An old man's career goes flat, Snackbar moves to open deck

I got my chauffeurs license in 1974. Had to take several written tests for CDL in Georgia but no driving test.

 

well I'm not twice your age (I think) but I am older lol

 

SSB, I'm guessing that you might be a little older than me (60). I did my thirty years of driving and retired this year. I miss driving and the money. I only take home a little more than half of the money I made in retirement but it definitely still pays the bills. I definitely don't miss waking up early and driving to work each day. What is your motivation to still be working?

 

Piss poor money management and an inability to plan for the future.

That statement might not apply to SSB but it does to a majority of CMV drivers over 65 who don't have 20+ years at their carrier. It blows my mind how few of my company's drivers are maxing out the 401K match, not to mention the number of "abandoned" 401Ks. I don't even want to think about how many are taking advances on their pay.

I know drivers who are working just to provide their spouse/kids with health insurance, and that's valid. I also know drivers who keep working because they have nothing else to do, which while sad is still valid. I know more drivers who will never be able to retire because they haven't made a plan to retire - they just expected it to happen.

 

Cash advances are stupid. I’ve only been driving for six years and have never done one. Just seems pointless since you’re going to pay for the advance later.

 

I'm almost 58 and have been doing this for 31+ years.

As far as waking up early, I do that even when on hometime or vacation. At 2 am my eyes open automatically, with or without an alarm clock or a reason. I will probably be doing it after I am dead.

I only take advances on my pay when I have spent money for a reimbursable item like parking, a light/plug or washer fluid and don't want to wait to get paid back (since we are only paid twice a month).

As far as working for insurance, that's the primary reason I haven't moved on here. With the amount of money I would have to shell out for my wife's prescriptions alone would far exceed what I pay for insurance on a monthly basis for coverage here. If I had to come up with that out of pocket for 60-90 days until another company's benefits kick in, it would take a huge chunk of our reserves, which are slowly dwindling away as it is on this new pay plan they forced me on to last fall.

 

my mom would have been 8 at the time

 

i put more money into my 401k than the default amount. I may bump it up even more in the future. At my company, you have to work here for 5 years before your 401k becomes 100% vested

I’ve worked for 4 companies in 5 years. I was a stocker at Walmart for just short of two years. It was a full time position so i got full benefits. Obviously left when i got in this industry. Worked for Schneider and then left after 6 months because well, it was Schneider. Worked for Magnum for 14 months and only left because i moved clear out to the boonies in terms of their lanes and got tired of deadheading hundreds of miles home and not getting paid a dime for it. I’ve worked for FCC since Valentine’s day 2023 and unless something major happens (like me winning the lottery), I will be here for the foreseeable future. It’s a good, stable company that pays well and has decent benefits. Only reason why i would move on would be to drive for a company that operates out of my own backyard. They don’t pay as well but the company paid BCBS health insurance with a $1500 deductible makes up for it

 

Got my chauffeurs in 88 at 22 years old. Like Johnboy I was grandfathered into the CDL

 

I definitely get the prescription reason. The prices are ridiculous! You can go to a drug store and for about $50.00, you can buy Narcan to reverse an Opioid overdose. Yet if you need medication for a health condition, they charge hundreds if not thousands of dollars for those! My wife and I are both lucky to have retiree medical, dental and vision. It still costs us $556.00 per month for our insurance. Co-pays per visit went from 10 to $30.00. We even have to pay a little more for our prescriptions. I hope things will continue to get better for you and your wife.