Ripoff Industry

My thing is what difference does it make if he drove for 10 companies prior to working for them? So what! Apparently they felt he was GOOD enough to hire so they hired him...then promptly commenced to robbing him. It is not uncommon for a driver with any significant amount of years under his belt to have many many trucking jobs on his resume' Especially when companies out here don't play with a full deck. Who among us is willing to compromise our dignity and self respect just to say ohhhhh look I have continuity and tenure look at meeeeee I'm so tolerant of bull sh.. please all of you holier than thou truck drivers constantly looking down your sarcastic noses need to get a grip. Whose side are you on anyway..

 

A holier than thou truck driver? Does that even make sense??? LOL.

 

Hey Veteran Driver , you clearly see what your dealing with , most of them have had their butts handed to them out here but will never ever admit it . They make it seem like they are doing soooo much better then the average driver and they just dont get it . But like have said , they will get it , and they are going to get it right in the bung hole . They yammer on about why dont we go out and go into debt to buy a truck and on and on , they dont understand that having your own truck these days is a BAD move UNLESS you have a highly stable source of freight and a good rate . That is a very very difficult thing to do anymore . I got screwed over by every friggen company I ever drove for. Did I do anything wrong ?? no , I drove the truck , delivered the loads ,didnt crash the truck . I did my part . And what did I get Screwed .
There are very very few drivers out here ,O/O's and company drivers who are getting paid what we should be getting paid.The plain fact of the matter is , ALL DRIVERS ARE UNDERPAID .
And yes , these are the very same people who are so willing to give up all self respect and dignity just like you said . And they are also the very same people who are so willing to give up their rights as human beings to please the powers that be .
Me , like so many others decided we had had enough of being treated like dogs in the USA and got out and have much better lives . Leaving the USA is not for everyone , and thats fine . But alot of us said enough is enough . And you see how they have treated me in this thread .
Having 10 jobs in a short time in this industry is sooooo common , that is why companies will hold it against you now , they dont want to hire someone who is not willing to be a sheep , robot , seat warmer or what ever you want to call it . In these times in the USA , if you stand up for what is right , you are considered a trouble maker .With these guys on here , if you have had a lot of jobs , they call you a bad employee .

 

What did I abandon ? going to work everyday and not making enough money to pay my bills and feed my family ? getting sick, almost dying and then getting stuck with a bill that I could never pay even though I had " health insurance " if you want to call it that. watching people go to work everyday ,paying their mortgage each month and still getting thrown into the street .Have you ever had someone who has worked HARD all of their life and did everything right then die in your hands because they had to choose between medication ,food or rent ? Have you ever seen it happen right in front of you ? I spent 11 years as a trauma Tech and I saw it dam near everyday of those 11 years until I could not take it anymore . This industry is destroying peoples lives . No driver should have to drive every minute of 11 hours everyday just to take home a 400.00 or 500.00 paycheck . You are lied to from the minute you say hello to the recruiter. Trucking companies are licking their chops these days and they are targeting out of work men and women. They set the hook and then line their pockets from the blood and sweat of the very people who make the millions for . Yes Spread the wealth . who made these scumbags rich ? Alot of these companies were started generations ago through hard work . and now what you are seeing are the kids being handed what may once have been a great place to work and they have learned to maximize profit by screwing the driver . Do you remember when companies had PROFIT SHARING ... what is the first thing that went out the door when the father or grand father died and the kids took over . Companies offerd profit SHARING because they knew if it were not for the hard work of the driver , there would be no company . When was the last time you were offered profit sharing from a trucking company ?
I think it was you who said its not up to the company to give a dam about you but to make a profit . HOW DO THEY MAKE THAT PROFIT ?
So tell me , what did I abandon ?

 

He probably lives in a van down by the river Can't make it here in the good 'ole USA...huh bkrnj? I'm 54....semi retired and own my own house....mortgage free....with just a high school education. And I didn't win the lottery or become a company CEO. Worked hard, and always lived within my means. No...i'm not a truck driver, but I do know several, and they're doing pretty good. Sorry if you couldn't hack it here...that musta been your own fault.

 

Unacceptable language

 

You know , I sent a link to this thread to several retired truck driver friends back in the States and got some phone calls from some of them . I cant repeat what they said on here because of the language . But they all basically told me that they watched this industry go down and got out because they saw what was getting ready to happen . They all made very good money back in the day . But back in the mid and late 80's things changed and they were lucky enough to have paid for their homes and have money saved up to live on . one of them lost everything due to getting sick and it took everything he had saved .
They all told me the same thing , and its just like myself and many other drivers have said . This industry is BROKEN and it will never recover . Trucking companies are all looking for a warm body to fill the seat , they are going to pay as little as they can to maximize their profit and fattin their bank accounts . You mean nothing to them , they laugh at you . They lie to you right out of the gate and , if you dont like it , to bad .
Try to start a business with out having to get a loan from the bank or family and see how far you get . I have two small businesses and I have a wonderful life now .I did it from the very very little money I have made,driving a truck and I dam near starved to death doing it . My wife and I run our two shops and have no need to hire anyone . We make more then enough to live a comfortable life . I said this before , This industry is destroying people . There is no reason why these companies can not pay a better wage and treat drivers like human beings . It is like this with just about any industry .If it wernt for the drivers , there would be no company . If you think you are making me feel bad because I left the USA , your not , what you are doing is showing your ignorance and hate.
Why do you think so many O/O's are getting out this industry , its not because they mismanage their money , not because they waste their money , its because this industry is destroying them . The deck is stacked against them . And they have enough sense to get out .How is it that a driver with 10, 20 25 years under his /her belt ,goes to a company and that company only wants to pay hime 30, 34 35 cpm ? Why is it that 48cpm will be the highest you will ever make ? Alot of you on this thread have been out here for a good deal of time and you will never make 50 cpm . Maybe just a small small few of you might but I doubt it . Dont you think all of your years of driving is worth more ? Dont you think you deserve respect from the public ? Dont you think we should have a say in the rules and regulations that are placed on us ?? You have no say in anything , You will do what you are told and like it or you can find something else to do for a living . You will take what ever they choose to pay you and like it . Mind you , you do have a choice , you can either take what they give you or . GOD FORBID you keep JOB HOPPING until you find better . I found better FOR ME . So continue to belittle me , I know it makes you feel good . I really deep down inside hope that the industry changes for the better but , its just not going to happen until you all learn how to stop fighting each other , ban together and shut it down and demand change . But you all wont do that , its feels better to belittle someone who relized that he was working his butt off and getting know where .You would rather defend a industry and country that just simply does not care about you as a human being . The industry is BROKEN . If you are doing good , then I am happy for you and I hope you relize how lucky you are . But there are thousands of drivers who are not doing good ,and its not because they are lazy or cry babies as some of you like to call them .its because they are being treated like slaves
I will not tell you where I am , I dont know why you even care. I will not sit here and watch you bash the people where I live because they are " NOT AMERICAN . "when you curse and bash people from other countries , you disrespect your own ancestors because all of your origins started some where else .Think about it .
The RESPECT AND THE SENSE OF PRIDE OF THE AMERICAN TRUCKER IS BEING STRIPPED AWAY .IF IT WERE NOT FOR THE TRUCKERS , NO ONE WOULD HAVE ANYTHING , EVEN THE ONES WHO EMPLOY THE DRIVERS . THEY NEED TO RELIZE THAT BUT THEY WONT . DENY IT ALL YOU WANT, GREED HAS DESTROYED THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA .AND GREED HAS DESTROYED THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY. BE SAFE AND GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL , EVEN THE ONES WHO BELITTLE ME. I DONT HATE YOU , I FEEL SORRY FOR YOU .
One last thing , the people in the province here always ask me about life in America and I tell them the truth , what they all ask is , WHY DO THE PEOPLE LET IT HAPPEN ? Good Luck To You All

 

I failed to listen to the staff and insulted another member. But you are free to speak ,just speak about something you have been involved with .
And just how is it my fault that I went to work , worked hard and wasnt paid enough to live . Its not only going on in trucking , its happening in all industries . People are working 40 50 60 hours a week, one ,two and three jobs just to put food on the table , JUST FOOD . How is it our fault . Oh I know , eating , paying the mortgage , light bill , gas bill , health and car insurance and buying close is living wayyyyyyyy beyond their means .Everything you put your hands on , look at, read ,eat .everything you have EVERYTHING was at one time on a truck . Truck drivers deliver your life .Dont you think drivers deserve better ? Because you dont know , OTR drivers are paid by the mile . we get paid whats known as short miles , that means they dont get paid the actual miles they run . The amount of miles they get depends on some knot head sitting behind a desk . if you are only dispatched on 1200 miles in one week thats all you are going to get .1200x.35=420.00 it happens all the time . The last company I drove for ,waited until two weeks out and when you saw the low miles and asked about it , they tell you , well you will only get 1700 miles a week here .thats after being told you would always get 2500 miles a week .if you act like a good little sheep you MIGHT get 2000 but that was rare .I was getting .34cpm me, I never saw 2000 miles in one week . 1700 if I was lucky . do the math . and tell me is it worth being forced to stay on the road 3 and 4 weeks at a time . even though you are "SUPPOSED to get 1 day off fro every 7days out , It doesnt work that way . What they call home time is a 34 hour restart and they are calling you with a load . But you arent a truck driver so you dont know anything about all of this .They expect you to drive 11 hours a day, 70 hours a week and they will even try to get you to go over that 70 hours . Driving 11 hours a day 7 days a week or until you burn up your 70 will eventually KILL YOU , can I do it yes , did I do it sometimes ,should drivers have to do it NO .
I already know the smart ### responsese to that comment .Old timers with good sense will tell you what happens when you drive like that . I found out the hard way and stopped .One company I worked for , had a driver who they loved , he ran outlaw for years .He claimed and they claimed he would run 1000 + miles a day , well he finally had a massive heart attack behind the wheel , they took him off the road and put him behind a desk , he screwed everything up had another heat attack if I am not mistaking he died . Do you think the company cared . NOPE didnt give crap . he worked for them for years . The amount of money I was making is not because of lack of time driving a truck , .35cpm is what they say is the industry standard . a good portion of the time , if you are making 43 45 or 48cpm , your not getting very many miles . the guys on here are going to say thats not true but , for what ever reason , they are lying and they no it .Even though guys on here will tell you I am wrong , sooner or later more and more will find this thread and tell you that yes , this is the way it is .
So before you come on here running your mouth take some time and talk to drivers .not just one or two , I mean really take some time and sit down and talk to them and learn something before you bash someone .