There are some well educated people who are in this business. If you read some of the posts on this forum you will find a rather diverse group. We have a lot of former IT people as well as businessmen, policemen, firemen, paramedics, college professors and many more occupations. These people do this because they want to do it. They enjoy the open road and driving across this great country. Most of us are well qualified to do a number of other jobs or professions but CHOOSE to drive otr. Apparently, you have not been around this industry very long or this is something you would know. Trucking is one of the most critical industries in this nation. Virtually every other job or industry relies on trucking. We are one of the most regulated industries in the country. Ignorant people don't last long in this business. It takes a certain level of intelligence to make it in trucking. I find that those who are it's biggest critics are the ones who could not make it in this industry.

 

Narrow minded, looking through tunnel vision.:moon::moon::moon:

 

Looks like a great opportunity. I'm too scared to go and do it though. Go ahead guys, laugh at me.

Just afraid of trying to control a vehicle of that size.

 

I think its a fact that companies like Werner take FULL advantage of the bad economy. How more drivers they can suck in, how lower the wages will go for ALL of us. A friend of mine who does local LTL (like me) is complaining that he dont make enough money anymore. He wants to go to Werner, some drivers told him he will get EVERY WEEK his 2800 till 3000 miles. When he thinks he cant pay his bills NOW....just wait till he does OTR with Werner. I see another foreclosure COMING. He makes $760 gross EVERY week for Mon-Fri. Never in a million years he will make that amount OTR at Werner as average.
But I guess I am just narrow minded.

 

Interesting that they are "hiring" - I've heard several Werner new-hires both experienced and students who have been waiting for their trucks for more than 3 weeks (and counting ).

 

Werner's trucks aren't any larger than any other company's trucks.

 

The last recession in 2001 caused us to go to work for Werner because our company suddenly went belly up and we had to jump immediately. As a team we ran our azzes off with them, made damn good money even while everyone else was sitting, HOWEVER the solo's were starving. Werner is famous for using their solo's as the grunts to get the load to the teams (sitting, sitting and sitting at the dock then run it 200 miles to turn it over to the team) and that is one of the reasons we left; I couldn't stomach listening to drivers tell us about their $200 paychecks and how they literally had no money to eat with. Once we had to turn a load over to a solo because we had run out of hours; he went ballistic when we told him we were out of hours and had over 6000 miles that week. I would caution any solo to think twice before going to Werner.

 

Call me ignorant, but that pretty much covers the new breed of driver. Years ago drivers too pride in their work and companies had a pool of good work ethic, common sense smart people to choose from. Now, they have a bunch of slackers who were raised by MTV and Nintendo looking for the biggest $$ for the least amount of work.Then of course you have the mobile homeless dregs of society that just don't fit in with normal people. Between the above mentioned, and total lack of common sense, they now have a choice between sleeping under a bridge, "Clean up in aisle Three" or .29 CPM and working 100, logging 70 and paid 40.

 

So does that make me "weird" for liking a job where I don't have to work as a direct member of a team?

Up to this point, I'm still banking on getting back into that line of work due to all other, potential career options looking like something I'd only do as a last-resort.

I mean, I try go to school and all I find are party-animals that ruin the learning experience because they never stop.

 

working 100, logging 70, paid 40?? Sounds like my company. It is local, home every nite, all in all an idea job, some would say. But, moral is low, management push, push and push for more work from employees. Dispatch will tell you every lie in the book to get you to pick up a load, even as your hos nears end. Folks say that if you have a job, you should be grateful. But some companies take advantage of bad economic times to get all they can get from workers while paying low, but pay themselves big salaries and benefits. We are told the company cannot afford it if we ask for better benefits. Makes one wonder as you see these management folks drive new company paid cars home each day, most have new homes, boats. Either they are good money savers or overpaid crooks.