There's millions of CDL holders out there who don't drive trucks. What does that tell you about wages and conditions? You're a trucker so you've lived it and see it. You can understand why most people get disillusioned with trucking and leave it, right? Are there suckers and dumb fools born here domestically? Sure. But facts are facts. We've got a massive oversupply of drivers. It's always been there. I'm not hating on foreigners. I'm just saying we already got enough drivers here already. You're trying to excuse it but truth is that's why companies like Davis Express are hanging it up.

 

I'm not excusing anything. I'm only saying foreigners isn't the sole reason that there's oversaturation. You could eliminate foreigners and there is still too many drivers, especially in the spot market. As for why many CDL holders don't drive trucks, there isn't just one reason. Maybe it's pay, maybe it's dealing with shipper and receivers, different things force drivers out. It's not a sexy lifestyle. The biggest issue is the psychological part...it's too big of a price to pay to drive trucks. The first Christmas they miss with the family equals the first bout of loneliness, and most people can't handle that. In my opinion, that's the biggest reason why so many drivers leave.