Originally Posted by Part Time Dweller

Many realize how much un- compensated time they give away every week. If you divide the hours worked every week ( actual hours, not logged hours) by the weekly pay many find it would be not much more than minimum wage.

It would be LESS then minimum wage. This is NOT a job. (OTR) It's a life style. You either want to live it, or you don't. It's really up to the individual.

Two things that will tear you up as a newb.

Sitting idle.
Dispatchers.

There is a large amount of idle time. Waiting to load, unload, waiting for a dispatch. Bring plenty to do when you finally get your own truck. Like to read? Bring books, like movies bring alot of them. Play the guatar? Load it in the truck. It's not a matter of if you have down time, it's a matter of when you do.

I know several guys that almost quit that started with me because of pushy dispatchers. You have to learn to do two things at the same time. A: push back, and B: kiss butt. YOu don't want to be pushed around and not be able to get home when you need to be there, and you don't want to make them so mad that you can't get any miles from them.. it's frustraiting for a while figuring out a good balance.

hmm... those were pretty mcuh the downers for me when I first started.. been doing it a year and a half now and I love it. I was just home for three weeks over christmas and new years and I about went out of my mind. I love it out on the road.

Good luck!

[Danisawannabe]

Originally Posted by Nendail

You have to learn to do two things at the same time. A: push back, and B: kiss butt.

Where can I sign up for the class. Do you teach it :-D

[Useless]

Originally Posted by Nendail

It would be LESS then minimum wage. This is NOT a job. (OTR) It's a life style. You either want to live it, or you don't. It's really up to the individual.

With the exception of what I received in trainee pay, that was never my experience!!

It's been a couple of years since I drove OTR, but I could knock out about 2900 miles with 70 hours work (before log book adjustments) with no trouble at all, and gross about $870.00.

If you do the arithmetic, it came to around $10.00 per hour. Since that Time, pay rated have gone up a little bit, for the most part.

2900 miles at $0.30CPM= $870.00 (70 hrs. of actual work)

Break it down to hourly:

40hrs.x $10/hr.= $400.00
30hrs. X 1.5hrs. X $10.00/hr.= $450.00
$400.00+ $450.00- $850.00

So, as you can see, $870.00 for 70hrs. of actual (not logged) comes to a little over $10.00 per hour; not a helluva lot of money, but better than minimum wage!!

Now, as I said, that was a couple of years ago.

If you are not getting that today, or something close to it, then as far as I'm concerned, you are working for the wrong company.

In all fairness, I will say that I worked for a very good company, and I had an awesome dispatcher who kept me running well; I didn't have to wait very long between loads, either.

[merrick4]

Originally Posted by GMAN

It would not be difficult to design a psychological test to match a profile of the successful driver. If properly structured, it could be a good indicator of who would be successful and who would wash out, prior to anyone spending money. I think it could be a way to find the better drivers and perhaps get rid of some of the undesirables in the industry. A few dollars on a psychological pre-screen could save thousands, if not millions in driver turnover. By reducing turnover, carriers could pay drivers more. Constantly recruiting bodies is expensive. Psychological profiling is done in other industries, I don't see why it could not be done in trucking.

Actually I applied to Southeastern Freight, local driving, and their online application had a 32 page psychological test. It was a pain in the rear answering all those questions. Here's the website of the company they use to do their screening http://www.unicru.com/

As for my 2 cents, I've only been OTR two months, I hope I can make it. I love driving, I can sit there for 11 hours with my foot on the pedal. (I was worried if I could do that) I have no problem with the living conditions. (I'm actually suited for these conditions) I have no problem being alone.

What gets me though, is it's like it's okay that they will abuse you for the first year. Seems like everyone takes that for granted. It's bad enough being paid 28 cents a mile which is what I heard they were paying people 20 years ago, but that coupled with the low mileage and this is absurd.

I just hope I can hang on. The thought of going back local turns my stomach.

[mapleleaf_1]

I find many people think driving truck is all excitement and fun like they see on t.v. or in the movies. When I tell them it's not like that and some of what it's really like they don't believe me. It's definitely not for everyone. Drive safe everyone

[jnk2001]

either too many lot lizards.... :lol: :lol:

[PDXer]

Originally Posted by GMAN

It would not be difficult to design a psychological test to match a profile of the successful driver. If properly structured, it could be a good indicator of who would be successful and who would wash out, prior to anyone spending money. I think it could be a way to find the better drivers and perhaps get rid of some of the undesirables in the industry. A few dollars on a psychological pre-screen could save thousands, if not millions in driver turnover. By reducing turnover, carriers could pay drivers more. Constantly recruiting bodies is expensive. Psychological profiling is done in other industries, I don't see why it could not be done in trucking.

There is a screening test that Central Oregon uses before hiring drivers.

http://www.scheig.com/content/systems.aspx

[ssoutlaw]

Originally Posted by PDXer

There is a screening test that Central Oregon uses before hiring drivers.

http://www.scheig.com/content/systems.aspx

The only problem with this is who will give the Psyche(spelling) evaluations to the company's. Its nothing new to the trucking industry, If company's would keep with the good pay, they could expect more drivers following their company guidelines. Its a sorry thing these days when the work ethic is you get what you pay for!!

[Crackaces]

Originally Posted by GMAN

Many pilots are not making what they once were because of down sizing and mergers. There are a lot of similarities between pilots and truck drivers. I suppose the paycheck is still the major difference, but they also put in thousands of hours of flying time to even get the pilot's job. Their training is much more rigorous than truck driving. It doesn't take that much to get a pilot's license, but to get enough experience to pilot a 747 takes years. Commercial pilots often come from the military who train for years to hone their craft. Some start out as instructors in small single engine planes as they work their way into piloting a corporate plane until they get enough experience to pilot a commercial airliner. Some may never achieve their goal of becoming a commercial pilot. The pilot's union has been a double edged sword with pilots. They have made demands which have sometimes resulted in bankruptcy of their employers and layoffs. Most pilots must have at least a BS degree plus sufficient experience. There really isn't any educational requirements required of professional drivers other than driving school.

GMAN The days of pilots making money are over. A new 2nd officer at Mesa airlines makes about 18K a year. A new Captain for Southwest around 37K. Yes there are a few experienced folks working for United and Delta making 50 - 100K but in a rapid pace these jobs are going away.

It was true that pilots used to have a BS because most pilots came from the military. However, especially in the regional airlines .. the 2nd officer has nothing more than 400 - 800 hours as an instructor. Some regional that fly regional jets require the 2nd officer to have an ATP that requires 1500 hours total time. Many of these kids graduate today from a school like ATP Flight school rather than college. They have much more investment in dollars than a trucker .. and make about the same pay these days. You make a good point that cheap tickets like cheap freight has its costs.

BTW) I have thought of putting my nursing license to work. (Took NCLEX in 1981 when I was a medic) Starting pay in $20 per hour. I average 18.75 per duty hour. (Certainly not comparing lifestyles.) Not much more money for a job requiring a lot of education.

I think there has been an overall decline in job availability and salary since 2002. So the question I beleive is not how much money ... but whether Trucking is meaningful and fulfilling.

[Crackaces]

I have been on this board for a little over a year.

The first time I quit I was prepared to back into situations that required a 45 degree ally dock. I found out that most of the docks required maneuvers in spaces not at all designed for 70 foot of truck. Many were blind side backs or serpentine maneuvers between cars, fences, posts, walls .. well you get it. In some cases safety was a direct question. Thus the stress was unbelievable and I was a wash out ..

After quitting Gordon I got myself ready for reality. I joined Watkins and Shepard. They go into the smaller mom and pop shops some really difficult situations, but now I am prepared. I just look at the situation and if things are not what I believe can be done .. I am assertive. "This dock might be doable by the last driver but we are going to unload this on the street ..."