Experienced reefer company driver pay?

I run all the miles I could possibly want to run most weeks. 3,000 is a slow week. I’m making more than 40 cpm (not going to say exactly) plus about 4-5 cpm quarterly and another 2 cpm every anniversary, and 100% paid health insurance. Layover and detention is not a factor because it’s rarely an issue but they will pay modestly in those rare situations. Also on a per diem plan that helps given the new tax plan.

But we’re expected to stay out for 3-4 week tours.

 

That’s not good information for you. Your tax situation and insurance situation and 401k , etc is all going to be different than me. You can figure the gross based on how you like to run and extrapolate from there.

 

My last job was a flat rate of $250 a day, 5 days a week for a dedicated run of about 1,200 miles round trip LTL. One of those days I unloaded at 7:AM and sat around all day at a truck stop before the return load home the next morning. It was a sweet easy job and some days I'm sorry I left it.

 

Pay at Shaffer for OTR drivers starts at 49 CPM for 1 year experience, I think. They have raised pay a few times in the last couple years though. You would need to call them to get a real number.

You should be able to easily manage around 2500 miles per week base pay.

I'm on an account, and my current numbers would not be a good example for you to consider, however, while I was OTR as a driver with 2.5 years experience (1.25 years with Shaffer,) I was averaging 2700-2800 miles per week, at 51 CPM. Practical miles. Between 25-50% drop and hook. I was looking at breaking 60k gross without bonus this year.

I did have to poke my driver manager fairly regularly for preplans to keep myself busy, but I didnt need to be super-aggressive about it.

Right now, if I stay on the account I just moved to, I might break 80k gross after bonus.

 

Also you always set aside some savings from whatever you net.

You will also need to consider your expenses and vices in life. In order to profit in this industry in whatever role you do, you have to be able to take whatever load given to you at whatever pay, small or great and set aside a nice amount against savings. So it will be there when you need it. If you need it.

No one is going to sprout I take home 1550 after grossing 2300 each week blabblabhlab. That's not going to happen.

In this industry they will hand you a certain amount on what they think you are worth and not one penny more. Not for a long time. 20's to 30's took 10 years, 30's to 40's took about another 15.

Inflation ate it right up. Poof.

This is not a industry where you take home this much every week without fail. Some weeks you aint gonna run #### and have to sit. Sitting costs money. That's where you come in. Pay up.

Hopefully you building savings steadily as you run out here. Your body is not going to last forever under this industry.

If you think me grumpy and bitter? Far from it. I'll do this work all over again in a heartbeat. But things will be very particular in what I would be doing in this industry (Primarily medicines, the payroll and all the other BS is no longer a problem.)

 

are you looking for otr?

 

New here, still deciding on which type of trailer to consider. For OTR Reefer - how noisy is that refrigeration back there? You gotta keep it on while you sleep? Or this depends on the reefer trailer's wear+tear, etc? More maintenance on a reefer trailer I assume than the other types of trailers due to the refrigerator?

 

Reefers vary in how loud they are, and people vary in how sensitive to the noise they are.

If you have a hard time sleeping unless it is very quiet, reefer noise will likely bother you. If you like to sleep with white noise like a fan, ocean noises, or radio static, then reefer noise likely won't bother you at all.