Exposing the Driver Shortage Myth

Why is it not worth getting into? Its no different than any other industry or career path where the wages and duties vary from job to job, region to region.

I'm sure there's a ton of difference in wages and experiences between the top and bottom salesperson at the same car dealership.

Out of school I joined the navy (subs), I've got my journeymans crane op (worked Ft. Mac) and after an accident I even went back to school and got my degree in nuclear medicine.....and I've always came back behind the wheel. Truth be told I make more money trucking than I make farming with both being a part of a lifestyle that I enjoy.

It is true, depending on geo location you may have to put your time in with a shytty employer to get to a better place but again I think that depends on where you call home.

 

It really boils down to what you make of it. I moved from Vancouver Island over here to Mission for my first job. Huge jump in pay. On the island they wanted 15-18 for a driver, here it's 25-30 DOE. Next up I think i'm going to get my crane ticket or go to heavy equipment school. Lowbedders are getting 40ish and heavy haul is well....off the charts. YOU are your own career manager.

 

Trucking is not what you make of it.....there are too many rules and regulations that change regularly for you to make anything out of it.....most drivers are punched by their 60's. Too old to keep driving and too old to be doing the jobs that pay well enough to live off of comfortably.

Right now you have your health so driving seems like a great job. Go onto the other section of the forums and look at all the health problems drivers face.


Between the years of 1992 and 1996, nearly 3,000 truckers died due to work related issues. During this same time period, truck drivers experienced the most fatalities of all vocations, resulting in a recorded 12% of all work-related deaths. In 1995, U. S. truckers also experienced more non-fatal injuries than workers in any other occupation, a number reaching over 150,000.
The government doesn't really keep stats on drivers anymore........who would want to drive when the numbers look like this.

You don't see many old truckers anymore.

Driving is dangerous work that pays very little in the end for what is at stake.

 

As opposed to my last job where people shot at me.....hmmmm.
My job isn't any harder than pulling cans around, I may have to chain up a few more times but that keeps me fit. We have 2 drivers that are 70 plus and they are doing just fine. They came back because they are bored AND give us younger guys (i'm 45) a run for our money. Driving in Canada is I think, a lot different than driving in the US. Not the physical driving, but the companies and regulations themselves.

On December 9th I will have been driving exactly ONE year and I'm making 72-75K a year WITH benefits. I passed my Class 1 on November 17th and 70 resumes later (banging on doors, NOT emailing) on December 9th I got a yes. Five minutes after he read my resume, he said 'get your gear, paper means nothing" and we went on a road test. I trained with a senior driver to 2 days in the cab and here we are.

It CAN be done, you CAN make money. You just have to work for it. Read the oilfield thread, some of the new guys that started the same time i did are doing fine. Don't expect a primo job with high pay and new equipment and perfect hours 3 minutes from your front door.

 

Ok....great.

A guy asks if he should drive and I say "No" based on decades of seeing where this industry has been moving.

You say you sent out 70 resumes and that is supposed to bolster your argument that trucking is a good career choice? That there is gold in them there hills? It took 70 resumes for you to get a job.


You have been driving for a year.........you're all piss and vinegar...great.....come back and see us when your 50.

oh....... and the guy that thanked you in your post...................he's a recruiter for oil field jobs. Ask him why the patch pays what it does and why they need recruiters to fill the jobs.

 

The 'guy' who thanked me pays his drivers $28 an hour plus overtime and is well respected in the trucking industry. If I ever want to move north, he'll be the first door I knock on. I put the 70 resumes in because I WANT to be a trucker, just like my dad. I'm well versed in the industry and have been all my life. At 45 years old and with decades of military experience behind me, I'm not "piss and vinegar' about anything anymore. I'm trying to show new guys that if you WANT to be a trucker, being inexperienced is not as much a barrier as people believe. You have to interview well, have a positive attitude and be ready to work. I make $300 a day and i'm home every night. I run the #3 to Princeton and back to North Van every day and love it.

If I listened to everyone that said something couldn't be done, I'd never get anywhere. Your experience might be different and he needs to hear both sides of the fence. That's all i'm saying.

As an aside, when I retired and decided on trucking for my second career, the first thing my Dad asked me was 'why the hell do you want to do that for?' He ran teams for Canadian Freightways, ONC and Motorways for his entire life and thought I was making a big mistake. His opinion is a little different now.

 

It will be ok..... Just come off the ledge and we can talk about it.

One thing you forgot to mention is the number of drivers versus loggers, police officers, miners, etc., etc..

Not sure where you are but I see plenty of old guys running laps around some half their age! A big part of the problem (not limited to) is the sedentary lifestyle, diet, and smoking like chimneys. One and only one is somewhat beyond our control.

 

Ok......Lets talk about it.

I work in operations. We don't sit down like we did in the 90's and say "How can we recruit and retain drivers?" Drivers are disposable/interchangable and most won't stay in the industry any longer than a few years(let alone the company they're currently working for) so why spend the money trying to get them to stay,there is no point. The freight volume everyone enjoyed n the 80's and 90's is gone,we don't have the manufacturing sector that we once had which powered truck load carriers.
Deregualtionin the late 80's allowed pretty much anyone with a few bucks to start a trucking company,that in turn drove rates into the ground over the next 20 yrs.............TAH DAH.......here we are today.

Praire boy has realise that there is more money in selling drivers than buying them......like pretty much every other company out there operating today.


Most truck load carriers are shifting their efforts into the brokerage side of the business to make up for lost revenue on the transportation side.
There are very few carriers anymore that can truly call themselves "truck load".
Companies are shifting their focus from drivers to operations. They want dispatchers that understand rates and know how spot markets works in terms of maximising the revenue a truck can generate. They look for competant people to work in operations who understand costs and how overhead affects those operating costs. Margins are tight. Dispatchers and operations peoples wages have surpassed drivers wages.


You guys are right.......there is money in trucking........unfortunately for you it is tied up in drivers wages. Companies have realised over the years that they are paying too much for drivers and are looking for ways to push down the rates paid out to drivers.

All the guys running out to the patch are alot like the people who ran to the end of the Titanic so they could stay dry for a few extra minutes.

The ship we call trucking for drivers is sinking.

 

You are so dead on with your remarks. 3PL is thriving while drivers are starving.

 

truckers represent 12% of the workforce, so the stats arent out of line