Milk tanker vs OTR

To the OP: from what I read above, you are not yet driving a milk truck. You should be prepared for crazy hours and long days, probably without being paid overtime since you will be exempt from overtime pay as a truck driver. That means you may work sixty hours a week but only paid straight time for all those hours.

My experience as a prospective milk hauler: I met the driver at the yard for a 2 AM start time. I was told to be prepared for a long day, but I had no idea what they really meant. We started off with a straight truck pulling a pup trailer, we dropped the trailer in town before we headed out into the hills. It is important to be on time for the farm pickups, as they have full milk tanks and in many cases will not be able to milk their cows until the tanks are empty.

As we drove from one farm to the next, the driver put on a real show, a clinic in how to drive and float and making it look so easy, it was a real treat. He kept pointing out the spots where I would need to stop and chain up/down after each farm; the chains are only run on dirt roads and have to be removed before going back on pavement unless it is snowing. After quite a few of these spots, I asked how many times a day would the chains have to be used, he said 18 stops, which means 18 times on and 18 times off. That is not every single day, but in the winter it would be many if not most days.

Around 10 AM we had filled the truck tank and returned to pickup the pup trailer. I then asked the driver what the rest of the day entailed, since we were now 8 hours into the day and there was no end in sight. He said if everything went well, we would be at the milk plant by 1-2 PM, unloaded by 4-5 PM and back to the yard by 6 PM. At this point, it dawns on me that this guy is not kidding, and I am looking at a 16 hour day if everything goes WELL! I asked him what time he started the next day and guess what? 2 AM. Then the next 2 days, 4 AM, Then the next two days, 2 AM. Six days in a row. Then two days off. Then six days in a row again. All straight time, no overtime pay.

I politely asked the driver if he had an issue with the hours and the pay and how did he possibly get enough sleep to do the job, much less have time for anything else? He said the hours beat actually working on a farm, which is what he grew up doing, and sitting all day compared to farm work, driving a milk truck was for him like a vacation. Besides that, with all the hours they "LET" him work (his words), he was going to be able to buy a house soon, something he could not afford to do working on a farm.

So I guess it's all relative, and to each his or her own. What did I do? I thanked the driver for being honest with me, and got out at the next convenience store, called a friend to pick me up, and never again considered driving a milk truck.

 

Hi VT, well, that's a little extreme, and if you are going to live and work in a state that requires you to chain up, it's part of the job. While I'll agree, the hours are long, the rewards are great. Go back on the comments and you'll see these farmers are great people. They feed you, if you have a problem, they will go out of their way to help, it's unlike any other trucking job I had. Besides, if I remember, when I did it, the guy I drove for said, if you ever need a day off, (because they understand the business) to let him know, and he'll get someone (or himself) to do the run. Try THAT with an OTR job.

 

OTR companies will straight bend you over and take you for all you're worth. Tanker experience can lead to lucrative opportunities, and getting a milk hauling job is a step up from OTR. You have cut out the over the road BS of this career field; the initiation phase, so to speak. Don't give it up. Get a HAZMAT and go make some dough after a year of experience doing this.

 

got two tins of popcorn on top of one tank today and a nice card and note. Told me thanks for all the work you do getting our milk picked up . Said we appreciate you ! You know what ? They really meant it. Nicest people around are involved in the dairy business

 

I'm a new driver and I would kill to have a job that has me home every night. I've looked, but the best I can find is Schneider regional that has me home every two weeks. If I had the experience, I would take a 50k home every night job over a 100k OTR job any day of the week. I'll have to pay my dues until I get up enough experience to get me a local job. I know some people love the OTR lifestyle, but I'm not one of them.

 

Hi cwr, once you get some time in, check with the local freight houses. In Wis., just about every major freight outfit is looking for driver's. I have a friend that hauls ABF freight that is "farmed out", because they can't find enough drivers.

 

There's plenty of local driving jobs around here but they will not give a new driver a chance. I've called many of them, they won't even give me a chance. Any company that feels like the are "farmed out" probably feels that way because their job requirements are too restrictive. Experienced drivers have gone where the money is and new drivers are left feeding on the scraps. It's a truck, it's not the freaking moon lander or something. I don't need to know orbital mechanics in order to operate this thing ###. Sorry, it's just frustrating.

 

It's very frustrating, I hear you. But like others have said, steer the course, and keep looking. The internet (and this site) are excellent resources for finding a decent job. We didn't have that years ago, all we had was the CB radio, and I got several jobs by just asking a driver if their company needs a driver. Go in, in person, and talk to these people. I've found, it looks a lot better when you go in, in person. Hang in there, it will get better.

 

[QUOTE="semi" retired;4379405]It's very frustrating, I hear you. But like others have said, steer the course, and keep looking. The internet (and this site) are excellent resources for finding a decent job. We didn't have that years ago, all we had was the CB radio, and I got several jobs by just asking a driver if their company needs a driver. Go in, in person, and talk to these people. I've found, it looks a lot better when you go in, in person. Hang in there, it will get better.[/QUOTE]

I've realized that you have to pay your dues until you can find a decent job. All the good jobs are reserved for experienced drivers. I noticed that a company named MTI has an ad on their fence for Class A drivers. I don't know what they do, maybe Vac truck or something. I thought about calling them but I might just go there in person.