Pay,Risk and Talent

You drive a personal vehicle, which is much more dangerous than a CMV, and you do it for free. Aren't you keeping the working man down by doing so?

 

The drivers that do more than read an ad on Craigslist and then sing on to a company are getting better results. My company is paying me more than I expected when I hired on, and last year they switched us over to a Guaranteed minimum paycheck which is more than when I joined.

MOST newbies, do zero research. Volunteer to work for the shiite companies, even after us old-timers tell them not to, and then they blame "The Industry" and demand they get the good deals some of us looked hard to find even though they hired on at the first company that showed up in a Google search, that doesn't do a hair drug test.

Nobody held a gun to your head. If you VOLUNTEERED to work for ScrewEm Express, you chose poorly. Learn your lesson and pick better next time.

 

Did you talk to current drivers at the company you picked to work for? If you believe everything you read in ads, that's not our problem.

 

You really do believe everything you read, don't you? There is no driver shortage anymore than there is a shortage of Pro-Bowl Quarterbacks or Hooter waitresses. There are exactly as many of each as the pay and work conditions attract to the job.

The fact some Poindexter is projecting, at the current rate of growth, he will need 3 times more drivers than his company can attract now doesn't mean there is a shortage. Ask any 7 year old girl if the nation is gripped with a pony shortage. She wants one, so there is a pony shortage. The media are herd animals. Once one of them writes about a driver shortage the others will write the same story over and over until their leaders decide to create other media panics.

 

This system you speak of is our Economy. Those 45,000 pounds of apples are probably around 90K minus wholesale cost to buy them. When they get into the store for your family to walk into and buy at 2.00 a pound everyone involved in the sale of those apples all the way back to the grower in Washington State has to make a profit for this economy to work.

Then there is inflation. When I started 25K was good money in a time when 20 dollars bought a bunch of stuff. Now you need almost a hundred today to buy what 20 bought 40 years ago. And 60K does not begin to cover everything. If you research our Nation's History you will understand even Geo. Washington himself could not buy a wagon load of provisions with a wagon load of money in worthless Continentals of that time.

This Nation has been off track roughly 20 years now by my estimate. Something got bent and damaged along those years somewhere and we probably will never be able to fix it.

Unless you can persuade people to buy 10.00 apples a pound at the grocery store.

 

Well if you’ve been a CDL holder and driving a big um truck for 40 years congrats.

I’ve been driving 15. First 10 company. Then I figured I was as smart as the average beer, so I bought a truck.

Figured toilet paper and frozen beans had been covered, so I bought a flatbed. Then I saw opportunity and bought a special stretchy one.

Delivered a “thingy” to make a “thingy” that we can’t talk about - last week. $10,000 on 1000 miles. Because it won’t fit in a toilet paper carrier or a frozen bean carrier.

I could have bought a van or reefer, but I figured I needed a challenge and had a skill set that was worth more.

I don’t see a need to back your cause. That’s your fight. You need to do what’s best for you. I left where you’re at 10 years ago because I could either spend a lifetime training turkeys to be eagles, or just go hang out with the eagles.

Even if they called me a buzzard.

 

While I’m on a roll here - (see, instead of starting random threads involving the cluster muck of thoughts in my tiny brain, I hijack yours) . . .

Ask some questions. Not here, but out there.

As a company hand, plotting world domination, I researched a lot. Asked questions. Listened to industry related audio. Befriended owner operators along the way. Gathered information.

Not all are willing to share. That’s because most folks don’t ask or listen well. Here’s what I mean.

CB conversation while I’m trucking along.

Him - “Hey flatbed - what’s that your hauling?”

Me - “ It’s a BLAH BLAH”

Him - “Oh - ok”

Me - “Where you headed today?”

Him - “Well, my POS company sent me to X with some dog food and now I have to go to ‘Y’, but I’m going to buy my own truck and that’ll show them, and it’s gonna be a new “Yuk”, because they get better fuel mileage “

Me - “Sounds good”

Him - “Yup! And Mememememememe, me , and enough about me - what do you think about me?”

It’s enough to keep me awake, but not enough to make me wanna exit immediately to talk to a fresh cheese burger.

Rant over.

 

Yet in other threads you present yourself as a 24 year old Men’s Health magazine model , moonlighting as a heavy haul operator to raise charity funds for unloved Venezuelan puppies . . .

I smell a rat . . .

 

You lead the way.....