To all the drivers out there busting their tail.

Yeah , you live in RI and gross $1200 a week working local . But what about cost of living ? What do you pay for rent or mortgage and taxes ? What are your heating costs in the winter ? I grew up in MA . Now I live in KY and make as much as you running regional but my mortgage is $550 a month . . Somebody will pay twice that for a 2 bedroom apartment where you are . Last month all my utilities , gas , electric , water , sewer and trash pick up totalled less than $100 . I agree running OTR is not a wise thing to do though .

 

Do you read contracts before you sign them?

Nobody put a gun to your head and forced you to work for an OTR company.

Also....it is not the company's responsibility to help you live within your means or capabilities.

It's amazing that some drivers think that they should have pay that equates with what doctors and lawyers make....

 

I am paid well for what I do $70,00 for two years in a row, might be lower since I am not working as much, low freight market, I love OTR, and would get bored running local. Besides in Kansas local work pays about $8-$12/hr and restricts you to 40 hrs. I started off at a low rate of pay, increased my skills and experience, and moved up to a better job, well that and the company went bankrupt. Now I work for a good company. The point is we all come from different positions and have different goals in life. If a guy is starting out he may need to work for that lower pay for a while. If he doesn't keep his resume, read driving record, clean he may have to continue working for cheaper, or he may like the people, type of work, region it runs in, get's him home more often, etc. It is probably good from time to time to remind those who are getting paid at the lower end of the scale that they can make changes if they want to.

 

8 to 12 dollars per hour?? I got news for ya'; The average local P&D guy at an LTL carrier makes between 19 and 22 dollars per hr. sometimes more. You're facts are just a bit off there bud.

 

Yes I'll give you Yellow freight and the LTL were paying 18-22/hr but with a clean MVR and years of experience they required you to work on the casual list, fill in when they needed you. I couldn't support myself on that.
I was referring to the concrete, construction, and local delivery from a warehouse type work.
My apologies for any offense caused by my incomplete communication of the facts.

 

Hmmm, lets see. If trucking companies pay drivers more, they then have to charge more for hauling the freight. This charge then gets passed on to the people buying the merchandise, i.e. consumers. What's the point in a bigger paycheck if I end up paying more for my Cheerios and Dove?

 

There are many factors involving pricing of goods . Freight is a minor one . How much of a markup do you think there is on all that imported junk in WalMart ? You wouldn't want $.10 a mile more because it might raise the price of your Cheerios a couple of cents ? Do you think brokers share your concern ?