Truck drivers have a number of requirements that the general public typically does not know about.
Random drug testing, Haz Mat testing, a physical exam every two years requiring vision tests and drug screening (in addition to the random potential testing,) documentation of hours worked in a certified log book on or off 24/7 365 days a year. Truck driver CDL licenses require also more strict standards as in alcohol testing.
Additionally, it cost a lot more money to obtain a license. Drivers are restricted in how many hours they can work in a given time period. That limitation is usually 60 hours in a 7 day period or 70 hours over 8 days which works out the same using the Governmets new truck driving math..
If you find yourself 100 miles from home but have reached your limit for hours then you get to stay put for whatever amount of time it requires to pick up the 8 hours necessary to start driving again. That does wonders for family life in many cases.
Personally, I find that teachers today are a sorry lot despite the positive marks that they are constantly giving themselves whenever the opportunity arises. Taxpayer funded pensions and earlier retirement are only some of the privileges that teachers are provided with.
Teachers are a dime a dozen and there are few job openings these days, but a long anticipated shortage of qualified truck drivers who maintain the supply chain in this country is at hand.
I am not a truck driver myself but I am familar with the industry and I do maintain a CDL for myself just in case some day I need to get behind the wheel.
Are you really trying to compare the cost of getting a class one license to the cost of 5 or 6 years of college? WOW!!!!
I actually have respect for truck drivers but the requirements to legally get behind the wheel of a big rig do not compare to the requirement to be a full time classroom teacher. The years of training are not comparable, the breadth and width of tested knowledge is not comparable, the cost is not comparable. That was my original post and I stand by those provable facts completely. One last true fact is that those drivers all have the ability to chose another career field, to set a different career goal so they can work near their homes. I'm well aware that it may take a significant investment to achieve that goal. Been there, done that. It is all part of the personal choices we make that we alone are responsible for.