Being an Owner Operator vs. City Unionized Driver

I've done that for a couple years and then got stupid and bought a truck. This owner operator thing is the ultimate rat race... Let's see who can bid the load down to nothing race... LOL

 

I started out, with a couple Union jobs, they were very hard to get. Neither is still around. Today, I see UPS hiring 70 cpm. Maybe if I were younger. Best thing you have going for you now, is the 17 yrs of pension. The pay and schedule is also hard to beat.Being an O/O has a lot of unknowns.Ive known many, who like Me, did it as a way to make as much as a good Union job paid. While the pay gap has closed somewhat. When times are tough, like 20 yrs ago, and again 10 yrs ago. The pay gets cut, quick.I think you should hang in there, get as much pension you can tied up. A lot of my friends qualify for retirement. Some are choosing to continue working, simply for the money, and knowing they don’t have to, are enjoying it. The next 17 yrs. will be here in no time. Short answer is your much better off, than an O/O. You punch out, and leave all the problems behind. True peace of mind.O/O it never ends.

 

Well the first thing that comes to mind for me are your benefits. If you are an owner operator and you wanted to have the exact same benefits that you get from that Union I can't imagine the astronomical cost especially if you have a family. And if you factor putting away the same amount of money that you would get through your pension I just can't see that happening.

The second thing is if people cut you off in traffic and you have customers that give you a hard time there's no difference with your own truck. The difference is the time that you spend waiting now you very well may not get paid for it with your own truck or you may have to fight and argue and carry on to get paid for that or to get paid for anything. Shippers and receivers can take up a lot of your time that you currently get paid for.

If you leased onto a really good company that could mitigate some of that, but to match the benefits that you have in the pension that you will get I just don't see how you could do that.

And if you have kids consider this. My dad is 91 years old. If he did not have the pension and the benefits from the union he was in, I don't know what we would do.

When we were kids we always wanted him to have his own business. In retrospect, he definitely made the right decision.

It's something to think about.

 

My thinking is do what you want to do, we can not tell you what to do, and yes you can make a good living without paying union dues. I am an OO, but at times will drive someone elses truck, I could easily join the union and make just a hair over half of what I do, but would have benefits, and union does.

City type driving is not for everybody, neither is otr, but a guy can make a good living at either, just different lifestyles and a different set of headaches, only you can pick your poison.
I personally would not advise you as to which one, probably because they do not make enough money for me to do your job, just not my style.

 

Don't allow who you are to interfere with who you could be.

 

Seems to Me, it boils down to what you can put up with. Any Occupation, especially Trucking. I’ve met Guys who threw in the towel, even though they were profitable. Just got tired of the aggravation. A local Job right now, sounds great. But I know how I am. Won’t take long, I’ll regret giving up my Truck, and get restless.I, like the OP, wonder. Except I’m on the opposite side, as an Independant. Keeping my Teamsters withdrawal card, just in case.

 

If you haven’t already read it @blairandgretchen has a thread around here somewhere. It’s been so long since he updated it I forgot what it’s called.