why the ** do LTL drivers get paid a lot more than everybody else.. Please explain!

You've got it backwards.
Freight rates are based on what the market will bear, not simply on the cost of moving that freight (labor, equipment, fuel, taxes, plus a percent of profit). It's not a coincidence that the carriers who ship consumer retail packages are riding the fat cash highway and pay their drivers very well.

Unions are not responsible for that insofar as the market will bear the expenses.
Paying a driver his worth is not a crime, but some on these forums have a conditioned knee-jerk response to anything union: UNIONS BAD, OOGA-BOOGAH!

 

Perhaps you didn't read what I wrote.. I was expressing frustration in my lack of understanding as to WHY linehaul pays a lot more than most everything else.
I was asking a question in this question from new drivers area, though I have a year experience I am still trying to learn.

I'm not whining or jealous, I respect LTL drivers... they're smart and worked towards having a good job.
In order to be jealous you have to want something you can't have, for example a best friend's hot wife lol.
If I went for it I could to LTL, it's a possibility I'm entertaining.

Before blasting people read what the intention was, I really wanted clarity as to why things are a certain why.
I was pissed because to me it doesn't make sense, that doesn't mean I'm jealous.
I pull a box and with less than a year experience I was at .43CPM... a lot of experienced flatbed drivers don't earn that. That is frustrating as well, flatbed drivers should be paid a whole lot more than van drivers but they're not.

I was intending for an explanation and even put my ego aside by admitting I don't know and I would appreciate an explanation. Why not add some insight rather than assumptions about the poster.
After all that is what this page is for.. to share insight.

 

Why would I work for 30-40 yrs. and have very little to show for it. Retirement, ect. There is no Home for old truckers. It's a cold truck & a warm body to companies.

 

From what I've seen is that union companies offer and pay their drivers better than everybody else, including in the car hauler arena.
There might be more stuff to deal with in a union but at least you're rewarded.

 

smart man

 

Dare I suggest it. Unionize otr. I'm going to get flamed but I've done otr it's a dead end job. Sorry. I'm for the drivers not greedy co. Ok I'm done.

 

If the unions were to leave LTL altogether, chances are that the pay scales would either drop drastically or stay stagnant for years to come. Employers by nature are NOT going to be generous with their pay and benefits; a few might, but NOT too many.

 

Because imo many more share that attitude.

 

Guy need to stop working for cpm period. It's a scam and has always been a scam. It's a old outdated way of paying truckers from back in the 1920's when almost all runs were coast to coast, long haul, California to New York runs. Those runs are few far an in-between. Almost everything is run regional now. So your average run is 300-500 miles. So where before you were doing one drop in a week maybe two, now your doing one a day if not more. More dock time equals less pay because your only getting paid when your driving. If half your day is spent on a dock getting loaded or unloaded how are you suppose to make money?

 

No sir. The main reason trucking wages are what they are because of unionized labor. If not for it , all trucking jobs would be paid like those mega carriers. Freight rates are based on a lot of different things. Once you've been in this industry awhile you'll see that's true. Not just on what the market will bear. Cheap freight is just that. CHEAP. Folks who want their product handled with care , delivered on time , and in good condition have always depended on the trucking company that gives that kind of service. And , have always been ready to pay a premium for that service. Not the company who just says we'll get it there......sometime.