Experienced truckers: what drives the low first year income potential for newbies?

According to some posters, if you aren't making 100K per year, you are not at the "right" company.

 

Siberius, if you go with a mega then the way to succeed is:

1. Teaming
2. Get your hazmat
3. Get on a dedicated account

Dedicated accounts are where the consistent money is. Our paychecks are never below $1,000.

The best part is that compared to OTR.....the work is easy.

 

I would sure like to know what companies pays that for company solo drivers.

 

Here in Chicago, I've met rich drivers. None of them are doing OTR. They all have 5+ years of experience. The ones I know are doing LTL or Tanker.

 

I'm not sure what you mean when you say"your not paid what your worth"...as drivers we have to make a choice..will I drive for peanuts or not....I for one, did all that OTR stuff for a whole 3 months and it made my blood boil thinking of all the FREE labor I provide...So to control my sanity I researched the companies that would pay me for ALL my time....15 years of working for a union company I still dont think I'm paid what I'm "worth" but we drivers over here will stand together and demand that we are paid what we are paid...I am not union dancing, but as long as there is a steady stream of unemployed people going to CDL mills with big buck lies filled in their heads,the wages will always be low...

 

New drivers hit stuff, get lost more, damage more freight etc. When they get about two years they get ####y and think they know it all. They drive aggressively and think hurry hurry is the only way to get the job done and make more money. They still haven't learned good time management. When they get to five years they finally settle in as a seasoned driver and know a heck of a lot more than they did at two years, the job finally becomes easy and you look at it in a different light. That seems like the typical pattern looking back. Of course there are exceptions, just speaking of the average company driver. Then again many new driver's starting out in their early 20's the maturity and Honda factor comes into play. The human brain doesn't stop growing until about age 27.

 

Companies know they can get away with paying the driver low wages so until something gets done nationwide they will pay as low as they can but still sounds appealing to the driver.I don't know whats so appealing about trainee pay that draws ppl in like flies.

 

Trainee pay is better than no pay

 

Yep, I read it all the time on here," If I could make $500. a week that would be great "

 

It is funny .... some people think "the economy" is dead and that they can't even get a job
then you meet truck drivers that don't think they are being paid enough
we all look at it differently

to OPer ..... yea ... it will take a while for you to make more money
lots of good advice on this forum on different paths to better pay, positions, or owning your own stuff.

my wife hates dedicated and regional .... so we are all over the road