Honest answers

Who cares about age out here? Give me COMMON SENSE any day. God only knows that that is severely lacking out here. Be you 23 or 75.

Mike

 

Nobody with common sense would choose to get into trucking right now .

 

Look around though. A lot of these people's at home jobs have went away. You got to do what you got to do to provide for your family. Trucking will always be there. If the job goes away you just drive to the next plant that hasn't closed to load.

 

Trucking will always be there but over 63,000 drivers have lost their jobs since November 2007 . This article was written a month ago so you can probably add several thousand to that . http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stor...ut533000jobsinNovembertruckingloses24300.aspx . Now the common sense . If you had a fleet of trucks which would you hire , one of the 60,000 + experienced drivers out there or one of the several thousand CDL school graduates with no experience ? Now common sense question for those considering going to trucking school . Why aren't these thousands of out of work drivers with families to support not going to work for the companies sending recruiters to CDL schools ?

 

Cannot argue with that. We are the industry of desperation. Anyone can hold a steering wheel, and no offense to any of you noobs. But we are the industry of last resort. I know, why do you think I am here?

Mike

 

Look at if from the co's point of view. Will they get tax breaks for hiring a seasoned driver? No. Will they get a older driver to drive for what a new guy would? No. A lot of these co's get big time kick backs for hiring brand new school grads and some get money back for damage they did to the truck while learning. You are only looking at the situation from your view as you see things. Most co's will look at it from a profit point of view. Times are tough, but again the trucking jobs are there for the new guys as well as the old hands.

 

Mr. RickG,
I didn't realize that that article was already a year old. Swing and a miss for me.
But either way,
There is money to be made in the trucking industry, you just have to look for it. I know that working for Swift, I'm not going to make $100K (actually no where near it!) However, I know a driver who works for WalMart who made almost 85K this year working 5 days a week.

As I've said before, this job is what you make of it and if you're a good driver with a good company, you've got nothing to worry about. Sure, this year we've all made less. I got laid off in January (Auto Industry) and now I work for Swift. Not as much money, but it's something to eat and pay the mortgage with. All I know is that I just finished a 3000 mile run from PA to CA, a 650mile trip from CA to WA, and now I'll be heading back east to OH. My paycheck ain't doing too bad, and I'm a noob.
Russ

 

50's.........to old...........I'm 51, worked in the same industry for over 25 years. I lost my job Sept 08. When I lost my job I had to do some soul searching. Did I want to stay in my field or jump ship and make a career change? I looked at my wife one day and said, "I can't do it anymore". It was time for a change. My wife being very supportive told me "go for it hun". So here I am 51, I start with Roehl next week. Flatbed too boot...... At 51, I bring a lot to the table, maturity, common sense, able to make a decision, loyalty, and trust worth. I'm clean cut; I can piss in a cup and not fail, Im in decent shape. 50's, I haven't felt this good in years.

 

Yeah I know lots of drivers making that kind of money but you have to look at what and how they do it. First, you'll never come close to that for many years. Second, you'll need a spotless record with tons of experience. And third you have to be lucky. Those jobs are going away since there's so many drivers out there that are willing to take less pay for work. You need to become specialized so you're in demand. You have to show the company it's better to keep you than to hire a new driver. I found all that in hauling gasoline. But there's plenty of low paying jobs in that field too. That's where you're right in knowing where to look. You just have to bring the credentials along with you.

A standard OTR driver is a dime a dozen. If you don't take 25¢ a mile we'll find someone that will. It's not fair but it's what they do. Why do you think companies like Swift and others have such a high turnover rate? But you take a driver that is experienced in hauling explosives see what he makes driving for companies that do that kind of work. Or any type of loads that take a little training to accomplish. So it's true when the experienced drivers on this board say you have to pay your dues they're talking from experience and it's something to consider before making any life changing moves. Unless you're rich and can afford making peanuts for awhile.