talked to a few truckers today and....

I always tell people to run, run away when they ask about trucking.

 

Thanks. A lot like my experience in 1991. I went to the 49er TS in West Sacramento, CA and asked a lot of drivers about trucking. Some said it was great, some hated it, some were Teamsters, some weren't. It was yes and no and and maybe and I was left to make up my own mind--no problem, I wanted to drive. I knew there were no guarantees. I jumped in and never regretted it, even though the carrier I worked for was less than perfect: we routinely ran two books; drivers were at the bottom of the pile; dispatchers were rude and arrogant; mechanics were rude and arrogant; office personnel treated drivers like dirt; payroll could be a nightmare of unpaid trips (sometimes you had to fight for your money); drivers were blamed for damage they couldn't have done (pre-existing damage); turnover was consistently over 100%; the guy who ran the company was always telling people how he wanted to make it better for his drivers (actually, he's still saying the same thing, and some people in each new generation of drivers believe him). Hey, all-in-all I had a good time! . YMMV. BOL.

 

Well, if you want to do it, do it. Some views are true, a lot of big companies are getting new drivers at lower pay, locking them in for a few, and when they leave, get more rookies. All depends on what you want to do, or drive, and who you want to do it for. A person has to be aware of the job and what they are worth to the individual, like any other profession. The conditions of the industry will never cease to change with the times, so you will always have to "get acustomed" to something pertaining the trucking business. Good luck!

 

I'm hopefully going to be starting with one of the well known trucking companies within the next couple of weeks, as office personnel, and your statement of the way drivers are treated disturbs me. I don't understand why they would want to treat their co-workers in such a way.

Just because they are in the office doesn't make them any better person than you, the driver, who is out doing the work, dealing with the traffic, shippers/receivers, inclement weather conditions, etc.

That being said, I hope I have never treated anybody that came into an office I worked in the way you speak of. I've always taken pride in the fact I treat others the way I want to be treated, and I'm no better than anybody just because I'm in an office.

 

Driver, I see you are from Michigan...a state that has been hard-hit by the exodus of jobs from the auto industry.
Jobs that mostly went to Mexico.
Well, the same thing will happen to trucking in the not-too-distant future.
But you say, "well, trucking can't be outsourced like a factory job can".
That's true, but these jobs will be INSOURCED by illegal aliens who are living here today and who continue to stream across our southern borders every year.
Alot of people think CSA2010 will create a greater demand for drivers and raise wages across the board.
In the short-term, maybe...but in the long-run, CSA2010 will exacerbate the so-called driver "shortage" which will make Congress pass legislation to grant illegals CDL's.
Trucking will go the way of other once good-paying service industry jobs such as construction, landscaping, meatpacking, etc.
This is all being backed by big $$$$ interests who want to lower the cost of transportation.
The same ones pushing for Mexican trucks, the NAFTA Superhighway, and the KC Smartport.

 

Jobs are like shoes. If it doesn't fit you it doesn't really matter if everyone else thinks it is a good or bad one. Some people look forward to digging into complex financial records to prosecute criminals. For others that would be a good definition of torture.

You have to evaluate your personality, do you like working for many hours alone, and evaluate the real job, not the cartoon idea of that job in the media.

There is a huge variation between trucking companies so it's not very fruitful to ask about "trucking." It's better to speak to drivers at companies near you that you may qualify for a job. Instead most newbies surf the web to the big national trucking companies, decide all things are equal, and then apply at Swift and ignore the warnings.

Your chances of picking good company and getting useful experience is directly related to the quality of your research.

 

I see what you are saying, in a way, but no one said trucking can't be outsourced or insourced. Job security isn't easy to find anymore. Companies are constantly being undercut, bringing down rates and ruining the business. What my point is if a person wants to do the job, let them experience the business first hand. Any one who has had much experience in the industry knows that there are countless circumstances that will determine the success of a driver or a company, including a lot of what you are saying. So, to repeat what I have already said, you have to decide if the job is worth it to the individual, whether it be the experience or pay. My family has been in the business for 60+ years, and heard plenty of reasons why not to get into trucking, but I wanted to do it. I did, and even though there are days I would like to get out, all in all I enjoy what I do.

 

Don't worry about him Freight Train, he's an OSU fan, and you know how much they love talking out of their blow hole.

Sorry, had to throw that in there. GO BLUE!!!!

BTW, love the avatar man. 2011 AL Central Champs!!!