Now, may we hear from the exception to the rule???

 

This is an industry where not everyone who attempts to do this can do so successfully. Not everyone can manage themselves or their time. You pretty much set your own schedule as long as you get your loads picked up and delivered on time. Trucking offers many an opportunity to earn a higher income than they could doing something else. For those who enjoy working without someone constantly looking over their shoulder or without having to punch a time clock this can be just the business for them. Like any industry there are those who are not cut out for working independently. Some would do better working at a factory or some other type of business. You can find high school graduates or those with advanced college degrees driving trucks. There are many who retire from successful careers in other fields who decide to try trucking because it has always been their dream to drive over the road. I think those who are most critical are the ones who either cannot cut it or don't know how to manage themselves or their time. Some people need more supervision than others. You can find some who will blow their entire paycheck at truck stops playing video games. You must learn how to work smart when you drive otr. There is nothing wrong with driving local, but like any business there are some who do well local and others who do better otr. There are also those who don't do well with either.

There are some changes occurring in this business. Unions have nearly driven many of these local companies out of business. It is difficult for them to compete with non union carriers. This has mostly been a performance compensated business for many decades. Most earn their living by the number of miles they drive. That is primarily how most are compensated. They receive a flat rate per mile. Others receive a percentage of the rate. I think this is the best way to compensate drivers. The more the company makes the more the driver earns. With mileage pay the driver earns the same rate regardless of how much the company makes. A small group are paid an hourly wage. Those are usually union positions. There is little incentive for them to be more productive since they are paid the same regardless of their productivity, which is one of the reasons some of these companies are in trouble. Some companies keep a close eye on these drivers and monitor their progress closely. Some are better than others.

This country needs both long haul and local drivers. Both have their place. I prefer over the road to local, but others prefer local. If you want to work and keep your nose clean you can earn a good living. Any career has things you may not like about it. That is simply the nature of the beast. It is one of the few careers you can do where more seasoned drivers are sought after due to their experience and work ethic. As long as you have a clean mvr and work history and can pass a dot physical you can continue to work. Some younger drivers simply don't have a good work ethic. Those are the ones that seem to be most critical of this industry.

 

Mileage pay is OK in say a linehaul situation like LTL where drivers run terminal-to-terminal in dedicated lanes. Those guys just drop their sets, hook to another, and return to home base. Mileage pay is NOT GOOD in irregular route OTR because there's too much time-wasting garbage to contend with: dealing with shippers/receivers, waiting in line, DOT, breakdowns, weather, waiting to get loaded/unloaded, grocery warehouses, getting lost, washouts, waiting for loads when empty...and all the other BS. Those guys don't get paid for most of that crap, they do it for free. They don't get paid for all the miles they driver either, as most are paid off of HHG.

Now with freight as slow as it is, you've got alot of guys sitting around in truckstops over the weekends and holidays. No pay unless they sit over 24 hours.

OTR blows! I don't know why someone would put up with that nonsense. Only a moron would work for straight mileage pay. Percentage pay is no better.

 

We are not going to get into name calling. If you don't like otr or anything else you can debate all you want as long as you don't resort to name calling.

And for the record, most drivers will do more sitting these days than during busier times of year. It also costs the company to sit around. One reason GM and Chrysler is in trouble is due to paying people for not working. When business is slow it hurts everyone. When the truck isn't moving neither the company or driver is making any money. If you are a good worker then mileage or percentage is a good way for you to have more control over your income. If you don't want to work but be paid anyway then hourly is the way to go.

 

Well Mr. Wizard, it could be that at this time OTR is the only choice that some have. With the way the economy is right now, some have no choice but to do OTR just so they can keep a roof over their family's head and food on the table. A lot of companies are laying off and/or not hiring. So what is one to, work at Micky D's? Not always an option.

I don't agree with HHG or practical mileage pay(Hub, all miles paid if on mileage pay is the way to go), not being paid at docks, and all that stuff but when times are hard, you have to do what you can to survive. A lot of people are happy right now that they even have a job.

NOW GO BACK TO YOUR LITTLE FANTASY WORLD

 

Wrong supertrucker! I want to be paid for my time on the job, unlike you highway heroes who sit around for free. Drive free miles. Wait at docks for free. Wait in line for free. Wait for loads for free. Drop/hook trailers for free. Inspections for free. Scale loads for free. The list goes on and on and on and on...

Where are you coming up with this BS of being paid not to work? Not everyone who's hourly is in the UAW. Nobody pays me not to work. Nobody pays me to eat. My 15 minute breaks aren't paid. My 30-min lunch break isn't paid. If there's no work, I'll go home early. Fine with me. I won't sit in a truck for nothing like you do.

Nobody's saying they want to be paid for not working. But when I'm on the job and not on a break or lunch, then I want to be paid just like all other blue-collar workers. When I'm stuck in traffic, I want to be paid. When I'm inspecting equipment, I want to be paid. When I'm dropping trailers I want to be paid. When I'm dealing with customers I want to be paid. I also want to be paid for all the miles I drive. I don't want to work for free like you chumps do. And I want overtime after 8/40 hours. Name me another blue collar job that's exempt from overtime like trucking is?

Oh well. This is like talking to a brick wall. What do I care? If you folks want to work for free and haul cheap freight and spend Xmas in the truckstop, then go ahead. It keeps prices low at the store for me. :lol2:

 

Excuse Me Mr. Hunt But Who Are You Calling A Chump?? Can you Be Specific??

 

I always love it when other drivers or outsiders get on this board and start slamming OTR drivers for working long hours and not getting paid for all the work they do. If you don't want to work in OTR then don't! It isn't your life or your bank account therefore you shouldn't give a damn. Yes OTR drivers get screwed out of a lot of pay, but so do thousands of hourly workers every single day in every single part of this world. Salaried workers get screwed just as much for they get the same set amount no matter how many hours they put in. Should any of this matter to anyone except the person doing the work and that person's family? NO!!!! I for one find local work BORING and I like being a paid tourist.

 

When did they lower the prices in the stores? The prices keep on rising. What company pays someone to eat? I'm spending Christmas at home, always have and always will.

 

Consumer prices dropped 1.7% last month, the largest drop on record. We are going to experience some deflation in this crappy economy.