Owner Operator vs Company

How old are you ? and how's your driving record ?

 

I started with an owner operator, ran lots of hours but I didn't care, I was young and dum. The pay was good cause of the hours but was you broke it down I was better off working for minimum wage for the time. I was 18, out of high school and work at warehouse were trucks came in daily. Anyways, school wasn't over, I realize in the years to follow, and still to date, your always learning in this business. Now I've been an owner op for 28 yrs and 4 yrs that I worked for that owner op in the beginning.
I learned alot when I worked for an owner op cause he was a mechanic and if I wasn't driving I was at the shop watching him maintain and repair his trucks when they were in. I help a lil when i could and all this was on my own time not knowing all this would come in handy down the road. Anyways..... if you want to learn more in this business, I would go with the owner op, if you want to be a STEERING WHEEL HOLDER, go with swift, werner, jb hunt, etc...

 

I've been considering eventually leasing onto Roehl, with whom I just started. One thing I'm holding myself to is to be a company driver for at least a year (of course, they require at least a year before one can lease with them). My reasons for doing at least a year as a company driver though, are: learn how to run efficiently (fuel, time, routing, wear/tear), get to know the business better, absorb as much information as I can about owning and running a truck, keep track of expenses over the course of a year (maintenance, fuel, mpg, repairs, etc...), and make sure I can, and want to, do this at the very least long enough to make it through a lease term.

Those are just a few of my personal objectives before I'll even seriously consider signing a lease. Hope it helps.

 

You'll need more then a year....

Then hopefully you'll learn that leasing a truck from the people who sign your paycheck is about as bad .

 

For what its worth i would like to give my input in this matter. I believe there are various types of drivers. None particularly better than the other but for this purpose we can say there are two. The drivers that were born to do this job, wether because their dads and grandads did it or they were just meant for the road. Then there are drivers who are forced into this job because of the lack of work in their area locally that need to make more money than what jobs in their home town require. Therefore by hitting the road OTR the potential earnings are much greater. For those not as "wise" to the game i suggest company driving first. Dont just jump into an occupation that may not be suited for you if you dont have a good understanding of all aspects required. It's only easy in theory. It takes a whole different breed reguardless of where you come from to be able to do it. I have a lot of respect for anyone that is willing to give it a go and there is no shame is driving is not for you. To be honest I dont think i could do it successfully either. For all of those who do it and do it well, my hats off to you. I have the utmost respect for you. Its much more than just holding a steering wheel. So before you decide to buy/lease your own truck if you are not well aware of what lies ahead try out a company gig for a while and learn what makes them money. Driving characteristics, fuel economy, truck maintenence, road experience, etc.... there are hundreds of things to consider and gain experience on. If you are however already knowledgeable and young enough with no family dependants and are willing to run the wheels off wherever whenever for the next 3 years and dont need a lot of "training" in the field, buy your own. Be smart about it though. It is your own business and you have to budget wisely just like the owner of a compnay. When to buy your fuel, how much to buy, where to buy the cheapest fuel. Watching idle time, maintaining your equipment. Shop around find out whats a good deal on a truck. Dont just sign on with swift because they are making it easy. Chances are the more they are taking care of for you, the more it is costing you. Nothing comes free even if they say it does. If you are not available to work weekends at all dont even look at buying the truck. If you have a slow week and dont make as much money, that truck payment is still coming. Until you have that truck paid off you are your own boss and a boss cant have an employee not showing up to work. You can get yourself into a bad situation and ruin your credit. Either way, if you are a hard worker, and willing to commit to the business you will be successful whichever path you decide. Maybe not right away, but eventually a good work ethic combined with business intelligence will only lead to success. Best of luck to you with whichever you decide.

 

Company side. Aside from a truck which can go 6 MPH faster, what does the O/O offer you? You might get paid a little better starting off, but on the scale of rate progression, it's not likely he's going to keep up. Medical benefits... yes on the company side, buy your own if you're driving for a small fleet. So, basically, all you get out of it is being able to pass other Swift trucks.
The only real upside I can think of is that you'll have to learn to do some maintenance tasks that you wouldn't have to do on the company side. Honestly, you could learn that by working with and learning from the shop personnel when your truck's in the shop, rather than running out for a burger or pizza.