[Super 8]

Got an interview tomorrow with Snapple/Dr Pepper. I have a year OTR experience.

I'm curious about the hours, other beverage drivers are working, and the pay rate, so I have some idea on what to negotiate for.

Any info would be great.

These guys are just down the street from me, so if it works out I could walk to work most days.

Thanks a lot!

[DarthJayhawk]

I delivered beer in Wichita KS for about 7 months. The best thing I can say about that job was that it allowed me to get my CDL.

This particular distributor paid a starting salary of $26,000, and the first three months or so I helped other drivers on their routes, or I filled in when someone was gone. I was then "promoted" to a country route(meaning I delivered to the smaller towns around Wichita). That job should have paid commision, as I also had the sales responsibilities for each stop. Instead, they kept me on salary, raised my pay to $28,000, and I started working better than 50 hours per week. Once the summer was over with, they finally decided they wanted to put me on commision, but that was no good, because the busy season was over, so the commisions would be less. I decided to find another job.

Delivering beverages is a lot of hard work, unless you back up to a door, wheel off a couple of pallets, and head out to your next stop. You normally have to check in the product, stock and rotate the products, help with merchandising, and deal with grouchy store managers and owners. Plus the product is primarily made of water, which isn't light.

Also, it would be helpful to know if the routes are presold, or if you sell directly off the truck. If you have to sell directly off the truck, it can be pretty tricky at first, as it is hard to anticipate what your customers are going to need.

If they are going to pay you an hourly wage, to deliver a presold product, it isn't a bad job, but don't accept any other form of compensation for this job.

[classicxl]

I worked for pepsi for a while and found out i was just a stock boy not a truck driver. the pay was high but alot of back breaking work hauling hand carts through the snow and stocking coolers and shelved because that is the deal your sales guy made with the store. Also no helper with that company but the local bud guys always had two guys to a truck

[Super 8]

Originally Posted by classicxl

the pay was high but alot of back breaking work hauling hand carts

How high was the pay? What are we talking about here? 30k, 40k?

I'm not overly concerned about moving the stock. My OTR experience was flatbed. This can't be any harder than chaining, and dealing with tarps.

Also, how many were you working?

Thanks.

[Super 8]

Originally Posted by DarthJayhawk

This particular distributor paid a starting salary of $26,000,

raised my pay to $28,000,

These figures seem really low to me. On a 50 hour week, that's less than $10 an hour.

[MADLUX]

Originally Posted by Super 8

Got an interview tomorrow with Snapple/Dr Pepper. I have a year OTR experience.

I'm curious about the hours, other beverage drivers are working, and the pay rate, so I have some idea on what to negotiate for.

Any info would be great.

These guys are just down the street from me, so if it works out I could walk to work most days.

Thanks a lot!

It depends on what you go on, I'm with 7up (same company by the way) here in Va Beach. I lucked out and got on a Bulk Tractor Trailer, which I deliver, take the product off with a pallet jack, get it checked in and go. I don't work any product on to the store shelf.



Side load trucks are a different story. Run away.... .



As far as hours it depends. There is nothing set. One day I might work 5 hours, the next is 12.

Pay scales are different from plant to plant also. Some hourly, or like me Base pay and commission.

[Super 8]

Originally Posted by MADLUX

Side load trucks are a different story. Run away.... .


Pay scales are different from plant to plant also. Some hourly, or like me Base pay and commission.

OKay, what's the problem with the side loads?

As far as pay goes, and you give me some figure to shoot for? Just a ball park so I don't price myself out, or low ball?

Thanks.

[DarthJayhawk]

Yeah, that pay was really low. I wasn't the first guy that got his CDL and got the hell away from that place. I'm just getting ready to take a flat bed job, but I'm pretty sure it won't be the all day, every day type of work that delivering beer was. I averaged 20-25 stops a day, delivering anywhere from 25-250 cases a stop. And you had to work fast, if you wanted to get home at a decent time. I also know it was one of the worst distributors to work at. The other beverage distributors didn't have near the turnover.

As madlux says, get on a bulk truck if you can. The side load trucks are like the job I had. You have to unload everything off the truck onto a dolly by hand, then unload it off the dolly by hand. I had another job where I drove OTR, but fairly often I had to load by hand. The boxes were fairly heavy, but it was a lot better than the beer truck.

Hopefully this company pays well, and doesn't work you to death. There are some good distributors to work for, I didn't find one though. And I didn't think the work would be anywhere near as hard as it was.

[Super 8]

Anybody else?

I was hoping to get a few more responses.

Thanks.

[classicxl]

the pay was 13 to 18 dollars an hour doing 8-11 hours a day