i work for the city of nashville..i just got a job offer driving shuttle or linehaul

Take the driving job. After 12 months experience with Volunteer Express, then if you want even more money, you will be qualified for Estes, Southeastern, South East Carriers, Saia,all in Nashville/Smyrna/LaVergne and Cardinal Logistics in Goodlettsville. All these companies are near you.

There's also Bulkmatic in Hopkinsville and A&R Transport, Tidewater Transit in Decatur, AL but work in Nashville. These jobs are $55K-$65K per year.

Check the websites of all these companies and then decide if you think Volunteer Express would be a good start for a new career.

 

I will help. Heavenly Father please give this man the strength to stay at the city and retire with an excellent pension and not take a trucking job.

 

Tennessee state pensions aren't that good. He can do better by maxing out his contributions to a 401K then investing that money is a venture such as rental property. A state pension combined with Social Security, a person can live on it if they're frugal and comfortable with a set routine the rest of their life and can't risk venturing out of that set financial comfort zone. That's a personal call though; I could never be happy with those restrictions, but some people are fine with it.

 

stay with the city job. a tennessee state pension is much better than no pension. the city of nashville job will pay more over time,there will be vertical advancement as opposed to the horizontal/lateral movement that trucking offers,and you have set hours.

the majority of the replies to your post are adamant that you stay w/the city job. consider that please.

 

I'm in the minority on this one; but how do you survive only working weekends for the city of Nashville? I understand the points the other posters are making, but I would still make a move. I was born and raised in that area and spent most of my life there, but claustrophobia set in so I jumped ship with no regrets.

 

He just needs to find something part time. Like I said go work the docks part time and see if he even likes it. That way he still is marking time on his pension till he can go full time. All the companies mentioned have part time opps and making a buck.

 

Staying with the city job will provide a much greater opportunity for advancement along with all the other pluses mentioned earlier.

 

If you run local you'll make about the same for a few years. If you run OTR you have sacrifices and almost pay double for everything living out of a truck stop. It takes a little while until you can get set up to buy, store and cook groceries. Until then you'll be doing the fast food thing which can get rather expensive. You figure all them extra road expenses you are really not making anymore.

 

If you are making 34K with the city you probably will have to make 50k trucking to break even. Poorer quality benefits. No pension. Live out of a suitcase. Be away from your family. If you stay with the city in 30 years you will be ever so glad you did. I don't know about Nashville but in Cleveland,Oh. there is an invisible list of names waiting on those water dept. jobs and those names are very well connected. Put your time in move up the seniority list and you will be fine. Like you said pray about it. There is no overtime in this business unless you are working local. Trucking wages are a shadow of what they once were. Do yourself a favor and stay where you are. Check out some of those outfits for dock work, but I would not leave the city water works.