21 YEARS..leave or stay?

That is a hard call to make. You will have to decide. I myself would not go with the orange pumkin. They are a decent starter company for someone with no exp, but most get some miles under their belt and move on to better jobs. With your exp behind the wheel you could do better. Good luck, keep us posted!

 

Basic financial rule number one: never risk a pension if you are eligible for it, or if you are close to being eligible for it.

If you have vested the pension, and it will be paid to you no matter what happens, whether you stay or you go, then you have options. If the pension is not fully vested, then don't toss away what you have and risk losing it.

Now, if you are seriously considering changing jobs, then yes, your current pension will increase if you stay, but is the increase enough to make up for your not being as happy as you could be? I don't know the details of the Fedex financial arrangements, so only you can answer that one, especially when you have to figure personal satisfaction into the equation.

Other questions: Will a new employer give you full credit for your experience coming into a OTR situation/ Some do not, and do not consider local/shorthaul work as an indicator for long haul pay. You may, and probably will see a pay cut doing this, and you have to be prepared for that as well. Are your affairs in order that you can afford to be gone for a week to three weeks at a time. Will your lodgings be secure, have you a safe place to park your car, is there room to park the truck whe you do come home?

I don't recommend anyone stay in a job they no longer enjoy, but look at all your options before making the move. Once you leave Fedex, you are back to square one in the job market. It's a skill you probably haven't practiced in about 20 years, so you could be a little rusty there.

 

Why not go OTR with Fedex...then you could retain your seniority in case you wanted to return.

 

The fedex EXPRESS folks don't run OTR, just mostly term-term, or airport-term. The FedEx ground drivers do run OTR, but that is an O/O company that (in most cases) wants some OTR experience.

FedExGuy, I used to run for ground (with a step van), and after having my contract cancelled, ended up getting my CDL and going OTR. I have two young boys, am still (barely) married, so for me going OTR was a big adjustment, and honestly, as bad as that Fed Ground job could be (you know what I mean!), I still wish I had it. But Burky raises some very good points, you should definitely see what impact (if any) would be had upon your retirement, and then make an educated decision on what you'd like to do.

Good luck!

 

Glad the advice was helpful. I have a military pension, which I have been collecting for the last 10 years, so I understand the value of a good pension, and how it frees you up later on. And that's the basic crux of the whole matter. Once you have it locked in, you can pretty much do whatever you want to, even if that includes making a bit less than you had previously. The key is to make sure that as much as possible, you are setting yourself up for the golden years when they get here. No one likes eating canned dog food.

In the meantime, feel free to make this a home away from home. it's very hard to get bored around here, and an easy place to fight off whatever boredom ails you.