Just sayin', in case some enterprising young reader is looking for a direction to try.
Still one of my retirement dreams. As long as I don’t need the money, trucking can be a lot of fun.
At first glance I thought maybe this was a Windows 8 thread.
How about employer PAID full training (Heaven forbid) for complete training and assistance in getting the CDL... to become qualified... All talk and no action as I see it... Getting a CDL when you have little money from being out of work is not a piece of cake... This total baloney public consumption - PR BS piece by EMPLOYERS is old hat... I just want to SPIT everytime I hear this clap trap... There are a zillion people out here (16 Million unemployed) who would LOVE an employer to pay for trainng - BUT NOT ... These cheapskate employers just want to complain and never recognize the truth of the matter...
I just love these threads. The romance of the open road and all that. LOL
Apparently most people in Detroit can’t drive. Isn’t that ironic? /s
Don’t worry, illegal aliens will fill the void, courtesy of the democratic party and RINOs.
SFL
I’ve talked to a few guys who say the industry has been ruined by the big players. They’ve bought up a lot of the competition then either muscled out or got regulations that shut down a lot of smaller players.
Just laying the groundwork for mexican truckers driving the trucks Americans don’t want to drive
I might as well go ahead and give this a try. Lord knows my degree hasn’t paid off.
I owned my own truck and had my own authority. The regs have pretty much taken the money out of it and if you drive for one of the big companies forget about the “freedom” or the “good money”. Sold my truck back in ’06 and wouldn’t consider ever doing it again because of the government controls.
Long haul trucking is a very marginally profitable business (for the companies).
They have been dying for drivers for some time.
Finding qualified (or even minimally qualified) people without DUIs is very difficult. Yep, not having a DUI on your record is now a job skill.
My wife works for a small long haul company. The per mile pay for hauling is awful. Government regs are beyond crushing.
Do you know if they send a truck through several states, they have to report the mileage traveled in each state, to each state, and pay fuel taxes based on that mileage. Don’t have to have bought any fuel in any of the states they drove in.
Shortages of drivers, pilots, physicians, engineers, nurses, child care providers, and in so many other areas, plus a massive shortage of jobs? It’s amazing how effectively Obama has delivered on the “change” he promised.
I operate a trucking business and have a better insight into this matter than nearly anyone. There is not a shortage of capable and skilled drivers - not by any stretch of the imagination. What there is a shortage of is decent paying goods to transport. Rates are established by federally filed tariffs, and it is nearly impossible to earn a living by driving anymore. We transport freight, intermodal, and household goods. All of these commodities have horid rates right now.
Competition has the largest carriers driving rates down to nearly break-even points and in some cases below cost. It is simply a matter of maintaining cash flow with no profitability for them - they can hold out for a while doing it. Those of us who have significant overhead and ever increasing regulatory compliance costs are in a tough position - how can we pay the drivers any more when we are losing money on the loads?
I talk to hundreds of drivers a month. Most want to drive and love doing so - they just can’t afford to do so any longer and are leaving to seek other opportunities. So, what does the FMCSA and federal gov’t do? They allow foreign drivers into the nation to continue artificially depressing the rates. I’m seeing more and more Eastern European and Mexican drivers, almost as many as Americans these days. They are exacerbating the true root of the problem.
Mohammed Khan????
Do they teach how to haul incendiary devices into metropolitan areas???
Khan??? KAHN!!!!
The only truth I see is that Obama and its government regulations are killing this industry as it is All industries that are left in the U.S.A.. Believe me if it sounds too good to be true it is and if it sounds good at all it's not in THIS economy. Just search Google etc. Believe me there are a lot of traps out there and scams. There is no opportunity in America anymore , mostly scams. Just trying to help any one that may be taken in by this article or some of the posts on here.
Here are some reviews that show this trucking company is a complete scam that will put you in severe debt:
http://cr-england.pissedconsumer.com/cr-england-is-a-f-king-scam-20121109357720.html
Part of the problem is insurance companies.
They want drivers with 3-5 years of squeaky clean driving records.
When you drive professionally, and drive more miles in 1 year than most people drive in a life time.. your bound to catch a ticket once in 3-5 years.
There is a national database kept of all your interactions with the law, weigh stations and the outcome of all inspections.
Some companies are checking credit reports and passing on people they think are a risk (like the out of work guy who went through truck driving school while passing on some bill payments)
basically, few existing drivers can continue to pass the anal probe.
I was a truck driver for three years in the mid 90s. Local, not long haul. Regulations and constant inspection stops got so bad, I felt like I worked for the government without the benefits.