so who makes it in this industry??

I'm not negative at all.
People (especially in this industry) confuse someone telling the truth with someone being negative and cynical.

Look at the facts:
You are not going to get paid all the miles you drive...FACT.
You will log 70 hours in your logbook but you will be on the job 80-100 and be paid for half that time...FACT.
You will live out of that little cave behind your seats...FACT.
The company will harass you about idling their truck to keep warm/cool...FACT.
You will spend weekends and holidays in the truck...FACT.
Pay at these truckload outfits averages .25-.37 cpm...I made that same money 10 years ago...FACT.
You health will suffer from a poor diet and sitting on your ##### all day...FACT.

Unhappy? Miserable?
You are wrong.
I'm happy as a clam earning .55 cpm and $22.00/hr.
Plus home every night, weekend, and holiday.
I'll do $70k this year without breaking a sweat.

But the morale to the story here is that maybe 1 in 50 drivers will find a job like mine.
Most of you starting out will earn half of what I make....and you will only hit $50k after a few years if you live on the job 365/24/7.
Is that good money for spending your life in a truck?
Not only NO! but HELL NO!

If you want the real story, just look at the turnover rates.
Back when freight was moving, turnover was up over 100% at alot of these carriers.
Put that into perspective...
That means a carrier like Schneider or Swift with 15,000 power units must find over 15,000 new drivers PER YEAR.
What other industries have such massive turnover rates like that?
And why is the churn so high if the job is as great as some people here make it out to be?

What it comes down to is that people don't like hearing the truth.
They don't like to hear that their job blows and the industry is nothing but a big labor racket.

 

Rick, you worked for MPW? I was offered a job there, didn't pan out though...

 

Thats not negative it is the way it is.

 

The industry, if you can call it that, is hot or miss. If you have a passion to drive give it a whirl. It payed off huge for me and my brother. I am hauling petroleum and he drives for the city. The rest of our school class is unemployed and some have a bad DAC that will keep them form driving anything. I bet they couldn't even drive a cab.

 

Sure, the big companies will chew you up and spit you out. However, there are many drivers that are just setting themselves up for failure. Years ago I drove for a friend of mine that had a few trucks signed on with M.S. Carriers in Memphis. While at the O/O dispatch office talking to my dispatcher (who was great BTW), I couldn't help but hear the O/O in the cubicle next to me being fired - for REFUSING 11 STRAIGHT LOADS! Make no mistake about it, this is one tough line of work, but at least be willing to bust your tail a little to get the job done. People will notice a driver that tries versus the slug that hangs out at the truckstop complaining about the industry and missing those appointment times. If you want to be home every night with 100 grand in the bank, this ain't the line of work for you...

 

Well,i know first hand(17 Year Hack Vet) that you have to be an Immigrant from other than the American(North,Central or South)Contenant to Roll a Cab these Day's.

Polliticly incorrect? SUE ME!

 

Good for all you "negative thinkers".....
Keep on thinking that way....

"The doors are closed...."

"The big companies are all bad....."

Just keep thinking that way.........



Those of us who think positive...will continue to succeed...and with all of you negative thinkers out there putting up your own roadblocks....That just clears the road ahead for the rest of us.....

 

That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!!

 

Yeah , I worked for MPW for 3 years . Good chance for advancement . Within 2 years I was a supervisor with a company truck . Most supervisors have CDL -A 's and move trucks between jobs . Bad part is you have a Nextel and you're on call 24/7 . You can get around that though just by having a few beers . .