Deregulation specifics

True and the same for today. Just lower middle class.


I still feel it's possible, but low. To many expectations to profit alot from doing very little. And it's not just trucking. Everyone wants high pay for minimum effort. Not saying that there is not hard workers out there, because there are in every race, gender, and career.

 

Just to add something else to this great discussion. Something I haven't seen mentioned yet but a lot of the big non union companies that are still around today that got started back after the end of WW2 and into the 50’s used lease operators to grow. As evil as they are nowadays CR England and Werner are two of them as an example. They started with one truck and as they got authority to travel and cover other areas and lanes they had o/o’s lease on so they could have the trucks to do it without having to buy them themselves. Was a win/win during those times.
Many companies required you to paint your truck their colors to be leased to them. If you moved on to another company you’d have to repaint again. You Wonder why you see so many vintage trucks sitting in junk yards or what not with 1/4 thick paint jobs that have 30 different color layers? Thats why.

 

How much experience did you have.
How did your food cost a week. 106000 isnt that much lot of ltl drivers make that.

 

Thank you Doug. I was just a snot nose brat back then. Just grew up around it and completley agree with every point you made.

 

So splitting the difference, let say you ran 1750 miles every week for all 52 weeks of the year. That works out to 91k miles a year. $40k divided by 91k miles, works out to $0.4396 per mile.

Using that same inflation calculator that equates to $1.166 per mile in todays money. IF I was paid the same rate as you were in 1983 per mile, properly inflated for today's economy... I would have made $169,436 in 2019 for the 145,314 miles that I logged, instead of the $61k that I did make... $48k after family health insurance was deducted.

That just goes to show you that drivers wages have not gone up appropriately with inflation over the years since deregulation.

 

Wages were much lower, they didn't go up until the inflation hit.Prices were lower, hamburger an coke for 50 cents. Rate book, 80 s were a nightmare of trucking companies closing.

 

Using what I remember from the food costs growing up by the plate I think a full breakfast and bottomless coffee was right around 4.50. Today to have that much food in portions and so forth would be darn near 20.00 in Petro.

One place in Frederick served scratch made pizzas to order for 3.50 extra toppings as you like it 50 cents per. It was my one pleasure each week away from the state school food which was generally Uncle Sam's sourcing. Took about 30 minutes to wait on that pie. But She did great.

I was fortunate into the late 90's to find a little place in Kansas, maybe 4 acres and a shack. Cooks meals to order for trucking. I think it was 6.50 a plate and 2.00 for thermos. I trip planned around that quiet little place for years. I think they finally closed. Keep in mind that street food trucks in say Philly was another source. They were happy to toss on a extra wrapped in foil. you might not be back the next morning depending.

They worked hard for that dollar I can tell you that.

 

That is some quick maths! I wanna make more than my friends with 4.0 gpa and engineering degree too!

 

Wages NEVER keep up with inflation, I've heard that my whole life from both my dad and grandpa.