The start of my first year with Swift.

That happens to me all the time , Sheriff. Nothin we can do about it.

on another note, I broke my record of 592 miles in one shift driving a 62 mph truck. I did 609 miles today AND I have 7 minutes to spare!

 

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[/HTML]It does seem that your days are getting better tho! It does seem like schedules do not matter to swift.

 

Ball pean hammer will travel, as well as a 6 pound pry bar...you just never know..eh

 

I don't get why he was bashing whites if he is Russian?

 

I’ve been following Sheriff 1/6’s story through the last 38 pages and I’ve got to say that it makes for fairly depressing reading, not because he’s complaining (in fact he’s pretty stoic given the financial outcome and the way he’s been messed about) but because this is a wider story of an occupation that for many is a road to nowhere.
I went to the US in 2010 for two months and being in the transport industry in Australia tried to get a look at what was going on. Ironically now that I’m 10000 miles away but reading these pages and following other stories on U tube, I have a much better picture of “the life of a trucker”.
It would seem that the principle reason for there being inadequate money for those driving is what is called in economics “ease of entry into an industry”
In the US there is a constant stream of guys who don’t know really what they are getting into, going into trucking and the situation is made worse by those who unable to afford CDL tuition/fees, having people like Swift temporarily funding trainees.
If you’re broke to start with, then you should be getting an hourly rate job instead.
At the risk of being branded a ‘know all’ outsider, it seems to be that the following are characteristics of US trucking life (not saying everybody – some may be doing OK) Do some of the guys going in know these?

Poor income
Being away from home
Being away from family/friends
Risking break up of existing relation ships
No opportunity to cultivate relationships
No opportunity to be part of a community
Long hours - up to 98 hrs per week
Driving at night
No fixed rest times – need to keep driving even if tired to meet delivery time
Poor diet
Little opportunity while on the road to buy healthy food or avoid fast food.
No exercise/poor physical lifestyle
Being marooned at boring truck stops waiting for loads or reset
Possibility of being subject to long periods of non paid time while waiting for next load.
High risk occupation with bad weather danger.
Being part of a low skills / easily replaced workforce.
No workplace camaraderie/social contact
Large upfront cost for non qualified people.
Being an employee with zero ability to determine your rate of pay.
Being confined to a sleeper cab for weeks with no opportunity to stay elsewhere except at an added cost.
No or few benefits attached to rate of pay.

If you look at Australia, which has a large number of “contract’ drivers and owner operators as opposed to Company hourly rate drivers, these are the differences:
B double drivers 36 -38 cents per Km (that’s about 57c per mile)
Semi (tractor/trailer) drivers, a bit less, say 32c.
The papers have many HC (heavy combination) vacancies so the price has been driven up by the shortage. This is what you need to have any chance of making good money driving.
I have a mate who drives Sydney – Brisbane (1000 kms -620 miles) in 12-14 hours for his $380. The Pacific Hwy is only dual lane carriageway for ½ of this distance so it’s not easy freeway driving.
Typically he’ll do 4500kms ($1710) per week and be home at least once a week.
There’s far more opportunity to buy healthy rather than truck stop food because there is not the preponderance of I roads, and you pass through small towns.
The truck companies know that if they push unwilling drivers to stay out, then they won’t have them for long. Sure, there are still some of the social downsides to being an “OTR” but at least there is an acceptance generally of the idea that it’s not right to send guys away from home for weeks on end unless this is their preference.
Until fewer guys stop buying into this deluded ‘US trucker lifestyle’, nothing is going to change. The Australian courier (lightweight city delivery) industry has the same problem and as a DM I saw countless guys getting burnt. It’s not pretty to see guys like Sheriff and others like slider driver (you tube) working hard but not getting anywhere.

 

I just got my CDL Class A licence. I need advice which company i should join? Need help deciding all companies sounds good hard to decide. Companies I am looking now Schneider, Con-Way, Prime, Averitt, Swift, J.B. Hunt, YRC Worldwide, Landstar, Werner, US Xpxress, CRST, Saia and Crete. I would appreciate honest advice from our experienced Professional Drivers. Thank you very much.