"They're hiking pay significantly" !????

Most OTR jobs pay nowhere near $80,000. That’s all I needed to see, not wasting my time reading that.

Every company I worked for where I still have friends at have raised pay, but still well below $80K/year, unless you basically never wanna see your house or you run team. I make around $80K running a home daily M-F linehaul, good enough for me...

 

$80K?

LOL!

That's some funny ####, right there.

 

Told you that's blanket cover story so that the oil companies and brokers can put it in everyone's ###.

And the blame will still fall upon the driver.

 

The last time I listened to a recruiter about a shortage of workers it was June 2000. I was told I could see the world and meet beautiful women while seeing it. And that I would get free health care, food, lodging, and even more money for college. And that if I signed the contract I would get a $20k sign on bonus.

Well since I was a teen and thought that people didn't tell lies. I took the recruiters word and signed away. Well it was nothing like the recruiter said. I only saw the world while jumping out of a plane. The only beautiful women I saw always yelled at me. And they would say why are you eye F#@$+!g me private? The food was free but it would taste like cardboard at times. Or either I would run so much that I would puke it up. The lodging was free also. But I had to get up at 0600 everyday. And sometimes I had to sleep out side for weeks at a time. The health care was free too. But all the did was prescribed motrion for absolutely everything.

The $20k bonus turned in to $12k for some odd reason. And when I got to North Carolina we would always sing how they would give you a $100 and take back $99. But going back to the beautiful women. I went to two different countries where the women covered up there face in these black outfits. And there husbands would shoot at me from time to time.

I ended up doing the college thing they offered. But after returning to life after taking the job I had. No one cared that I had been shot at or if I had a degree. So because of that I haven listen to a recruiter since then!!!

 

Realistically this whole shortage is pure hobwash. So let's look at truck driving. A person tends to get hired on and get company training. Then the company says ok if you quit before 12 months or what ever the term maybe. Then the driver will have to pay back the tuition. When the average new driver will end up washing out of the industry because of low pay and lies. That's pure craziness as it doesn't cost $3k plus to get a cdl.

Ok so the next thing is the work. A new driver will be told these astronomical numbers of pay. But will they see it, Yea if the person lives in the truck. The driver will see maybe 2/3 of what they were told.

The next thing is home time. 14 days out and 2 days off (if that) is not home time. A driver will miss out on birth dates, anniversaries, and etc. And always be told "we can't get anything headed your way".

A regular human works m-f mostly and gets weekends and holidays off. But most truck drivers don't get that. So life tends to pass a truck driver by. Then the driver tends to sit in the truck stop and tell the story of my wife left me and even took my dog! And I would reply well driver marriage doesn't work well over the phone. You have to actually see that person from time to time. (Most truckers are cheated on or divorced eventually because the spouse gets tired of being alone).

As far as pay increasing because of a shortage. I will say to little to late, and the same for these crazy amounts of bonuses. I don't want a bonus, it's taxed at a higher rate than regular income taxes. Also companies tend to either pay these large bonuses out over a very long term. Like five years I saw for one place. Or either it's the same as a starter company where if you leave before a year or so the bonus has to be payed back. Bonuses are use to reel in drivers who aren't in the know about xyz company. I don't see the better outfits offering a sign on bonus cause they already pay a decent wage.

But then there is another gimmick to the sign on bonus. To witch the pay roll week that it's to be paid out. Your miles will drop off drastic, now your pay stub will show the same average weekly pay. So that means your not making any more money then you were already. The trucking industry is quite full of gimmicks.

If a new comer can't start out local or regional I just don't see the point. Even if over the road paid 200k per year the turn over would still be High. People would only do it long enough to save money to buy a house or get out of debt. And then would quit because of the time spent away from home.

So as long as there is a shortage of hometime, pay, respect, holidays off and or holiday pay, 34 hr restarts on the road and etc. I guess different groups can always claim there's a shortage of drivers

 

This is pretty much why I am making strides to get out of the trucking business. It has been a honarable trade and I am very thankful for the steady work it has provided me and all that comes with it.

However, I got my CDL-A at age 20 and have since spent the last ten years as a driver. I look at my peers and I desire to have what they seem take for granted. Time with friends, family, experiences, relationships. Most days I feel like all I’ve done the last 10 years is work and I know the only way it’s going to change is if I choose to something about it.

I realistically have another 30-40 years of work ahead of me, I don’t want my next years to pass on like the last decade has.

More pay would be nice and would certainly be an incentive to stay on but as also posted, for some it’s too little too late, I’d rather take less pay in another line of work now and have the time I’m never going to get back to do what I want with whom I want while living happier on less.

Just my .02

 

Best post I've read in a great while.
Real stuff
Man stuff

Yes, sir
My thanks.