The real reason so many new drivers don't last...

IMO too many people have watched all the truckers movies and shows (White Line Fever, Convoy, BJ & the Bear, Moving on, ect) and think you are gonna have all this time one your hands "to see the sights", when in reality its nothing like that at all.

You have to keep that rig rolling to make money, who have to spend lots of $$$ out on the road for meals, showers, washing clothes, internet/Wi-Fi, phone calls, idle-air, ect.

You dont get to see your kids and wife everyday and you dont have set hours of work. We get paid whatever we can as we dont fall under much protections that office and warehouse workers have like OT, lunch breaks.

Who likes sleeping in a cab even a condo every night? Then you have to fight with the shipper or consignee to get the #### load off or on so you don't lose time to get to your next stop. Then security can be a-holes too.

Gotta put those tire chains on in cold weather and strap down a flatbed when the wind is going to blow your tarp down the yard. Yeah that's fun.

Yeah, most older workers who get into trucking don't get it, unless they manage a short-line haul or local work. Course most local work requires lots of training for some difficult backs into old docks with a rig that's too long.

Its no wonder the industry is in such a mess right now. Doubt it'll get any better either.

 

The blame can not just be put on one area. You can pick an item from trucks,schools,companies,attitude,recruiters, and so on and come up with enough reasons why not to start driving a truck. Myself, I blame the schools and recruiters for not telling the whole story. Alot of these new people think once they get their CDL, training is over and they now know all there is to know.

There's very little training going on about the business, driving professionally, and how to keep care of the truck. The attitude about learning all you can so you can move up into a better job is rare and not practiced as much as before. Learning how to get from point A to point B as quick as you can is the normal procedure today.

If you really must blame one item then the computer is the most overall criminal of them all. Just think about it. The companies do not have to look at the applicants anymore face to face so it's real easy to not select the new driver. New drivers just use the computer to apply for jobs which skips alot of companies that do not have to advertise. New drivers will just fill out applications on-line then wait for a call back. So when this is done you fall into the same path as all the rest of new drivers looking for jobs on-line. Please take a number and wait.

OTOH, computers can be good for research as long as you use it as a tool and not just the only tool. You can check the safety of a company and what they want as far as new hires. But then again you're only going to see companies that have to advertise on-line and there's a huge problem why they have to do that. They just can't keep drivers. Use it as a tool and download all the trucking companies in your area or where you want to look and get out and go see them. There's so much more you'll learn from seeing and talking to people than any computer will ever tell you. You'll be in a class of very few and I can tell you when I was involved in the hiring process I believed that if a driver took the time to see the terminal and apply for a job then he or she really wants the job. If you get an interview then it's face to face and you can get your requests answered right then and there. You can see how the overall operation is conducted. Like if the terminal is full of trash everywhere you can expect the trucks to be the same. The list goes on and on.

So if you want to drive in todays world you have to do alot of research using the computer and your visits to terminals and truck stops. Check out the benefits and sign nothing until you fully understand it. Talk to drivers at the truck stop and if you get good information buy them a cup of coffee. Don't take one source as being the way things are. Ask many drivers to get a complete picture. Make a list of what you want and set some goals for 1 year, 5 year, and so on. Driving a truck is a life style and make sure you're going to fit in before you invest any money. You have to know if your driving record is not clean what will keep you out or hold you back. And just remember above all that schools and recruiters are not working for you. Just my 2¢.

 

People find out about the long hours spent on the job.
All the time away from home.
No place to park.
Irregular shifts.
Pressure to run hot/illegal.
Lots of hurry-up and unpaid waiting around.
Filthy truckstops
Tickets/fines
Worthless health insurance with high co-pays
BS dealing with customers and other drivers.
No overtime.
Broken promises from dispatch
Lots of freebies performed/expected of you.
Hostile 3AM warehouse deliveries.
Hometime a roll of the dice
DOT/LEO's watching your every move like a hawk.

$40-$50k is NOT worth all the time and BS involved with OTR trucking in this day and age.
Put it to you like this: my uncle made $42,000 driving truck over-the-road in 1982.

Even now with the economy in shambles and so many people out of work, these OTR outfits are STILL hiring!!!!!!!! Don't believe me? Check out any of the free truckstop mags like Through the Gears, RPM, Trucking 200 etc and you will see.

Talk to people in the warehouses you deliver to and you'll meet alot of forklift jockeys with CDL's in their pockets. Why? Because it's better working in a warehouse for $10 bucks an hour and home everynight/weekend than living out of a 8X10 rolling cage for weeks at a time.

 

The basics of employment is that you are trading your time and talent for money. My next point I want to make clear is I DON'T WORK FOR FREE! Why should I waste my valuable time with some jerk-wad trucking outfit, when there are so many other avenues of employment that pay better, have better benefits, home every night, etc. Think about all the down time in trucking you don't get paid for. It's frikkin' ridiculous. If you enjoy working for free, living in a metal box, and wasting your time and money to eat and shower at filthy truckstops, then go for it.
I DON'T WORK FOR FREE!

 

Excellent post. Can't argue with what you have said here. I wonder how many more will fall into the OTR trap? Those truckstop magazines have wrecked a great many careers. That is why local is the only way to go.

Drive safe

 

About 15 years ago I met an o/o who had just retired from the military. He bought a truck and his idea was that he was not going to run illegally. That part was ok. He also told me that he wasn't going to work after dark. I was like dude how are you going to make any money.I never did see him again so I don't know how it worked out for him. The idea of not starting your day until the sun comes up, and being done before the sun goes down just doesn't work in trucking.