Truck Driving Jobs

thriver · #1 04-26-2007, 05:02 PM

I know there can't be much in the way of long haul jobs in Hawaii, but does anyone know anything about class A opportunities on any of the islands?

Sheepdancer · #2 04-26-2007, 05:15 PM

Ive hired a few class a drivers from hawaii who wanted to drive over here because they cant make any money there. So there are jobs there.....just probably not that great of jobs. Plus when you factor in the cost of living compared to the low paying jobs. It would be a good way to go broke fast.
Another thing to think about. When hiring people from the mainland, most hawaiian companys arent going to pay for you to come there for an interveiw or orientation. You are going to have to spend your own money to get there. That is long expensive trip to find out you dont get a job.

zexersix · #3 04-26-2007, 06:01 PM

I lived in hawaii for 10 yrs,its better to visit than stay. As far as jobs go,local jobs will prob first go to the bruddah's over there.Your best bet would be to try and get a govt job,they pay pretty good. I know on sand island theres matson,you could try and hook up with them,prob all you would do is drive the containers a cpl miles,to get them dl,as far as pay goes,no idea. Before i left,i knew this guy that was working at the airport driving the tankers,he was making $16 an hr,if you have hazmat,you could try that route. Your looking at $800 for a studio apt,gas is around 3+ dol, elec,water,sewage if not covered in rent, avg about 120 a mo.

You wont have much time,to look at the scenery,because you'll be too busy working,trying to scrape by.

Good luck.

Segafan · #4 04-26-2007, 08:33 PM

I visited my brother in Hawaii last summer. I saw a bunch of commercial vehicles on the road. They don't have trains so they need trucks to move stuff around. We were on the island that has Honolulu. Oahu I believe. Its a beautiful place but that sun is intense. I got burned worse than I ever did down in the "deep South" even though it didn't feel that hot. If you are a surfer or something you could probably just be a beach bum. My brother said that's a popular lifestyle there. Otherwise the cost of living is too high and you would be living hand to mouth driving a truck. The native musicians down there are incredible. I've never heard such "tight" bands in my life. :lol: I asked him about CDL jobs and he said they are always looking for trash truck drivers. :?

coastie · #5 04-26-2007, 10:37 PM

Simplifi some of the answers you received. It's a Great place to Visit, But to live there, a different tail.

Hawawii is a nice State for a visit. I was there in Dec 91 for longggggggggggggggggggg week paid by the US Coast Guard.

Mean Gene · #6 04-27-2007, 03:41 AM

There are more trucking jobs over here then a lot of people realize.

One of the problems is that alot of companies haul different freight every day. One minute you are hauling a flatbed(NO TARPING) then maybe a lowboy or container.

The good union is local 3 which u will make about 30 dollars an hour. Most companies pay between 15 and 25 per hour depending on exp.

You gotta remember everything gets here by boat and there are about probably 2500 containers coming in a week. One company brings in over a Million board feet of lumber on a barge every three weeks.

Prices are high but you dont need a lot othings over here that you do in the mainland. Like heavy coats,fuel oil and such. Plus you are home every nite

Segafan · #7 04-27-2007, 04:42 AM

Thanks for the info Mean Gene. I don't care what people say about visiting over living I fell in love with the whole thing and once I build up some CDL experience I might try to move there. The beauty of it all is simply staggering. Its too bad there is so much sprawl though.

thriver · #8 04-27-2007, 07:29 AM

thanks for the info.

i did a little looking myself and one ad that kept popping up was for beer delivery. started at 19.50 an hour. that's about what i make now, but like some of you mentioned, i know alot of the costs are higher on the islands.

gene, what kind of lifestyle will 19.50 an hour afford you in hawaii? surfing is fun, but i'm terrible at it and i don't see going the beach bum route.

i'll be in hawaii for my honeymoon in september and am trying to find reasons to stay there. or at least move there soon after.

Sheepdancer · #9 04-27-2007, 01:33 PM

About 7 years ago, we were in hawaii and my wife and I had the same idea. I looked at a few corporate jobs there that paid OK. When looking for a house to buy, we decided anywhere we would actually consider living the houses where well over a million. What people dont realize about hawaii is that yes the touristy areas and the rich areas are paradise. However, a lot of Hawaii is nasty, high crime slums and areas filled with druggies and gangs. We looked at a few apartments just for fun. And the bare minimum area I would allow my family to live, a two bedroom apartment was about 2200 a month. I hate to inform you, but a 19.50 hour job in hawaii is pretty much going to get you a really small apartment surrounded by drug dealers and pimps, unless you get really lucky.
You are already going to be there, look around and weigh your options, however, dont get your hopes up too high.

Sheepdancer · #10 04-27-2007, 02:06 PM

Here is a better way to look out it. I saw that you live in NW Mo. So the closest city I see to you would be St Joseph for comparison. If I punch in the numbers into a cost of living comparison calulator.
19.50 an hour is about 40K a year.
Its 124% more expensive to live in hawaii than St joseph Mo.
So you are making 40k a year now, to maintain the same standard of living in Hawaii you would need to make $89,700 there. Or to look at it another way....40k in hawaii is about like someone making 17k or 8.17 an hour in st joseph mo. So gererally to estimate how you will live in hawaii at 40k a year, think about how you would live in Mo at 8.17 an hour. There is your answer.