Should I leave LTL and go back to flatbed?

What part of Texas are you in?

 

Uber has a rental/lease program in some markets. I know when a friend lost his job, he had a 1998 ford Escort wagon but he went to work for them, drove a Tesla through Hertz, making enough to pay the bills and a little more.

 

Maybe @Chinatown can share his thoughts?

 

I'd be reluctant to give up seniority with Southeastern, but being reluctant doesn't pay the bills.
You're smart to not just jump ship without lots of considerations.

 

25 years from now you'll look back on leaving a good job with regret. Freight is a fickle thing here today, gone tomorrow but I'd put my money on Southeastern being the best long game versus ANY freight hauling outfit out there. You can always upgrade to a better job later I don't see this flatbed job as the better job. I'm speaking from experience there I wasted several years of my trucking days down a path that lead nowhere ultimately.

 

The only thing that fixes seniority is time and patience. I guarantee you that you're not the only one considering leaving

 

I think you haven’t invested enough time in the LTL company to worry about losing seniority. Leave on good terms 2 week notice and they’ll likely rehire you. I left Saia with almost 4 years and a great bid, schedule behind. 9am off by 7-8pm, M-f, 115k Linehaul run. Kinda kick my self in the butt. I know I would have been miserable too and probably not happy. I’ve landed on two great jobs since I’ve left and now in another dilemma about to drop another 4 years of seniority cause I need to move on with my life and pay the bills. Got laid off and they think we live in our parents basement and don’t have mortgages to pay. If I mention what company I’m leaving people would think I’m insane. I couldn’t believe what I found as a new job and I’m super happy. Little bit less money but a solid income and retirement. I was gonna stay here temporarily til my old job called me back but this job turns out to be a hell of a deal.

LTL will always be there. This is a down turn in the economy when it bounces back all the LTL companies will be desperately hiring again if you choose to go back.

The seniority game sucks but it’s what you have to deal with moving around. I know my new companies schedule sucks but with time it’ll get better but the job overall I know I like way better for me.

 

If you net 1000 on 3 days. Your going to work close to 70 hours to net another 400 or 500 dollars. 33? hours extra for another 400. That doesn't seem like the best trade off. Everyones situation is different.

Tell us which city, someone might be able to lead you in a more lucrative direction.

 

While the economy is slow there's no guarantee wherever you would go will keep their freight contract. They could lose a big contract the week after you start. I worked at a big LTL company for 18 years (I wasn't doing LTL). Everything was seniority based. If I left my work site/account, I would essentially have zero seniority at whatever other customer account/work site I transferred to for 12 months. But after that period as a "newbie" at the new site/account I would then have all of my seniority come back. So if I transferred into LTL, from the Nissan account, I would have 1 year to be the FNG, and then have whatever my seniority deserved after that 1 year. Seniority is about the only thing you cant buy.

I'd say if your current job was paying enough to get by, then I would stay. If the pay is ALREADY causing REAL problems, not just being less money, then leave. Above everything I would make a decision based on long-term considerations, not short term or how easy a decision would be. If both jobs were paying exactly the same (I understand they are not paying the same right now), which one would you prefer to do until you retire? Once you make that decision, is the real money you make now, and the realistic version of the money at the other job enough to change companies.

Essentially you need to bet on which company or customer account is going to disappear if the economy stays slow for a long time. That's a tough bet to make with confidence. If you really prefer flatbed work, take the flatbed job. If you were more comfortable doing flatbed and less comfortable at the LTL company you will get more comfortable at the LTL company over time. Making good decisions is hard. Making bad decisions is easy.