Yet another "HELP ME CHOOSE A COMPANY" tread

Everything in life is a gamble. Trucking just has longer odds than most things.

 

Life is all about supply and demand. Right now there a tremendous supply of "new" drivers. The demand is low, due to the economic problems. Sooooooo, these companies can be very choosy. Not like it was 5 years ago when they were begging for steering wheel holders. Since they can be choosy,and they can be very hard to get along with. If you do not do it their way, they will replace you quickly.
If you really want to be a professional freight re-locater, go with the flow, do a good job,complain very little, and learn the tricks of the trade. It will all work out. Depends on you, not the company.

 

Most companies are all pretty much the same, yes there are subtle differences, but the bottom line remains the same, what IS different on some of the big companies is how they take care of there equip, starting out that should be one of your biggest concerns, hometime..............ehhhhhhhh all pretty much the same........pay...same thing................benies...........again the same................equip you will see a diff in !!!

 

With the CSA 2010 you will definately want a company that takes care of their equipment.

 

Make sure you know the realities of trucking. It is quite unlike ANY other "job" or "profession" most people have or ever will have. With the obvious exception of 1)Military or 2)Police/Fire/Rescue, MOST people have only ever worked "normal" jobs where they leave home in the morning and return home in the evening. Most people expect "overtime" if they are paid an hourly wage and work more than 40 hours a week. Most people expect to be "off work" on weekends and major holidays. Most people expect to be able to "phone in sick" every once in a while to have a lazy day off.

THAT is why MOST PEOPLE shouldn't decide to become TRUCKERS. "Over The Road" Truckers can't be sure at what hour in the day they will have to start work and/or what hour in the day they will get to stop. They don't get "overtime" pay. That is why they say you can drive for 11 hours but must stop working after 14. That's FOURTEEN HOURS OF WORK IN ONE DAY! Most OTR truckers work weekends. Many work "holidays". Truckers who try to "phone in sick" aren't likely to last long with any company, ESPECIALLY if "under load".

Ask yourself (and/or your family if applicable) the following:

1)Is it OK if I am gone and unavailable for weeks at a time?
2)Is it OK if I miss my (or your) birthday/anniversary/graduation/etc...?

If you can accept these "realities" and still decide to make the leap, then do the following:

1)LEARN EVERYTHING YOU CAN about how to safely operate a T/T combo and do everything within your power to follow and obey all traffic laws to avoid getting any tickets (even in your own personal vehicle). Tickets are a Trucking Company's easy excuse to show you the door, especially in this economy.

2)LEARN EVERYTHING YOU CAN about each and every one of the companies you have applied to and then seek out some others as well. Find out specifically what routes they normally run/what "shipping lanes" they prefer their drivers to use, and most importantly, WHAT THEY WILL PAY YOU PER MILE TO DRIVE FOR THEM. Do the math. You simply cannot expect to normally run (legally) more than 600 or so miles per day. Multiply that by the Cents Per Mile and that is the absolute MOST you will be making. Expect to earn less than that when you first start BTW. Also find out if they pay for tolls, if they pay for over-weight tickets (scale fines), and if they offer layover pay or breakdown pay, because trust me, YOU WILL get stuck at a shipper or receiver at some point and YOU WILL breakdown at some point. It all adds up.

That's my 2 cents worth.