Where are all the jobs???

Condition of Trucking? BAD. Why? Lots of reasons. Incompetent gov't officials who keep getting elected time after time, corporate greed, bad decisions, over-priced fuel, eco-terrorists nuetering trucks so we use more fuel to do the same amount of work (Thanks, California), and too many other factors to list here. Cruise the threads. You'll get the big picture.

 

Don't blame anybody but yourself. You've got to stand out from all the others to get hired. You have no right to a job. Think like a company.

 

The same the place all the freight is at!!! Slowly dwindling out of our country...

 

So, You're saying a person considering going to school and landing a steady OTR job are slim at best. I need to find something to pay some bills!

 

I'm just a stupid truck driver.... But I would highly look at other options right now. The trucking industry got hit the hardest in this economy... But you don't hear about that on the new... 100's of trucking companies went out of business this past year with many more to follow... Just about every other company that is still standing has scaled down their operation with hopes that they'd still be standing when this is all over....

Car manufacturers are getting bail out.... Banks are getting bail outs.... And the trucking industry is left standing to fend for itself.

 

If the trucking industry were to ask for a bailout, people would start taking a closer look at how the trucking industry operated, and alot of the abuses that are piled upon drivers would finally be out in the open were the companies would not be able to explain them away. You think the ATA would tolerate that?

 

theres still plenty of trucking jobs out there, even for newbies, you gotta remember most that get into trucking do it out of desperation and do not stay long, the economy will pick up, i think it already has, maybe i've been lucky, but i've not experenced slow frieght in any of the co,s i drove for, in fact i left the last one b/cause they were running me ragged, and that compromises my health, i'm happy runnin 2000-2500 a week and home on w/ends, yeah the money is nice runnin 3000+, but for me it's not worth my health.

anyway to answer your question.lol..............yes you still can get a trucking job, but you better not be one of the bottom of the barrel picks, the economy i don't think will ever be THAT GOOD again.

 

If you're dead set on driving a truck you have to be noticed by the companies that will give you a job. You can do things that are different than the main stream so you'll look better. Try and find a defensive driving course or negotiate with the company that you will share the expense for the Smith System or a similar program. Get out and talk to the companies. Do you think that the good companies need to advertise or use recruiters? You never know until you check it out for yourself. I'm just the type that if I've invested time and money that I'm going to check out every avenue for myself. I'm not going to take the word of a school or recruiter on where I can work. My company has even hired drivers right out of school and we require 5 years experience with a tanker.

Even if you start out with the bottom feeders you can look ahead at the better companies and move up. Get away from the companies that fill their trucks with school graduates then you'll see a better world.