Is now a good time to get into Trucking?

[rookie37]

I've heard that there is "never any shortage of work" ,but from what i've seen on this board and others, alot of people are out of work. With the economy going the way it is i'm wondering if now is a good time or not to try to get into the Trucking business.

[headborg]

Sure....looks like the "surge" is working....apply now....Haliburton is calling!

[GMAN]

Freight still needs to move from one part of the country to another. This is normally a slow time of year. The economy has slowed which further complicates things. There is still freight to move, however rates are down from a couple of months ago. If you plan on becoming a company driver, you may not get as many miles for the next couple of months. You will need to go through training if you don't have a CDL. By the time you get through school freight should have picked up. Trucking is one of the most secure jobs you can do. We are constantly looking for good qualified drivers. There are a lot of steering wheel holders, but not nearly enough professional drivers. The professional drivers will always be in demand. A professional driver is one who takes care of his CDL and doesn't move around a lot. When a driver moves around a lot it shows that they lack stability and cannot solve problems. Someone who moves around from job to job will always be broke. You will put in a lot of hours doing this job, but have an opportunity to earn more than most other jobs. There will always be the whiners who are never happy no matter what they do.

We are constantly looking for good qualified drivers.

Funny how good jobs that pay well rarely advertise and yet trucking companies are ALWAYS looking for drivers?

There are a lot of steering wheel holders, but not nearly enough professional drivers.

It's because the industry doesn't want to pay professionals what they're worth. Carriers would rather have a guy fresh out of a CDL mill pulling for .28 cpm or a guy who can't speak English than a pro who gets the job done safely and efficiently and demands fair compensation for his top-flite services.

When a driver moves around a lot it shows that they lack stability and cannot solve problems.

It's basically getting screwed at one crappy outfit and then moving on to another... only to get screwed again. The churn rates in this business are through the roof.

I work for an LTL carrier and the last driver we hired was over 2 years ago. At the previous OTR company I pulled for, they had over 20 drivers going through orientation PER WEEK!

You will put in a lot of hours doing this job, but have an opportunity to earn more than most other jobs.

You can make 50k-60k but you will live on the job to get that money and hardly ever see home. OTR is live to work, not work to live. When are drivers going to wise up and realize that it's better to work LESS hours for MORE money? Not the other way around like so many morons do.

There will always be the whiners who are never happy no matter what they do.

And so people should just suck it up and take all the BS these companies dish out?
"Sorry driver, no freight, check back in 5 hours."
"You've me pre-planned to NYC?!?!? But I've got hometime scheduled for tomorrow and I live in Tennesse?!?!"
"We don't pay layover due to lack of freight"
"Can I see your logbook, Driver?"
"Sorry Driver, no overnight parking allowed"
QUALCOMM: "P/U live-load 50 miles away on Monday...deliver live-load 100 miles away on Tuesday afternoon."
"Driver park over there and we'll call you on the CB when we're ready for you."
"But Officer, I had to idle the truck to keep warm!"
"Daddy, when will you be home I miss you"

And on and on it goes. You've really got be a glutton for punishment to deal with all the BS involved in that job...especially at the rates/wages that are so prevalent today.

[beartooth pass]

While all companies aren't slow in the winter, quite a few are. Could be a good time to start driving, maybe a little less pressure than the busy times. If you do go for trucking, learn all you can before you apply any where and have your license, endorsements and a copy of your motor vehicle record. If you go to a school, go to one where they will teach not only how to operate trucks, but will teach you at least the basics about being a professional driver.

[PA]

if you WANT to drive for a living then do it.
you need to decide for YOURSELF if its the right job.
yes you will work lots of hours.
in time you will learn to manage your time...I like it!

again CFM with some great advice. man to each his own, i like the OTR thing but I also like being home. i personally would rather do what i do then bumb 20 docks a day, unloading and loading fright. but i do not think less of you or feel better about myself because of what we choose to do. you need to realize that you are not better than anybody else here because you have what you THINK is the best job going. why don't you quit bashing OTR and actually offer up some decent advice, and be done with "OTR sucks." " i wouold never live in a box for slave wages". "all OTR comanies screw the driver". we have heard it all before. you and cluggy should go into business together to try to outlaw OTR trucking companies all together, but i would tend to wonder how frieght would get from ohio to mass. for your local delivery job without an otr driver.

[Cluggy619]

again CFM with some great advice. man to each his own, i like the OTR thing but I also like being home. i personally would rather do what i do then bumb 20 docks a day, unloading and loading fright. but i do not think less of you or feel better about myself because of what we choose to do. you need to realize that you are not better than anybody else here because you have what you THINK is the best job going. why don't you quit bashing OTR and actually offer up some decent advice, and be done with "OTR sucks." " i wouold never live in a box for slave wages". "all OTR comanies screw the driver". we have heard it all before. you and cluggy should go into business together to try to outlaw OTR trucking companies all together, but i would tend to wonder how frieght would get from ohio to mass. for your local delivery job without an otr driver.

This post was deleted by me. I have no excuse to use profanity on this board, even if this jerk drags me into his stupid world.

I apologizes to all who have read it.

[heavyhaulerss]

Well I guess it's how you look at things. I perhaps like g-man but not nessessarily so, see it this way. if i dont like something it is up to me do something else or do my best to make my situation better. after watching so many older ,experienced o/o's, drive for good looks & chrome, I decided to drive for profit. & after 10 years & a very inexpensive truck(that no one else would dare drive) i've managed a dam good business, along with several homes. peace of mind, bought & paid for by driving. but a lot of success is because of what we learn ,or should of learned long before we stick our necks out on new investments like trucking. like managing debt, or better yet having none. living below your means. not having champagne taste on a beer budget. buying only what you need. not want you want today,cant pay for tomorow. prudent old fashoned living, is vital to being prosperous later in life. if someone cannot make a living because they need $1500 a week to pay their bills, the first question i would ask myself is why do i have so many bills, therefore need that much of a paycheck. I also understand the decent wage for a days work. But same as a co driver i have been offered loads that dont pay well too. i decide do i take it or not ? if i dont like it, & things dont change, then i get out & do something else. no complaints. no one & I REPEAT NO ONE owes me a living. the market will work itself out. there will always be a demand for folks like me that are dependable, work with honesty & integrity & dont complain. complaining here i think is good. vent here . not at places where you work, ie: load/unload. like g-mam i'm sure we can tell you lots of drivers who lost their trucks, & trailers & some their homes, & the vast majority had nothing to do with rates loads, e.t.c. it had to do with obvious plain dumb mistakes & lack of planning, or having a business plan to start with..... .....


as a disclaimer... I want to say I do not know g-man and any reference made by me with his name is just my opinion. I just happen to agree with a lot he say's.

[GMAN]

We are constantly looking for good qualified drivers.

Funny how good jobs that pay well rarely advertise and yet trucking companies are ALWAYS looking for drivers?

There are a lot of steering wheel holders, but not nearly enough professional drivers.

It's because the industry doesn't want to pay professionals what they're worth. Carriers would rather have a guy fresh out of a CDL mill pulling for .28 cpm or a guy who can't speak English than a pro who gets the job done safely and efficiently and demands fair compensation for his top-flite services.

When a driver moves around a lot it shows that they lack stability and cannot solve problems.

It's basically getting screwed at one crappy outfit and then moving on to another... only to get screwed again. The churn rates in this business are through the roof.

I work for an LTL carrier and the last driver we hired was over 2 years ago. At the previous OTR company I pulled for, they had over 20 drivers going through orientation PER WEEK!

You will put in a lot of hours doing this job, but have an opportunity to earn more than most other jobs.

You can make 50k-60k but you will live on the job to get that money and hardly ever see home. OTR is live to work, not work to live. When are drivers going to wise up and realize that it's better to work LESS hours for MORE money? Not the other way around like so many morons do.

There will always be the whiners who are never happy no matter what they do.

And so people should just suck it up and take all the BS these companies dish out?
"Sorry driver, no freight, check back in 5 hours."
"You've me pre-planned to NYC?!?!? But I've got hometime scheduled for tomorrow and I live in Tennesse?!?!"
"We don't pay layover due to lack of freight"
"Can I see your logbook, Driver?"
"Sorry Driver, no overnight parking allowed"
QUALCOMM: "P/U live-load 50 miles away on Monday...deliver live-load 100 miles away on Tuesday afternoon."
"Driver park over there and we'll call you on the CB when we're ready for you."
"But Officer, I had to idle the truck to keep warm!"
"Daddy, when will you be home I miss you"

And on and on it goes. You've really got be a glutton for punishment to deal with all the BS involved in that job...especially at the rates/wages that are so prevalent today.

Most drivers that I have had working for me have earned about $1,000+- a week. Those who haven't usually don't want to run in the cold weather or snow in winter and heat in the summer. They don't treat this like a professional. A professional does what he needs to do in order to get the job done. Some have managed to get home every week and still make $1,000 and not kill themselves. A professional doesn't whine about what he has to do, he knows that there are things about his job (any job) that he may not like, but that he must accept the bad along with the good. You seem to misunderstand that when a driver or any employee starts out that they are not worth too much to their employer until they gain some skills. One gains skills by doing their job each day and finding ways in which to become more productive. I never expected to receive a big paycheck until I learned what I was doing and was able to add value to my job. Unless an employee can earn more or his employer than his paycheck, he has little value to his company. Everyone must go through a learning process.

I don't consider someone just out of school a professional. Even a college degree doesn't make you a professional. Only experience and dedication can earn you the respect and classification of a professional. Driving a truck is not different. Most college graduates don't start out making $50,000/year. Many will start around $25-30M/year. Their income will improve as their experience and skills grow. That is the same way with driving a truck. Some people simply don't treat this as a profession. Has anyone seen trash and urine bottles in parking lots and along highways? While there may be GPS units in their truck, they are still pretty much on their own. You are not given the title of a professional. YOU EARN IT!! With the designation comes greater responsibilities and a bigger paycheck. I will not put a new driver on a over sized load until the prove themselves. Just because someone can pull a flat bed doesn't necessarily mean that they are qualified to pull an over-sized load. It requires greater skills and those are learned through experience. You start with flats and once you master securement then you graduate to other things which usually pay more. I have been in some interesting situations with over-sized loads. When you pull specialized freight it requires more planning and awareness of your surroundings. You must be alert at all times. A new driver isn't skilled enough to pull some of the specialized load I have hauled. People used to learn by being an apprentice under a skilled craftsman for several years before he was given the title of craftsman or tradesman. He earned it over several years.

Drivers don't have to deal with a bunch of BS. Often it is the driver who is responsible for his problems with a carrier. Not always, but often. If a driver is constantly late picking up or delivering his loads he should not be surprised when he is called to task for his behavior. When he has a problem with his dispatcher or driver manager then he needs to communicate with him. If he can't get along with his dispatcher then he needs to work his way up the ladder until he can find someone who will help with his problem. That is the professional way to handle the situation. He doesn't need to get mad and just quit. That only hurts himself. That is not a professional. If the driver exhausts all means to resolve a problem and then quits only after doing everything he can to solve the situation, then he is acting like a professional.

[Useless]

Hi, Rookie37!!

First off, Welcome to CAD!!

I don't know if there really is a "good time" to get into trucking, or if there ever has been, or if there ever will be a "good time" to get into trucking. If the industry as a whole hasn't been faced with one set of problems, then it's been faced with another.

Methinks the real issues at hand are staying power, tenacity, self discipline, maturity, determination, the mindset of the driver, and with noobs or wannabees, developing realistic goals and perspectives going in.

So many new Freight Relocation University students and grads are focused upon what they hope to make their first year, or how fast a truck will go, promises made by recruiters, or for that matter, what type of trailer they want to pull. Others are focused upon finding a comapny where they'll be guaranteed 3,000 miles a week at 50 cents per mile to start, while demanding to be brought home for two full weekends out of every week.

Such trivial issues as safety, quality of training, quality of TRAINERS!!, and finding a company who's safety department and upper management will back a driver when a dispatcher is trying to force him/her to run a hot load illegaly or in dangerous weather conditions, or when he/she is too sick to drive safely, seem to somehow get lost in the shuffle.

Regardless of what hard times the trucking industry faces, (and in the trucking industry, there will ALWAYS be hard times in some form or fashion!!) a driver who can run his or her first year accident and ticket free, and who has the discipline to stay focused upon what he/she is doing, and avoid the temptation to jump ship because another company has offered an additional two cents per mile or a shinier truck will have more lucrative opportunities after he/she has a good, solid year of experience under the belt, and even more and better doors open after two years.

Let two years turn into five, and the prospects get even better.

Regardless of the economy, people will always have to eat, and bathe, (as long as they aren't truckers!!) and mothers will need disposable diapers, and cars will need to have oil changes, and fuel will still have to be put in tanks, kids will still want to jump on trampolines or ride skateboards, and movie sets will still have to be moved, aircraft engines will still need to be overhauled, hospitals will still need oxygen, and families will still be relocating to other cities and states ..........

......in other words, if you bought it, or used it, or ate it, then somewhere along the way, a truck brought it. After you used it up, there's a strong likelyhood that a truck carried it away.

Meanwhile, there will always be attrition caused by drug test failures, burn-out, changes in family circumstances, new career choices, and old fart drivers hanging up their log books.

With all of that, there will always be companies who haul specialized freight, or construction equipment, or oil field equipment, or fuel, or high dollar automobiles, and they will still pay a premium for experienced, safe, focused, self disciplined, and, as G-Man so astutely articulated, "professional drivers" who decide to be more than long-term steering wheel holders...... then, there will always be a bastion of malcontents who may have experience in terms of months and years chalked off on the calander, but who will never grow to be anything more than old and bitter, angry because the world has done them wrong.

This is where G-Man's points about being a true driving professional really come into play, although adopting that attitude should be your objective before you ever climb into the cab of a truck.

So, rather than worry about whether this is a "good time" to get into trucking, focus instead upon developing the discipline to suck up the hard times, paying your dues, learning everything that you can, keeping safe, and remembering that for the good driver, there will always be opportunities for growth.

Just my "Useless" opinion!!

[greg3564]

I've heard that there is "never any shortage of work" ,but from what i've seen on this board and others, alot of people are out of work. With the economy going the way it is i'm wondering if now is a good time or not to try to get into the Trucking business.

Well in a strange way, a new driver fresh out of school working for the typical mega carrier won't have too many problems with miles and freight. Actually, the more experienced drivers who work for mom and pop companies may very well feel the pinch of a bad economy. When the economy goes in the tank, companies lose money and one of the quickest budget savings they can make is to re-evaluate their shipping costs. That's when the mega carriers swoop in and undercut an already volatile shipping market. Why pay, for example, Carrier A $2.00 a mile when a mega Carrier can do the same thing for $1.75 a mile? Major companies can weather a economic storm, but the small business world will definately see some owners go out of business.

did i miss the old CLUGGY? i was wanting to see him. oh well, keep trying to get him out.

[gmh]

did i miss the old CLUGGY? i was wanting to see him. oh well, keep trying to get him out.

Sooner or later, someone will come in here praising JB Hunt to the heavens. Then we'll see what happens.

[Cluggy619]

did i miss the old CLUGGY? i was wanting to see him. oh well, keep trying to get him out.

Sooner or later, someone will come in here praising JB Hunt to the heavens. Then we'll see what happens.

JB Hunt is a great company to work for. They treat their drivers with respect, and always with plenty of miles.

I have no problems with JB Hunt.


If your wanting to drive for JBH, I'll contact sheepster myself, and find a good recruiter to talk to you. Good luck.
:wink:

[gmh]

did i miss the old CLUGGY? i was wanting to see him. oh well, keep trying to get him out.

Sooner or later, someone will come in here praising JB Hunt to the heavens. Then we'll see what happens.

JB Hunt is a great company to work for. They treat their drivers with respect, and always with plenty of miles.

I have no problems with JB Hunt.


If your wanting to drive for JBH, I'll contact sheepster myself, and find a good recruiter to talk to you. Good luck.
:wink:

Admit it, you were clenching your teeth while writing that.

Thanks for the offer of help with JB Hunt, but I'm getting drug screen and DOT at Crete on 2/5. But if you know anyone at CRE, I might change my mind