Gas prices over the last 10 years. Notice the SPIKE under GWB, and the LEVEL under Obama...
Posted on 08/23/2014 7:24:59 AM PDT by upbeat5
Truck driver Anthony Plummer remembers when he was in the middle of the country on a long-haul delivery when he learned his daughter was sick in the hospital.
“I was told to get back [home] as soon as possible. But there are a lot of rules that limit how much I can drive, so I told them I would get back as soon as I could.” It was after this incident that Plummer decided to make a career shift to become a regional truck driver. “It blew my mind if something were to happen and if I was way across the country. Every now and then I still go out there to long run because she is doing better, but it’s rare.”
Plummer isn’t alone with his career move as the trucking industry suffers a shortage of drivers across the board, especially among long-haulers. According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the industry is about 30,000 short of qualified drivers. Over the next 10 years, that number is set to rise to 200,000.
The industry, which has an average 115-120% annual turnover rate, according to Brian Fielkow, CEO of Jetco Delivery, a logistics company specializing in regional trucking, also has an aging problem. Bob Costello, chief economist at the ATA, says the average age in the for-hire truckload market is about 49, and for less-than-truckload drivers (LTL) and private carriers the average is about 55.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxbusiness.com ...
There is no "shortage". There is never a "shortage". There is only "we are not getting many takers for the pay we are offering, and we don't want to offer more".
The solution to ANY company which needs more of X, is to offer more money. They will get people applying then.
You are correct about specializing.
I work in the oil fields as a driver / operator. The pay is so much better than OTR or regional and you can work more hours than OTR and get OT pay. If you have to work away from home base for more than a day you get a motel to sleep in plus perdiem.
You have to get used to short bursts of hard work and then hours of idle time,take a nap get paid for it.
That’s exactly it, like the one Freeper was saying why would he do long distance hauls when he can make 80% more doing regional? I mean look at that percentage, that’s huge, almost double. It seems to me is they are pulling what they did with taxis in New York city where I use to live, they refused to give pay raises then got rid of the 50/50 system where the drivers would split the days take 50/50 with the garage and instead made the drivers pay a set lease rate of $100, so if the days take was $120 the garage would get their $100 no matter what and the driver got squat, so what happened? All the native New Yorkers quit and they replaced them with illegals and 3rd worlders willing to work 12 hours for that $20 bucks. People in this country don’t realize how much illegals just absolutely decimate the job market. Construction is another that’s been decimated, all the time I see Mexicans doing construction and road work and the unions out protesting by the site, some real evil crap going on, and what gets me is Democrats keep pushing this myth that they are for “the working class” when nobody screws over the working class more than them.
Essentially the Democrats have redefined the “Working Class” to be minorities and foreigners.
Exactly, they are using them basically as imported votes and they bribe them with the jobs of US citizens. Any Republican that supports amnesty is a traitor to this nation just as much as any democrat. They are selling out the livelihood of their constituents and the people are too stupid to realize it.
I never stay beside a truck, the other idiot drivers do. I zoom past because I know you can’t see me well and I don’t want you to pull out into me. But on 70 trucks are supposed to do 65 and cars can go faster. So stay at your speed. Oh the other thing that frosts me is that the idiots just sit out there in the left lane instead of passing and getting back in the right lane. And another thing, you are getting paid to be there, I am not. So I get the right of way if you ask me.
Gas prices over the last 10 years. Notice the SPIKE under GWB, and the LEVEL under Obama...
Autonomous vehicles are going to end the trucking industry, I’m afraid.
they’ve gone galt.
I’m going to become a long haul freight driver...just as soon as mule teams come back into vogue. I am already trained.
Ok, where is this coming from that we are underpaid? Overall we are paid quite well. Often our hours suck, but the paychecks are very good with most companies. Most companies are trying to steal drivers from the other companies. They HAVE to pay well! $70 - 90k is not uncommon.
True, there are companies that live for “newby” drivers, they don’t worry about turnover and thus can pay poorly and treat their drivers poorly. These are basically the “training” companies, the ones that hire people right out of school and over the course of a year pay for the schooling costs which locks the drivers in for that year. Actually this is not a bad deal; and if you stay for longer than the year they may start treating you better.
The “other” OTR companies (often the smaller ones) try to keep their drivers happy and try to keep them on. Turnover is still terrible as most drivers don’t last a year. But those that do feel that particular company fits them often retire there. Once a driver puts in 5 yrs with a company he is usually a lifer. This applies to LTL also.
As far as “adventure” adventure? No, this is not “Smoky and the Bandit”, it is just driving for many hours and watching out for the idiots in the 4 wheelers that don’t know how to drive. And if you are OTR than trying to find some company in an area you have never been in before.
Ok, maybe you might get some “adventure” if you get sent to East Chicago or some areas in the NE. I’d prefer to avoid those “adventures”.
One thing to avoid is buying your own rig; be a company driver that way if you take time off work you won’t be LOSING money. You won’t have that big truck payment to make every month. Plus you won’t have to pay for repairs, fuel, tires, etc.
It is not a horrible way to make a living, and would be ideal for a 21 yr old who wants to just run around the country, not have any rent payments, stash money away and after 10 yrs or so buy a house for cash.
At 60, if you just want to run around the country and get paid for it, not a bad deal ether. Just don’t go into it with unrealistic ideas.
Thanks for the insight.
Under W, over 8 years, it rose from about 1.50 to 2.50 per gallon. Under BO, over 5 years, it rose from 2.50 to near 4.00...
I always believed that after retiring that over the road trucking would be a viable option just to keep me busy for ten or so years.
This coming March 2015 I will only renew my CA. cl 3 and drop my motorcycle 1 and commercial licenses.
I sold my GL1800 for cheap and no longer want to drive trucks.
My dream is gone.
Look at the chart in post #87.
Ten years sounds about right, though self-driving trucks could be up and running over shorter distances - within the same city or state - in half that time.
You’d think that would not solve the shortage of long haul drivers but if the supply of short-hop jobs dries up, people will take whatever they can get (briefly, until that is gone too).
I noticed the drop in 2008 when GW said he was opening offshore and going drill in spite of the democrat defiance.
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