Moving Companies

More power to you if you want to be a "bed bugger"! Somebody has to do it! Yes it pays well but there's a reason it pays well.

There is a actually a lot more too it then you may think. Training and orientation in the bed bugging world can be quite extensive. I actually went through a month long program at Mayflower for their training and it was really in depth. They actually had a huge warehouse in which they built a mock up two story apartment in to teach drivers how to properly move stuff. On top of the physical aspect there is a lot of paperwork you must do which entails inventory and damage. You must inspect every single item you put in the truck and write up a condition report on it. After that the item must be tagged and then properly packed depending on what it is.

Ever play "Tetris"? Once you inventory, tag and pack you must organize the entire house so that it can be properly loaded onto the truck. You can just throw everything willy nilly into the truck like a U-Haul move either! You must strategically arrange and fit every item in place to maximize every last inch of that trailer. Along with this, heavy items must be placed lower than lighter items and of course fragile items must be secured and placed so that they are damaged or crushed. The weight of the trailer is also a factor when loading. Most times there isn't just one household on a trailer either. There can be 3-4 or more households loaded on that trailer which is why it must be loaded properly. There is a section under the trailer for storage called the "belly" in which you keep all the furniture blankets and sheets of plywood. The sheets of plywood are used to build tiers and keep things separate and from getting broken. I once had to fold an entire trailer full of furniture blankets, what a mess that was!

Sorry to ramble on guys, just giving the op a glance into bedbugging....

 

Good hard physical work... not a thing wrong with it.

I wouldn't advise anyone first starting out in the moving industry to sign any sort of 'lease' or 'independent contractor' deal though. You need to learn how to properly move, pad and load first...

Packing a trailer is an art form.... it takes knowledge and skill to do it properly and avoid any $300 holes.. cube is $$$$

 

I am a mover, they call us "contractors", have been for 12 years, I will tell you, if you are in any way lazy, clumsy, or unorganized go be a truck driver. This job is physical, mentally demanding, and customer oriented, you are in a customers house all day, moving their life. That said, you need to be able to work 6-10 hours and then drive the rest of your hours you have left for the day, keep in touch with your customers, and keep clean every day. if you break their stuff, you pay a percentage, that percentage goes up the more moves you break stuff. But once your good, and your van line figures out your good, you'll make more than any of these company drivers can dream about, heavy haul, specialized or otherwise, why do you think we have the nicest trucks, its different when you pay for it yourself from busting your ### all day. If you just started driving you may want to get some experience driving first, as we run alot of residential roads, restricted roads, (with permits) and put these trucks in places they really arent supposed to be. good luck

 

"cube is cash" that sums it up

 

snafu you should invest in some rubber bands, and there is a hole by the chair, and the top of the trailer still has its 2 inch stretch you didn't use

 

I was a mover for 12 years myself (on the O&I side ) ...........think I can count on one hand how many times I've done household in 12 years lol......... The only thing I think I'll disagree with you on is: IMO I think if you ARE lazy: one of two things will happen: either you get in shape FAST and break out the lazy crap........... Or you get fired or quit!

Household movers earn every single penny they make! (Maybe not the old guys that only drive and when they get to a destination they hire lumpers to do everything including inventory! lol ....those guys maybe not so much)

 

Well im a newbie on the forum and came on to ask questions and I ended up going with a united van lines company in michigan a few short weeks ago and I agree with the above to guys for the most part. I think its a great gig with a few flaws. The top out pay which can range from $17 to the $25 range as a local driver was and is the reason I decided to give it a shot but.......

Cons: Business dictates the amount of hours you get every week and day. In the winters here and Michigan I have already found out business is slow in the winter and have not made much money. In the summer which can be a pro or con business picks up heavily according to co-workers and at least 10 hours of overtime a week is the average in the warmer months.

Your not really a driver is the next con I have picked up on. Your a warehouse, driver, mover and whatever else is needed to be done with driving being about 30% of the job and here they drive automatics.

I was told you are responsible for damages to an extent but it seems like it sort of depends. The big thing seems to be some customers can bank off of claims that an item or items was damaged during a move which falls back on the company which could fall back on the driver because the driver is sort of the supervisor of the move and dictates how everything gets loaded.

Very physical job...could be pro or con though.

PROS: I get home everyday. Learning how to drive in a vast amount of obsticles. pay isnt bad. benefits arent bad. Good leadership training.

Not sure if I am going to stick with the moving company as I just really want to learn how to drive and would like to drive more. I was just learning how to drive a stick shift truck and just want to do more driving. We shall see how it goes. lots of good information here on the forum and I'm just taking it all in.

 

Lmao...aw that was funny!! Uh yeah that ain't happening! You will pay any and ALL claims!
that ins is for the company NOT YOU.

 

Something is wrong there because I know the driver loading often isn't the driver delivering . On longer moves the stuff is taken to the warehouse , unloaded , crated , then shipped with other loads . How can it be determined which driver , laborer , or whatever caused the damage ?

 

Bed buggers break down fast.
I've given a dollar to more than my fair share of ex bed bugger's sitting at truck stops with a cardboard sign.

Speaking of which, anyone seen Mark the homeless ex bedbugger on the I-80 corridor lately out towards NE?