What's Causing the Trucker Shortage?
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- Опубликовано: 30 дек 2013
- One of the hottest and most controversial topics in the trucking industry today, is that of the shortage of truck drivers, in the U.S. and Canada.
Trucker wages have not kept up with the cost of living index for numerous years, an over-regulated industry, heavy scrutiny on log books, the introduction of electronic logs are just a few of the reasons there is a shortage of skilled truckers.
Trucking companies will soon need to change their tactics to attract drivers to truck driving jobs. Presently many companies are bringing in drivers from other countries, which has presented another problem..... a language barrier and improperly trained drivers causing unnecessary damage and in turn, insurance rates to increase.
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I am 3rd generation driver and my son is the 4th.thing is we all stopped driving. to many laws and no money for all the crap involved.i will never go back again
Curt Ray I know, it's sad isn't it , what they've done to this industry. It used to be so good. Dave
Pay truckers hourly and there won't be a shortage of drivers.
sojutime i work for a small fleet regional ltl paid by the hour home every night run 1000 - 1200 miles a week take home pay works out to 80 cents a mile.every body i talk to offers me a hiway job .i say how much you paying . they say 40 cent to start. i laugh and tell them to hire a rookie. wonder why this industry is going for a shit?
Pay driver by the hour and soon will be no more drivers
It's not only drivers suffering. I was laid off not long ago from a Manufacturing plant where I was a skilled craftsman making custom cabinetry for higher end cargo trailers. These companies want you to work long hours and produce big numbers but don't want to pay wages commensurate with a skilled craftsman but they expect the workmanship to be the same. It's crazy.
he is telling the truth..done this for 20 plus years..
In my opinion, it is a national disgrace the way commercial vehicle drivers in this country are looked upon and treated. Though we need them, excessive DOT regulations in my view, have played a large part of the problem. Truck Stops and Wayside rests are FULL at night and for the most part no place else wants them around. Illegal exhaust systems have caused many areas to ban Engine Braking., which in turn causes a safety issue. Many people in authority positions can not or will not do the work themselves, yet are telling the drivers how to do it. Trucking companies intentionally controlling maximum speed of trucks to cut down on fuel consumption and other reasons has caused many other vehicles around them to become irritated and frustrated (road rage) further resulting in poor image of truck drivers. The time is now for all involved to come up with the best possible solutions.
randy fischer couldn't agree more. dave
randy fischer Best solution? Work at McDonalds or get a trade. Pays more and you'll work less.
Smoke and mirrors baby !
1) Job in paper says over the road driver wanted, great pay, Home on week ends.
(Translation: On the road a lot, promise of great pay by someone who doesn't do the job and is paid to tell you it's great,
Home on weekends, They just don't tell you which weekends.
2) The guy doing the hiring is trying to pay the lowest wage possible, Probably then gets a bonus of keeping pay down.
DEREGULATION ! The curse of the industry !
"What's Causing the Trucker Shortage?" OMG...where should I start?
It's a shit job....but the pay isn't in-line with how bad of a job it is. Times are tough for a lot of people and tens of thousands are getting a CDL and companies are putting them to work with "promises" of good pay. Then 2 months into it the drivers realize their life sucks AND they aren't making the money they thought they would and quit. But the truck they were driving gets filled by another guy fresh out of training the next week.
What you end up with is a revolving door of drivers so that you have a never ending labor pool of low-wage, inexperienced drivers, a lot of whom have failed at just about everything they've ever tried in their lives and went into truck driving as a last resort.
Now you have an industry of pretty much undesirable slobs doing this job, and the people who have to deal with these folks simply stop trying to treat them with anything like professional courtesy or respect. Then there is a percentage of drivers who actually want to work, shower and shave as often as they can, have manners and a work ethic and want to represent their company well and provide good service to the customer. What happens to these guys? Some of them stick it out and get a job with a company that recognizes their value and pays them accordingly, but most throw in the towel because for the first time in their lives they are treated worse than a homeless bum, not only by the shippers and receivers bit even from their own company simply because of their association with the rest of the idiots that drive a truck. Think I'm exaggerating? Go buy a CB radio and hang out at a large truck stop for an hour some evening. You'll find out exactly the sort of people who drive a truck. Now you won't hear from the percentage of good drivers I mentioned earlier. They aren't even using their CB. They're reading a book, talking to the wife/kids or watching a movie before they go to sleep. Not sitting there trying to "out-vulgar" the rest of the drivers on the CB.
Oh I almost forgot to mention......trucking companies will short you on pay at any given opportunity. Short-haul pay, downtime pay, whatever. You have to hound these people to get your pay. But it's even worse than that. Even your regular mileage on the loads you run is shorted by about 10%. That's right. They use mileage calculators that always short you and they've all been doing it for decades. How's that legal you ask? You think congress cares about truck-drivers? Not when the trucking companies make sure that the right pockets get lined. The transportation industry is about as corrupt as anything you'll find. Who loses out the most from this corruption? I'll give you three guesses but you'll only need one.
You right to the point! I have 34 years behind the wheel as a pro, applied for Bison few years ago they turned me down, (even I was LCV certified) clear abstract, due to the lock of references, I worked for one company in my carrier and they require 3 references...??? As you sad, they don't need high class professional drivers, whoever quit 5 times a year more than wellcome! Well, I work in a much better environment now, sleep in my bad every night and my company recognition is just awesome. Never back to trucking ever!
Your right they don't want to get over if your broke down on the side of the road most are morbidly obese stink clothes messed up potty mouthed leaving piss jugs everywhere its really bad then you got mom pops companies that will pay 25 cent per mile but you will have to run illegally to make money then like jb 50 cent per mile then give you 1400 miles a week I am at a otr company that pays decent also gets me home when I request built in regregs power invertors I will be here until I find something local god bless
cswann8 Spot ON.. it's unfortunate and true tho. I went to school and recieved my class A fot truck driving because I want the freedom but it's not really free at all, the pay isn't the best it could be and I've read alot of horror stories which are true and you do get treated like a dumpster. Sad and it sucks but I guess my thing is if you really want to be a trucker you gotta take your lumps and just love it because it isn't for everyone. I'm yet to get started and I already have an idea of what to expect.. wish me luck.
cswann8 not to say how your life is on the line everyday!!
cswann8 I've been in the industry 3 years and had enough. As if Monday, I will no longer be a truck driver. And I can't tell you how happy it makes me. Thank god I have skilled trades to fall back on. I just thought trucking would be more than it was. I make more money working half the hours in my trade than I did in trucking. I should have never left. But hey, trucking will always be available if things get really bad and I can't find a job. Trucking is for suckers.
Totally true and am glad you had the courage to say so. That being said in this day and age trucking is what you make it. Evaluate your home time and Evaluate your Pay AND benefits. Today drivers, even company drivers, are free agents. If you don't want the 15 hour per day schedule find an hourly outfit. If you don't like bouncing around town find a company that will put you on a longer route. If your boss likes to yell at you and lie or of a recruiter lies to your face, time to move on. The only way the industry will get better is if we all demand better conditions overall. Stop working for no pay. Stop laying over for days. Don't let them scare you into running 70+ MPH. Stop working 13, 14, and 15 hour days. Leave the abusive companies and work for those who all around provide you a generous living. I know that we drivers are fiercely independent, but if your company consistently breaks the law and it's a matter of public safety make the authorities aware. If they consistently break labor law again you have to stand up for yourself or they'll just roll right over ya. You don't have to be the lowest bidder to get good work. You do, however need to be safe and reliable. Do your part or there won't be an industry for your kids...
I just retired from driving a bus for 26 years for the MTA in New York. We have and still get a lot of ex truckers because the issues raised in this video. The base pay is around 75K with full medical and a civil service pension and many of our guys routinely pull over 100K/yr with bigger paying runs and working a few extra days here and there and you get to go home every night.
That is one reason they are putting automatics in all the new trucks now, they say it is for fuel savings which is partially true. But the real reason is to get more people inside the truck, and drive it like a car. The writing is on the wall, they know it is coming. Money talks and bullshit walks, These Corporations are taking advantage of all the truck drivers with low pay. You have to want to drive a truck from the start, truck drivers are born truck drivers. No amount of money or automatic can make a good, safe, driver. Truckers make the world go round, keep on trucking.
dead on. that's why I got out. working 80 plus hours a week for less than minimum wadage and be treated like a criminal.
Not really the ideal job is it?
could be if the money was there and dot protected drivers instead of fine them, a guy didn't have to fight with dispatch to get home
In Ontario Canada, we believe the MTO to have a quota.... it's terrifying to go through a scale in this province, when your truck and everything is in a row? They'll still find something. (:
Been in trucking industry since 1972.. Always was a cut throat business. More failures than successes. Deregulation was the start of the downward slide. The unions kept the wages up and the millionaire owners cried all the way to the bank,everyone made money. I remember seeing ads for driver 250,000 miles proven over the mileage to be considered for an interview. Even England and Werner had similar requirements. The trucks were spring ride and no power steering. Still I never worked for a company that had a driver shortage. I met lots of idiots back then but they all spoke English. J.B Hunt came along and it was a downward slide .Trucks and roads improved greatly along with driver production. Now we have billionaires crying all the way to the bank or depositing to their overseas accounts. Driver's making 20 year old wages.Draw your own conclusion as what happened to the industry.
I tried trucking back in 2007 and was not successful. I was always disappointed that I didn't I never made it a year. In retrospect I can see why. From the start the recruiters mislead you,(I incidentally worked for a major carrier that had 14000 drivers coast to coast and big orange trucks) and paint this picture of a potentially good paying job and good home time. They had their own driving school at that time and signed you up and taught you how to drive and do what a safe driver should do. That part was good. But if you dropped out later than a week into training they said you owed them 3000.00 for the school. All your time @ school the instructors are selling the program. One of the instructors said in school "We'll be lucky if one of you is still here in a year" I thought he can't be serious. After school I was assigned a trainer that really only wanted to see me make it for the retention pay she would receive for the next 6 months.
I invested a lot of money and time getting started, I bought a laptop for the truck and truckers navigator /GPS program a quality CB radio, tools and other stuff. Once I got my own truck I drove in the Bulk division and decided TOO MUCH work and extremely dangerous environment picking up at Chemical Plants, delivering to the receiver, than off to the tank wash and start over for TOO LITTLE PAY. After 4 months I quit. They immediately started harassing me to pay for the schooling. So I go back and start driving van. It was worse.
Like other people said here, your working all the time and only getting paid for "Household Movers Guide"miles. Road expenses i.e. food unless you don't mind living out of a can, showers or you can get a big box of baby wipes and don't even think about taking unapproved toll roads e.g. Florida toll roads because your NOT getting reimbursed. The list goes on and so does the con game.
The company gets paid the same amount for the freight whether a "rookie" hauls it or a master driver at the top of the pay scale, so let's give the newbie the miles and maximize our profits. I only lasted 3 more months and quit and went back to a job I didn't like because I knew I would be home and earn more.
I always felt it was a job I failed at, but the truth is these companies and especially the recruiters, mislead and set you up for failure.
100% correct man
the schooling they make you go through be WORTHLESS they dont teach u the real situations in trucking.once the blood suckers got involved in trucking and thought HOW can they make money from loads and government funding SNAPS FINGERS aha!!!! do truck driving school MANDATORY and have DOT on board.most of these schools get paid for u to get a cdl if u use it or throw it away they make 10k a person enrolled in school about 70 heads in school how much is that??? 100,000 a student add about a extra 300 more thats almost a million dollars in grants and funding and I ASK DRIVERS WHERE YALL THINK THIS MONEY GOES???? Think about where the money is going towards millions of dollars going somewhere IF IT AINT IN OUR POCKETS OR THE COMPANY POCKETS THE GOVERNMENT TAKES IT WHERE THEY SPENDING IT???.we make the world go around america is still on ITS LITTLE LIMB because of us so they know what they doing by the pay and fucking US in the process but karma is a on going cycle what u do comes back to u for every possible action there is a REACTION and for our industry it wont be pretty for them
You are very truthful and are to be commended for that! Thank you for putting it all out there. I'm in this dumb racket myself but I'm not OTR, thank you Jesus! If you every decide to go back, there are always openings with the US Postal Service. The major drawback with that is the hiring process thru the internet is a horror story. I was never able to get hired even after I was offered employment TWICE and completed the process 2 times. That alone is the biggest bunch of bullshit I've ever seen. Good Luck whatever you decide to do, you deserve it. You have nothing to be regretful or embarrassed about.
I almost went to that driving school, I was at the drug testing when I got another job offer. I always wondered if I made the right choice by rejecting the trucking job and now you've reassured me that I wasn't a dumbass. Thank you
You didn't fail at anything who wants to live their life working under the Sweatshop conditions
I quit after the third weekend of doing city driver loads out of Fontana. Let a millage driver set in traffic instead of an hourly driver. And the directions dispatch would give you, take the butt lick freeway to the asswipe freeway. Refused to say I-5 or I-210. Unless you are a California commie who cares what nicknames you have for the Eisenhower interstate system.
Pay has been flat-lined for decades in almost every industry not just yours. Until workers band together and demand better than they will get no better. So many people in this country have been trying to get better wages for workers in this country and what do they get for it? They have been crapped on by the majority of people in this country.
You will get nothing until you learn that it is ok to fight for your own interests. It is perfectly fine to acknowledge the interests of the wealthy are not your own. That's not communist, socialist or anything else, it's just reality. Fight for your own interests and stop letting yourself be convinced that demanding better pay is demanding a handout. Stop convincing yourself that you will be wealthy someday and that somehow these rules are helping you. Live with the reality you have now and demand better.
Antoniac, your comment on this thread is perhaps the most far reaching, all encompassing, and in general the best one on here, no offense to smart-trucking.com. This is a national epidemic affecting all industries identified as blue-collared proletariat. The elitism, and the sense that those of us in these outfits should be privileged to serve at the behest of the bourgeois blowhards is despicable to say the very least. To those of you who have jumped off of the sinking ship of the OTR trucking industry, good luck, but I seriously doubt you'll find any solace in any other labor or transportation outfit out there. 30 years of this putrid pull yourself up by your bootstraps and less government=happier citizens garbage, a trio of decades that basically defines my whole life (and I'm 32.) We have about reached the limits of what peaceful protests can accomplish, especially since more drastic alternatives have historically had a better success rate...
Brian Ludwig I'm the same age. We are going to see some hairy stuff. We are in the midst of Peak Oil and our populace is too deluded to face reality. I think a large part of the problem is that there has been no capital value destruction akin to what occurred during the Great Depression. The last major economic contraction (by the numbers, before 2007) was the 1973 financial crisis caused by the Oil Embargo. The government intervened to stave off capital destruction. and has done so ever since. This means there was no floor from which profit could rise.
I think the real problem with most older Americans (most people our age don't seem to suffer from this) is the aversion to anything beyond what they hear on the Faux News/Right wing talk circuit. They listen to this crap and don't question it. They grew up being told "X is bad" but they never really thought to question the dogma. It's a uniquely American thing to entrench further into the dogma rather than question your own reality.
Either way, Peak Oil has landed and these guys will get creamed. They will as always blame the government and scream "drill baby drill" even though drilling is at record highs. They will elect a right wing president (no matter the party, both U.S. parties are right wing it's just a question of degree), that person will bomb more brown people in a futile effort to open supply lines. The economy will likely collapse in time anyway and these truckers will be out of work. Soon computers will be doing the driving anyway. Most people in this country are just screwed and they are too stupid to realize it.
I have a Bachelors Degree from the University of Pittsburgh and I couldn't have put it more eloquently than you have my friend... Of course, as I've said repeatedly beforehand, If I knew going into college in 2003 what I know now, I would never have made such a costly and time consuming mistake. I wait and anticipate another civil war to occur while enveloped in a third world war...
what a lot of driver don't understand there are 4 big truck companies out there that get government backing on fuel and taxes, they can't strike or turn down loads, so when everybody talk about a shut down they laugh at you because they will run their freight anyway ,and cut the strikers down so they will not get a long haul or nothing at all.
i would agree, but sadly, higher wages wouldn't make a difference because the companies paying higher wages would take more out of their checks somehow, or else if every company did this, then other companies would raise prices of everyday things, either because they know people can afford it, or because the companies need to make more money due to the money loss caused from paying higher wages. this has been happening for decades now, just look at what everyday things used to cost. it was because people demanded higher wages, got them, and then it didn't matter anyway because everything's price just got raised accordingly.
unemployment is better pay and you stay home.
+Ronnie kamper Sadly, it can be.
+Ronnie kamper
The smartest comment of all, i like it so much and i am planning my unemployment
+richarerich richards around here where i live in southwest georgia, companies already have internet ads saying they want illegal mexicans to train for the trucking industry.
+Angus MacGyver thats already happening ESPECIALLY IN HOUSTON when i look at the average of mexicans driving these big trucks and starting their own companies where u gotta compete with them because they wont mind the shitty pay and extra long hours because most of them dont know the cost of living here but give them a few yrs they get wise and thats when they consider mexicans LAZY just like us we complaining these dispatchers are from college spoonfed they had meals handed to them so how can they say we full of it we bitching WELL I CHALLENGE ALL DISPATCHERS AND RECRUITERS TO ROLL UP THEIR SLEEVES AND GET A CDL AND PROOVE WE FULL OF IT!!!! THEY DONT SLEEP ON THEIR NICE FOAM MATTRESS IN THEIR LUXURY APARTMENT AND COME SLEEP IN A CAB ON A HARD MATTRESS DRIVE LONG AND HARD AND LOOK AT THE PAY CHECK IS 400$ than they say WE COMPLAINING lol fuck outta here
Only once in my life did I make out like a boss on unenjoyment. I was going to school for a new trade and living the life of Riley but that was *20 freakin' years ago.* I don't make out like that now by a long shot. I'm practically a vegetarian as I seldom eat meat. Not my choice but decent meat is 8-10 bucks a pound. Food in general since Obamanation got in is thru the roof..
When I drove for a living the best wage I got was $12 an hour. It was my first rat shit employer. Started at 10 to 12 hours a day 6 days a week. I was 44 and couldn't handle the hours they were killing me. Our truck was a POS. I became a zombie a week in. I quit that job. Best job after was $9. 400 a week clear now wouldn't be shits worth enuf living out of your sleeper. Thing that pisses me off is mex living 20-25 to a house built for 3 or 4 people. They work cheap driving down wages. On top of that they REFUSE to speak our lingo. Well fuckem.
Well said that is sooooo true. I've been trucking for 15 year's and ready to find something else.
Your video nailed it. I worked as a gear jammer for 20 years in the 80's and saw the writing on the wall. I changed career's before this shortage of "skilled" and "reliable" drivers now days. That is why I have seen a HUGE increase in wreaks. Case in Point; I had a entire wheel assembly come off on a set of doubles I was pulling down the hwy. I went back and forth on the road and saved the truck and load. Another I had the front tire explode, tore off the battery box, step. Rim hit the hwy and dug in. My father's boss happened to be behind me and after it was over he was amazed I hadn't wreaked the truck. THAT is where the skill, experience comes in. I made it to my 88th day of probation and cleared the 30 and 60 days with glowing reviews. On the 88th day I was let go and as I was leaving saw another "new" driver drive the truck off with a load.If I had made it to the 90th day I would have gotten a pay raise of another 1500 per month. I found out hey figured it was cheaper to let driver's before the 90th day and hire another one. Two weeks later their "new" driver totaled their only truck.. Companies today have a warped business model. They see employee's, even key one's as a liability and NOT an asset as they really are. The companies would make ZERO money without good employee's..
you nailed it brother they think 1987 money is sufficient enough. but it is not 150 dollars used to buy 2 weeks worth of food no more. you can't even go get groceries now for less than 300 for a family of 3. but they don't care cause there is a student right behind you to take your place.
I always enjoy your videos.Thanks for sharing. I drive for a Postal contractor and my boss can't get enough drivers. Many days I contemplate leaving, but I see a lot of your followers writing that they don't get home or they're only home on weekends and they make less than $40k a year. That makes me think twice. We're home daily, make over $24 an hour and it's fairly easy work. Thanks again....
VIKINGHUN Yours sounds like a good job to me. Think long and hard before you quit that one. Drive safe. Dave
4 bucks a gallon is the biggest problem. A 1000 mile trip costs over $500 in fuel alone. I'm not taking up for the corporations, but when you take a load, your pay is determined by the overall costs to run that load, and how much the customer can/will pay. When I started driving in 1999, diesel was 99 cents a gallon in Georgia, and not much more everywhere else. Now it's four times that. If the price of fuel doesn't come down, we're screwed...all of us. They keep squawking about the Keystone pipeline, but that won't help anything. All of the refineries in America are working at full capacity already. We can bring in as much crude as we want, but it won't be able to be refined. We need new refineries, period. That's the only way to bring down the cost of diesel and/or gasoline.
Agreed, the price of diesel IS way out of control. Government remember could control it is they chose to, and now it's more than gasoline, which is nuts.
***** Definitely. I'm not a fan of government regulation, but when you're a transportation economy, if the price of the fuel for that economy quadruples in ten years, you're screwed. I think they should consider regulating the price of diesel used in commerce. For the profits of a few oil investors, we're all suffering the consequences.
Refineries won't bring down that cost. The simple fact is oil is a finite resource. Demand in the U.S. has decreased due to the price, but it has increased throughout Asia as more people enter the driving market. Most of this oil being dug up and refined in the U.S. is being shipped out to Asia as they will pay more for it. These refinery's also require a substantial amount of capital to build in the first place which will drive up fuel costs even more (Uganda is just starting a build at 2.5 billion).
As for the current U.S. oil "Boom", it's a wash and it is driven by increased oil prices. The Bakken gold rush is only possible because oil is over 80 dollars a barrel; if the price goes under 80 then the profit disappears due to the increased upfront cost to drill and process that crude. Both Oil tar and sands are more expensive to refine. None of these options are sustainable over the long term. What follows may be dirty liberal logic, but reality is reality. If the share of gasoline users on the road dropped substantially then the price of oil would drop as well. With that in mind it seems moving the general public toward electric cars or at least hybrids will help reduce demand, but alas they are still too expensive for the average american. Then there are the american's who still want to drive their huge gas guzzlers. Oh well, such is life.
CNG is still too far out to really make a dent as well.
antoniac1234 Sorry, but I beg to differ. Crude oil and refined fuels are almost completely different markets, and the two are only slightly related. The general public doesn't affect the price of crude. But the law of supply and demand determines the price of refined fuels such as gasoline and diesel. True, as you say, if the demand for gas goes down, the price goes down. But at the same time, if the SUPPLY increases, the price also goes down. And since the refineries are operating at their full capacity, there is no chance of the supply increasing anytime in the near future.
And while electric cars are a nifty idea, electricity still needs a fuel source, such as coal, oil or nuclear. And with the Obama administration putting the choke-hold on coal-fired electric plants, the price of those kilowatt-hours won't be coming down anytime soon, either.
No, America needs new refineries to increase the supply of refined fuel (not crude) to decrease the price. It really is no more complicated than that.
mickeydougal No, the price of crude effects the price of all products. If crude remains high then fuel prices will not be going down anytime soon. Supply is reaching new highs in the U.S. and yet fuels are still rising in price. You neglected to read what I said about the nature of the crude being sent to many of these refineries. They are difficult to refine period. This isn't cheap and sweet Brent, most of this stuff is lower grade. Furthermore, refinery production is very much unchanged from oil's low point in the 90's. Demand has been much higher at certain points, yet gas was cheaper (even with low refinery output). There is a more fundamental problem at work-There just isn't much cheap oil left, what is left is expensive to get and costly to refine. Perhaps you noticed the price spike back in 2005? It was preceded by a noticeable drop in light, sweet crude production which has yet to recover (and never will). No amount of new refineries will change that reality. Furthermore, high prices oil prices hamper growth in every sector there is no avoiding this. This is why China and several European nations have pledged to even sacrifice GDP to move to more sustainable energy sources because they understand they cannot have functional economies based on a volatile energy market.
Either way, Saying "Build more refineries" doesn't work. Refineries are a serious capital investment. Who is going to fork over that money? For most of these companies it is not profitable to do so. This is a capitalist country, you can't force anyone to build new plants. It's not in their interest to bring down prices so major capital investment is not going to happen.
You neglected to mention there are other forms of electricity generation such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydro and natural gas. There aren't many cheap dead dinosaurs left in the ground to dig up. You should probably move away from that idea, but truthfully it's already far too late to do it without serious economic turmoil. 30 years ago was best, now there will be no avoiding the damage to the economy. Either way, no matter who goes in that White House, oil is not going down barring the introduction of some miracle technology that renders it useless. The floor has risen steadily over the last few years. It will remain at this level until is reaches close to 6 dollars again (average nationwide) which will likely trash the economy again. This will bring it down to the 3 to 4 dollar level. Diesel is going to remain expensive for years to come. You can either adjust to the new reality or suffer.
I feel middle class in general,was screwed by the generation ahead of me.The made deals and padded their pockets so as we never stood a chance.
i Agree with you on that subject dave. My dad was a truck driver my whole life got out of it in 2012 when i was 18 because of money i grew up so fast in his eyes because he was gone 2-3 weeks and home 2-3 days. he didnt find it worth it anymore to be away from family with shit for pay when he could make the same working a local job and be home everynight. when i was younger (now im 21) i wanted to be a trucker like my dad when i told him he kept telling me he wouldnt let me a trucker because he seen the way the industry was going and didnt want me out there making shit for money. I been around the industry my whole life as much as i have a passion for trucking i will never step into a truck with the way its going not when im home every night and make 60k a year. Love the videos dave maybe one day the industry will be like it once was in a aspects
+Daniel Moniz Jr I hope so, thanks Dave
+DJ DanBoy14 the bad thing is though, here where i live, unless you do have a CDL, there are no jobs if you are older than 22 years old.
So why do I keep hearing about guys making 70k ?
absolutely!
I am walking away from trucking. The money did not keep up with the cost of living
thats why im done with driving i miss it but it does not pay here in az
that's because nothing comes out of AZ.....
money is not there..yes you are right been there,,.
This video should be required watching for trucking company executive. I to remember family members who worked in the trucking industry and made really good money. Today, it is just not worth the expense. Great video.....!!
I'll explain myself, I remember when people would go to shnider to retire, as taxes went up,they turned in to more of a training company.
That's right. Dave
Finally some straight talk about trucking.
AMEN,AMEN,AMEN,
YOU HIT THE nail right on the head😉👍
I'VE BEEN TRUCKING FOR 28 YEARS,AND WOULD'VE BEEN STILL OVER THE ROAD, BUT THEIR WAS NO PAY RAISE, NOR NO SUPPORT FROM THE COMPANIES TO BACK UP THE DRIVERS,AND LIEING TO THE DRIVERS FROM DISPATCH CAUSES MORE TURN OVER AT ANY TRUCKING COMPANY. GET UP OFF THE money, AND STOP LIENING TO THE DRIVERS, IF YOU WANT THE DOORS OF YOU COMPANY TO STAY OPEN!!!
Started in the 80's as an OTR driver. I was single and came home every 6-8 weeks. Money was questionable, most of it seemingly going to over-priced truck stops just to survive on the road. The biggest problem for me was the total lack of respect - from cops, DOT, shippers and receivers, and the general public. After 3 million miles I gave it up. One big problem for me was the attitude of the other drivers, AKA steering wheel holders. There should be a test for CBs.
The trucker shortage is caused by too many drivers under height.
Would more air in the seats compensate for that? Dave
😂😂😂
The crap pay is pretty much the sole reason why I'm planning on leaving the trucking industry within the next few months. Though I've only been driving for nearly four year, the pay just isn't there. I'm 23, I drove for US Xpress for 2 years and only made about 25k a year. As soon as I hit 23 I came to TMC where I'm at currently, I've figured it up and after my first year with TMC, I'm only going to make around 35k-37k.
For the time spent on the road, that's trash money. I've actually thought about quitting and working fast food and be home every day. When you think about it, the money isn't that much worse.
I was told fairy tales when I went to trucking school about how much money I'd be making, was told 35k-40k+ my first year while being home often. Recruiters will flat out lie to you over the phone, and dispatchers/managers treat you like a piece of dog shit for the most part. I guess I've realized that spending my life on the road living in the mobile cell of a truck for 35k a year while being home a handful days per month just isn't worth it.
I plan on leaving TMC during the summer time and get a local job doing whatever, and go back to my original career goal of being a Firefighter before being tricked into the trucking industry.
Why couldn’t you make 70k like other people I seen people show me opportunities and checks for $1,500-$1,600 weekly
that is so true and that is why I started hauling crude oil ,home everyday,stress free, only downside to it is the rough lease roads will beat up your truck
I am not in the trucking business, but I wanted to just say a few words. There is an old saying, as long as their is a paycheck, there is someone willing to do the work. When your at home unemployed, having a little check beats no check. And what you talk about is not any different in any other industries. For example, realtors was once very lucrative, and now its a very hard business. The automotive business is also very hard. I know a lot of mechanics that have left or work on the side to make ends meet. We also have increasing populations, therefore creating more jobs and suckier pay, since employers now know that one job might have 200 applicants. Not to mention the influx of immigrants to this country that are willing to work for peanuts. The definition of "good pay" is different for every person.
dcfs2005 Well said. The unhappy truth. (Dave)
UCAN you totally nailed it.
YOU GOT MAIL! I agree 100 percent supply and demand.
If a mechanic doesn't have more work available than he or she can possibly do, that mechanic either lives in Bumfuck, Egypt or is not competent. Real mechanics can work on anything if they have the tech data, and are highly versatile. Retired aircraft mechanic here busy enjoying life and wrenching motorcycles for fun.
In the 70's (I was 18) I just missed the Viet Nam war and was looking for a career since I wasn't going to be drafted. I was going to go through a truck driving school to learn to be a truck driver. I remember the cost was around $1,000.00- don't know what it is now, but the pay was 15 to 25 bucks an hour or even more with per load. Back then just 5 bucks an hour was good of money.
I was told beforehand that I should wait until I was 21-24 years old as I would be competing with older drivers for the jobs and wouldn't be hired if I were under 21 at all. The man talked me out of it.
I wished I had gone through with it. I still love driving and traveling with a passion but I'm getting to old now for long distances. There was nothing like being on the road!
If trucking is your passion, don't let time stop you!!!
Just a thought here. They say average the over the road truckers earn 40k per year. Lets put that into prospective. They are allowed and expected to work 70 hrs a week. Are told to log off when really not free of duty while being loaded and unloaded to save there time for driving. So in reality they have about 90 hrs a week into logging 70. So when you look at it like that only being home a day or 2 a month with all the road expense you are better off working 7 hrs a day at mcdonalds, then changing uniforms and work 7 hrs at taco bell, you will be home every day and get 2 free meals. And these companies say they dont understand why they can not find help. I hear a lot of people bashing the unions, but when they were strong in trucking and had the wages higher, there was no shortage. People work for money to survive, period if it doesnt pay your bills most people will do something else which is whats going on the the trucking industry. But they are pushing to let mexicans over here to drive who will do it for less. Guess who is lobbying for this Swift, Celadon, Knight, etc, etc, etc, the companies that also have a big presence in mexico. Its not a driver shortages its a pays shortage no one wants to do the job for what companies want to pay.
well a lot of these Trucking Companies are full of shit they want to run the hell out of you.the only thing they care about is there bottom line not your safety. To anyone thinking of getting into this business.dont believe the bull shit a lot of Recruiters and schools tells you.I have been Driving for 30 years and each year it has gotten worse so really think about it if I had to do it over again I wouldn't.
Gotta agree with you Donald. Sad but true. Dave
Good video and absolutely true facts about trucking.
You hit the nail on the head with one word...MERCEDES!!! It's corporate greed and not just in trucking that's killing the middle class. This is what I'm trying to wrap my head around, if there's no middle class with no money (i guess govt assistance will work) who's gonna buy the products the truckers move across the country. It's just a matter of time before the whole economic machine implodes and the US turns into a corrupt 3rd world country, it's just around the bend
thanks for video Dave another good one
You know what? As somebody who's used to working full time and getting 10k a year, 30k to start seems like a pretty fucking good deal. And those megacarriers are just training companies. You go there, stick it out for a year or two, put in your time, and then you can get hired somewhere that pays better, like UPS or FEDEX or something like that. Fact of the matter is that you have to squeeze blood from the stone EVERYWHERE in this country to get ahead. There is no easy paycheck these daya, and if you want your piece of the pie you gotta make sacrifices and be willing to put up with some bullshit for about 10 years or so. 30k to start for me seems like my ticket out of poverty, and then I can go out to the oil fields and put in a couple years to save my money, or I can take one of the part time local jobs and be my wife's paid caregiver during the week. Maybe 2- 3000 a month isnt much to you, but I'm tired of working my ass off for 750 and never having money to fix my piece of shit car in arizona with no air conditioning. So all you salty old truckers dont want it? Fine, I'll take your job and be happy for the opportunity to move up.
This man spoke (is speaking) the truth. What he failed to mention though is the heavy regulations smh. E-logs, governed trucks, harassment by dot (to pay for those shiny new tahoes and fancy scale houses, and their salaries), micromanagement, and lack of general respect from 4 wheelers, and shippers/receivers. I drove from 07-15 and will never step foot back in a truck unless these ridiculous regulations are severely reversed. Leave it to the rookies, 3rd world country drivers, and those who simply don't know better. Even the trucks are rookie orientated now days - automatic transmissions, in cab face facing camera's, collision avoidance bs, auto braking, etc. I didn't need that crap and NEVER wrecked or had safety issues with over 1.5 million miles of driving. I did bump a trailer once (parked) but was not an action of fatigue, or lack of training (was a bad judgement call in a tight spot on my part). Do away with regulations and watch the shortage dwindle away.
There are only so many people dumb enough to work this hard for such low wages. Drivers have been complaining for years about wages.
The changes in requirements for passing physicals is doing in a lot of drivers. You end up with lot's of inexperienced people who quit after they figure out how bad the job is. The wages haven't changed much in years.
Nobrain dispatchers. They might obey driving hours, but forget loading/unloading time, traffic congestion etc..
Well spoken! I drove for 15 years and loved it. BUT I gave it up about 10 years ago because I seen my pay go from "I love my job" to I can't do this anymore. But I wish you all well out on the road and be safe and I personally hope you all stay safe! just no money for the (real) drivers no more!
Truckers have it tough and should be paid a good percentage of the freight charge and performance bonuses instead of mileage. Times have changed and a dollar is not worth what it used to be - plus we didn't have to deal with texting teens driving Tundra pick ups. It's dangerous when you least expect it to be, the pressure to make mileage and deliver on schedule regardless of the weather is too high to ignore and it's way too easy to rip a tendon fighting crappy pallet jacks. I've had four budds in the last three years throw out hips, backs and shoulders just "helping" on the load/unload docks
Absolutely correct, regulations going over the top, fines excessive. If you act as a shipper and contact a transportation company to check rates you will find transportation companies are charging huge rates per load from point A to point B, for example several dollars a mile is what it costs a shipper to move 20 tons of goods. Then the owner operator does the job for MUCH less and has to carry a huge overhead cost and carry the responsibilities with the labor while the transportation company ONLY furnishes the trailer, and the load, and maybe some small incidental cost. Bottom line, if you are driving or owner operator check out the whole picture, the cost to the shipper/consignee, and what the transportation company/ broker is willing to pay you to do the majority of the work.
I have always wanted to drive over the road but have never done it due to the long hours and low pay. I decided to become an electrician for the railroad and I make around 70k a year working 40 hours a week. If I worked overtime and put in the same hours as an otr trucker, I could clear 100k easily. Truck driving is a skilled profession and drivers should be paid accordingly. You guys need to form a union and start fighting these companies for better pay and working conditions.
All though I totally agree, there is something you have wrong there. We take a million people a year from other countries, which is the reason someone will ask you a question at a truck stop and you can't understand them. We are taking these people to keep our wages low, and it is working. There may be a shortage of experienced truck drivers but there is no shortage of drivers. That man and his Mercedes couldn't care less who is in that truck, after all they are just another tool. I always thought why not pay experienced drivers instead of constantly paying higher insurance premiums and advertising, I figured it out. They are keeping more people working and probably getting bigger tax breaks doing things this way. Of course there is so much more to this, but the bottom line, keep the money wheel turning.
I am a CDL driver in the West Texas oil field, I drive trucks to location but then I work on that location swinging a hammer for a couple weeks. I get paid hourly and am home every night (or day depending on my shift).
I would much rather drive OTR, but the money is not there at all. When I found out how much truckers actually make for what they have to put up with I thought it was just ridiculous.
+Buddy Fazzio I gotta agree, stick with what you're doing! Dave
well put and straight to the point.
Not to mention the training these days is relatively short. A few weeks in trucking school and here you go . You're an expert(in the eyes of the school maybe).
I haul trailers and tankers for a local company. Low pay for the job is why many are retiring or leaving the industry, finding something else until retirement age. According to a new analysis by the American Trucking Associations, the shortage of truck drivers has grown to nearly 48,000 and could expand further due to industry growth and a retiring workforce. The ATA is saying woman make up 47% of the work force but only 6% of truck drivers...increase the pay and I know a few gals that will step up to the plate! We are digging so deep to fill the gap, we are now going to have teens driving cross country.
It won't be too many more years before trucks will drive themselves or freight will move by some other automated means. Get out now while you can.
Amen brother. Hope they figure it out sooner rather than later
Finally someone that’s got it 100% correct. There’s a severe driver pay shortage not a driver shortage. Why do you suppose there’s over a 100% turnover rate. It’s all about money, plain and simple. Weeks on the road, barely paying your bills. These big carriers just don’t get it yet, but they will.
I think of the problem, too, is that fewer and fewer people know how to drive a stick shift. Sure, autoshift trucks exist, but it will be a long time before autoshifts take over from manual shifts.
BRAVO , BRAVO. Could no agree with you any more Dave.
You are exactly right. We're out there, but I won't work for 15.00 hr. I'm pushing a quarter of a million dollars worth of iron loaded with gasoline, and my company pays me 180 a day guaranty . If I do more loads I may make 40 dollars more, but it took 3-4 more hours. So I'm back down to around 16.00 hour. Not happening. I give them nine hours , that's 20.00 hr. The problem as I see it is this. The companies are still in this mindset that a truck driver is easy to come by. A good driver is rare, and we are older, more stable in family, and mature, we are not prone to all the vises that this career brings, but they don't see it or care about it. So the pay is low,. I am a very good driver, a natural if you will. But, it comes down to the company really doesn't give a hoot about you. If they did , pay would reflect that. And it doesn't. So you get the 41,000 yr Schneider job. The swift and JB hunts The Werners. The devil is in the details of the job. The sitting, the looking for that trailer in a yard. the dispatcher who's a dick. All these things contribute to loose of good guys/gals. Oh, we're out there, but I'm not going to be bullshited or belittled because you as an owner of the company think I'm just....... A truck driver.... Your paying me for my experience, dependableness, my people skills(your customers) , and for that you get me at 10 hours for 10,000 dollars. 70 hours 70-80 k a yr. As a company driver. And that is 70 hours from the time I get in that rig until the clock runs out. I'll take my sleeper time, and the .5 dot break. Other than that. It's on the clock. I'm so done playing the games of going off duty once you reach the yard. or not getting payed for wait time.
I looked into Trucking. I backed out for one reason. The pay. I was actually shocked how low it was. I was like no wonder there's a thousand ads for truckers needed.
very true, Im a 3rd gen trucker and im the first one to give up over the road and stay local.
...that 14 Day Dispatch ...and Week to ten Days Off suited Me just ...fine .!!
2004 bring home 1,500.00 a week was good pay for a company driver, it slowly started to go down with all the benefits cut shorter hauls buy 2012 I was down to 650.00 week bring home, had to quit like you said made the same money working 40 hrs at home, damn I miss driving
To help assuage the problem of trucker shortage, perhaps as a country, we should look at other options like increasing our railroad and marine transportation capacity.Also, not all drivers “from other shores” are bad drivers, one must not generalize.
Hi Smart-Trucking, I see this video was done a few years ago and things have gotten, worse. Being in the industry for 40 years I have seen the decline since about the late 80's. A lot of companies are crying about Driver Quality and, guess what, they buy more trucks and then can't find drivers for them and they yell, Drivers Shortage. Yeah, tell the schools out there today that, they seem pretty full. That recent event of bringing over the Europeans has declined, the government found out that these guys can scam a pretty good story and from what I have heard that is now off the table. I used to haul states side for a while and I hated being out for 6 weeks and half of that waiting for loads or unloading. I am off making 23.00 per hour for 40 plus hours per week and I am home for the evening and off for the weekends. And because I'm seasonal, I get winters off, Not that EI is worth much these days, but after all these years, it is nice to have a break in that time.. WE certainly need to get trucking as a Skilled Trade.. But that is a whole new story...LOL
+Stephen D James You bet ! Trucking should be taught in high schools, So should warehousing, fork lift and other transportation related "trades." A 1 year senior high school course complete with equipment operation on all levels and all the class room courses would open up a whole new area of opportunities for high school grads.
love your channel... very smart driver. I been driving for over 20 yrs. trucking is nothing like it use to be. I made great money in the 90's. I'm so glad I paid off everything. no mortgage, no kids, no credit cards. now I have my own authority & I see great money, but before I got my authority I work as an o/o for other carriers. it was horrible.... 4 more yrs. HELLO RETIREMENT.... I don't think elogs will stay around. regulations like that kills businesses. OOIDA. is fighting it. I pray they win
Thank you i'm so glad you said something because i'm so tire of hearing driver telling people they are trying to trap with Lie's of three and four thousand dollars a week and everytime I hear it I just want to say stop lying to these people out here and America needs to wake up and realize as long as fuel prices over $5 a gallon and drivers can't make a decent wage they're going to be shortages and everything
Same in the UK...All the training companies advertising £30,000+ per year.. You pay up.. do the training and get through it to find out your travelling miles just to pick up the motor and your out earning a little over minimum wage on some of the jobs.. agencies are killing the industry. It's a problem going forward. sad..
We have a small trucking firm(6 rigs and 5 out on the road with 1 spare) I still drive occasionally. The biggest thing that's frustrating to me and why I quit hauling reefer load and sold our reefer trailers grocery warehouses flat out suck. Yes I know start detention after 2 hours but I once went into a grocery warehouse the lumper fee was 350 dollars. Another time for a grocery reefer load I sat in a dock 24 hours. I was hot because I had about 30 gallons top going into this warehouse. Well it was dead of winter and there was a truck stop maybe 10-12 miles up the road. So my plans was grab the load . Run up the road get fuel and deliver. Well I idled the truck the whole 24 hours I sat there because it was about 7 degrees. When I finally got to the fuel station it took 97 gallons on 100 gallon tank. I'll never go back to hauling groceries again
You're right, grocery warehouses do suck. I made the mistake of delivering to them a couple times. Happily most of my reefer time was hauling direct back to a market for the same guy who treated me really well and I was spared most of the horrors of reefer work. Dave
Thanks for telling the truth.
You are absolutely correct.
On every road and streets in America. There are billboards plastered with Blood Sucking Lawyers threaten to sue the piss out of a Trucker for anyone and for any reason. I don't know why anyone want to get in a big rig nowadays. Drivers are so disrespected by everyone and all everyone who isn't involved in the transportation industry are only interested in what's in side the trailer..they want the goods but sure as hell not the Trucks that deliver them.
That guy is right on!!! And the government has a lot to do with it too
So well said! I was a million mile driver with no accidents and got out because of the low wages that NEVER went up and along with so many companies that also have their hand in your pocket taking your money or ripping you off for miles or docks. I can count on just a few fingers the companies i drove for that played it straight and true. Take a UAW or CAW member out of the factory and put him in a truck for 5 or 6 days a week away from home and see what wages the Union would be calling for, it would bankrupt most if not all of the trucking industry. It's a crap job with little thanks at the end and even less to show for your troubles. I loved the road and the people driving on it in the rigs and still miss it all but it was the crap outfits that ended it for me. I hated the factories but loved the money.
To many rules and regulations = less profit = cutting employee pay to compensate.
Amen.. these companies need to open their eyes before trucks sit more idle then they have been.
I'm sorry I disagree I never bring less than 1500 per week my friend. I'm the driver and my wife is the passenger we stay out for 3 months at a time and we go home with a ton of money.
No, you're home for 3 weeks at a time and go to your vacation spot 4 times a year.
1500 isn't much though if you start looking around
Well, $1,500 a week? I know for a fact you're not bringing home that much money as a solo company driver. The Math just isn't there! and numbers don't lie. you may want to elaborate on your comment.
Same gripe as a lot of other industries that claim there is a labor shortage. There's no shortage of potential drivers, there's just a shortage of guys who want to stay away from home for $30-40k a year.
I remember seeing trucks in 1995 that said "experienced drivers 42 cents a mile", and there's a lot of guys making something like that these days. And a lot of newer drivers who don't make that for quite a while.
David Weaver You are right... guys are figuring they don't care to work for chicken feed.
***** it's always nice to hear from bosses who don't treat their employees like adversaries.
Yes it is!
A Fifty Dollar bill says "you're not based out of New England"
42 cents a mile was chicken feed in 1995 as I see. Especially if you live in New England, forgetta bout it, you'll be eating cat food on that pay, LOL!
I go over the road for 31 day, and they only give me 6 day home time and the pay is trash... No medical insurance , no life insurance 000 % benefits..
Problem: electronic logs
Since the e-log more force to rest.
Not all people drives at same pace
When you drive at your own pace is safer
Now more trucks are force to stop for their 10
It creates a need for drivers
It may pay better now but when the shortage get level with the demand the pay will adjust for LESS money
I seen big companies in middle point of the run swap trailers in order to adjust to the rules of the e-log
That creates need for more drivers, less expierence more unsafe responsible drivers. More in a hurry to beat the clock
he is absolutely right on. I drove company truck for 8 years. lower 48. Midwest and east coast. then thought id be a hot shot and get my own truck. lasted a year but just couldn't make it. fuel costs and maintenance just ate me alive. gave it up entirely.
we the truckers need to create an union that way we will have the control of our job and no more abuse from the goberment and make those weight stationg and inspections money makers dessappear
+carlos valdes Bingo. Do as pilots have done, unionize.
+Desert Sky you got a industry of individuals that have pretty much FAILED at everything in life they never had a real check before they worked for they are content with the shitty pay and they wont unionize because they scared too because they cant manage money so they gotta pay a car note and all that crap so they cant afford to come together but thats the issue right there.if u roll heavy ur money should sustain if it isnt than THATS THE WHOLE POINT!!!! they so blinded they missing the point we doing this!!!
+carlos valdes I'm not a truck driver but I have a couple things to say that might or might not be helpful. There is the Teamsters Union that is suppose to represent truckers just like the UAW is for the Auto workers. There is a piece of American history I need to bring to the forefront. This involved a past president and a Union. Ronald Reagan and the Air Traffic Controllers. The controllers were on strike and Reagan forced them back to work. This act by a president really hurt the power all unions had even till today. Along with these so called "Right to work States" are trying to further the damage Reagan did to the unions. Union busting leaves no rights or decent wages for people period. If you truckers could get unionized so you can get an organized national strike. Then and only then these companies will see who butters their bread other then consumers. Without you men and women to deliver the goods, these companies have no legs to stand on. Truckers are who grease the wheels that this country runs on.
carlos valdes these jobs will be automated in 5 years...change ur profession
I Doubt that, and I extremely doubt that the law will even consider it within our lifetime IF said technology has a break through considering past accidents with trusting in automation. And even IF the stars align and that somehow gets done, all it takes is one dumbass in a 4 wheeler to set automation back into the back seats of the regs as the public knee jerks to fix the problem.
Everyday, I go out on the road to run errands or what not and I am passed on a daily basis by tractor/trailers. I would hate to think that everyone of the drivers I see is sad and upset about their profession. I have been considering going out on the road because in my case it may be some of the only employment I could get and a taking care of family is most important. I would just once like to find a video of someone that likes the career and might be able to show me some good in it. I may not have much of a choice in choosing whether I go on the road or not but I would like to know that there is some good in it also.
You're right OP, but nothing will change unless there's a drivers strike. I drove OTR for Schneider for a year '93 - 94 and put in over 100,000 miles. Six months solo and six team with my GF. Out of a class of 30 students, I was the only one still driving after three months. I think I made less than if I'd worked at McD's but it was an adventure at least, lol. All the drivers complained about the hours and pay back then and it seems they still do. Despite the high turn over rate, the companies keep going somehow.
dkeith45 Well I think the companies are starting to finally run out of drivers now, hence the shortage. Let's hope they increase the pay to the point where it is an upper middle class job the way it once was. Dave
I'm not a driver, but really enjoy this channel and your commentary.
Question... like you said, "The nation needs the trucks." and as you said, someone has got to drive them. How much longer will that be true do you think?
Autodriver cars are in use in the US and it may not be long until a truck driver's job is simply to be a warm body in the seat.
I would really appreciate your thoughts on this. Thanks for all the great info you provide!
Dennis
Glad you enjoy it.
Thank you for replying, but you did not respond to my question.
Very eloquently said, sir. I've been looking into a CDL and trucking to pay for school, and the more research I do, the more I see that there is no trucker shortage. There's just insanely high turnover. It seems like a conspiracy hidden in plain sight, they advertise great-looking numbers and promise to work with you, then push a bunch of charges, underpay, and abuse you. And when people leave to earn just as much with something that won't break their bodies or personal relationships, that seat has 10 fresh takers immediately.
Seriously considering paying for school with pretty much anything else.
The biggest problem is when they deregulated the industry. Now an oversupply of trucks, the companies can pick and choose who they want to haul the freight for the cheapest rate. Truck companies have to cut costs somewhere so they go to the most expensive point which is drivers. Like all other business that hire foreign people, they can get cheep labor for more bucks on the bottom line. Investors don't like to invest in a loosing business so companies bump up profits to attract more investors so everyone makes more money except drivers. Canada deregulated trucking in the 70's for awhile and found out quick how bad things could get, took 5 years to unscrew things back to normal where everyone including drivers could make a living wage.
this is so true. - what most people - people who dont drive trucks. what they dont know is , this county relies on trucks to move things around. without truckers, people would not have Food, Clothes, Electronics, Home, basically anything we use on this planet, gets moved by trucks including our mail. - These trucking companies better start treating truckers a lot better, or this country is gonna come to a grinding hault. they might get these new drivers who just got their license yesterday, but eventually those will leave too because of pay. the cost of earnings does not match the cost of living plain and simple. - Sooner or later we are gonna start seeing a ton of illegal drivers, things are gonna hit the fan really soon.
I love your videos man !!!!!
Kevin mel Glad you're liking the videos, Kevin. (Dave)
Truckers are so badly-paid because the haulage companies know (or think they know) that driving a truck is reward enough for many people. It's just the same with all forms of road transport. Market forces do not seem to extend to driver-salaries. But time will tell!
Yup! Dave
The major reason for the shortage is that trucking companies do not want to hire anyone without experience. I see job ads saying "verifiable at least 2 years tractor trailer experience. If they think that newbies cannot drive a 53' footer, than have them driver 40 ft shipping containers. Apparently going to trucking school and getting a Class 1 is not going to get you anywhere. On top of this is that people have to get a personal bank loan, line of credit or pay for it somehow by themselves. No students loans.
Trucking companies (especially the mega carriers) should all have training program where a trainer works with a student and shows the student how to drive a loaded truck in all conditions and how to back up into a loading dock etc.
Yep, I hired on with one company that told me that they had (otr) drivers getting $ .90/mile. Over the next four months I had two short runs in the lower 90s; most averaged $ .50 - .60. Then the runs slowly dropped to the .40s, then .30s. When they eventually gave me a run at $ .27/mile, I said goodbye. It was no longer worth being away from my family.
I agree, but to add to your point from the perspective of someone who's trying to get into trucking.. First of all the age limit is a huge restriction. Here in Canada you can legally get your AZ licence (CDL) at the age of 18. Not too bad... But companies will not hire you until you are 21 because if you are any younger (which I am) the insurance companies won't cover you to go across to the states, so that forces younger people to go local. Another reason is because of experience. I have been job hunting for about a week (I know not that long) but I have called probably around 20 companies that have all said they require experience, I've even tried local jobs and straight truck jobs, same thing. How am I going to get experience without getting a job? Doesn't make sense, and yes I do have training. And the typical stereotype that a trucker is a job for people who can't get a job elsewhere of course. Well this is not the case, I went to engineering school and very well could have finished and got a job as an engineer, but I hated it. I've wanted to be a trucker my whole life so now here I am. It just really sucks for the younger guys that want to get into trucking. But of all things I think the age limit is the biggest factor. Typically kids aren't going to want to wait 5 years after highschool so that they can get a job. It's just not going to happen.
I personally think 18 is too young, but that is to change in the US... to get more drivers re: the driver shortage. Yes, it's not encouraging for the new drivers, but driving a truck is a gigantic responsibility that should not be taken lightly. With age, comes (hopefully) maturity, so I think with a few more years under their belt, new drivers will make better drivers. Just a few thoughts.
I can agree on that as well, but my main point is that most kids are likely to find a career doing something else rather then trucking because of the long wait to get into it.
Big companies cut rates . Lower pay for drivers. They just add more trucks . They are killing the industry
This guy is right on the money.
1st step is to get the general public to start giving us more respect like when we put our turn signal on they don't speed up but rather slow down to let us in.
Next step is to create boundaries that regulate how low$$ you can hire someone to haul loads.
Nobody wants to be gone all week for small paychecks and no respect from the General Public or the division of Transportation.
They need to go back to the drawing board and fix this stupid logging system.
Driver since 1980
Agreed! Dave
I decided to get my cdl-a 3 years ago because trucking is in the family. It took 6 months of classes and hands on training to get it. First job i got only paid $14 an hour, witch at the time was the most i ever made. Granted its high at all by truckers standards. I then went on to work at JB Hunt. Thinking i could make more doing intermodel. Nope, wrong. Starting to regret getting my cdl. And dont get me started on the 4 wheelers i have to deal with.
thanks im making an info graphic on this. been trying to think of ways to do it though lol :)
I have done a lot of oilfield work, and yeah, it is good money wise. I've had my class 1 license for over 30 years and usually did the more local thing, but venturing occasionally to some longer type hauls. I still have not quite figured out all the log book rules. One thing that I have always dreamed that I would some day want to do, is the OTR long haul. It's always been kind of dream for me. So after almost 5 years off, I am going to give it a go. It is not going to be about the money for me, but one thing that I can totally see that is definitely going to take the fun out of it for me, is the silly way they have the hours of service laws all set up. I have been doing a lot of research recently about the hours of service laws and I can already see how the way these laws are set up, and the complicity, are going to endanger me and everyone else, more than it will help. I can also see how these silly laws are going to cost me money, but not because of the lack of hours, but more lack of the proper use of the hours I do have to work with. How the heck are you supposed to work around load times, with silly hours of service laws the way they are. I can totally see myself staring at the ceiling of my bunk for 10 hours not legally allowed to move when I should have been driving. If I could get 4 hours sleep here, and 3 there, and 4 more here, that would allow me to sleep when I am actually in sleep mode. I honestly do not see how the hours of service system is making anyone safe the way it is.
I have to agree with you on the hours of service thing. It sure makes life difficult when it doesn't need to be. I loved long haul work the most and found it easy to work with the hours of service as long as I was on the road. But yes, the loading and unloading times could screw you up. I pretty much had to resign myself to the fact that a loading day was pretty much a day lost for hours. That's alot of the reason I believe we should be paid by the hour when loading or unloading because being paid by the mile on those days was a loser. Dave
We have to go back to railroads and limit trucking to area delivery only. It worked very well in the past
Yep truckers get paid shit and that's why I got out of it years ago.
Never looked back.