Trucker Rates

[Zee09]

I was behind a semi this morning and they had an advert on the back of the rig saying they are hiring.
60 cents a mile. Is that the going rate for drivers??????
Money is money but I thought about my yearly blasts to Florida.
900 miles straight and honestly I'm not interested in a truck job. Not that I even considered it but is that pay rate the norm
for long distance?

 

[supton]

60c/m but is it for only loaded miles? I think I've read of complaints about some companies not paying for unloaded miles.

I wonder how electronic logging has changed things--can people still drive more than the legal number of hours? If not, has that changed pay any?

 

[Chris142]

Around there. But you only get paid to drive. No pay sitting 3 days waiting to load. Los Angelas traffic can take hours to go a few miles. No pay to sit broken down or with a flat.

Also companies often pay as if you drive a straight line.it may be 2000 miles on a hwy but 2200 actual due to curves and detours.

You have to live out of that truck. Truckstop prices on things are priced sky high. Etc

 

[Chris142]

60c/m but is it for only loaded miles? I think I've read of complaints about some companies not paying for unloaded miles.

I wonder how electronic logging has changed things--can people still drive more than the legal number of hours? If not, has that changed pay any?

the new electronic logs and hours of service are hated. Many guys liked to drive 4-5 hrs then take a break. The new hours wont allow that. Force guys to drive 11 straight.

 

[OppositeLocK]

Around there. But you only get paid to drive. No pay sitting 3 days waiting to load. Los Angelas traffic can take hours to go a few miles. No pay to sit broken down or with a flat.

Also companies often pay as if you drive a straight line.it may be 2000 miles on a hwy but 2200 actual due to curves and detours.

You have to live out of that truck. Truckstop prices on things are priced sky high. Etc

Yup. These guys have a saying, "if the wheels aren't turning, we're not earning".

 

[skyactiv]

As a UPS semi mechanic, I talk to UPS semi drivers. They speak of other trucking they have worked for.
The semi drivers at my center are hourly, not mileage. They make $38.53 and hour. I make the same wage under contract. I pay about 2 hours union dues per month, but I have free health insurance and I imagine my dues are cheaper than what people have taken out of their check for health insurance. I worked 52 hours a week the past 2 weeks.

Intermodal/rail has largely eliminated most of the long hauls. Few loads of import goods and even fruits and vegetables from California are trucked from the west coast clear over to the east coast.

From what I've heard, most mileage based pay drivers are paid by a Rand Mcnallys household movers guide based on city to city. And most companies pay for each stop in which you load and unload except for the first and last stop of the work week. So you might get $20 for every stop, but it doesn't do you much good if the warehouse takes 4 hours to get you unloaded.
And the small trucking companies are not the ones you want to work for. They don't have the network of trailers, so you spend more
time waiting to be unloaded and loaded while larger companies have more trailers per truck and do drop & hooks to keep the drivers rolling.

You can make good money as a truck driver with the right company. Being an over the road driver is not an easy occupation and you sacrifice your life for it.

 

[97prizm]

A friend of mine got his cdl a while back then upgraded to a full 18 wheeler. He was hauling housing materials for construction. He was making 70k plus a year but was getting burned out due to the hours.

 

[MrHorspwer]

A great podcast that outlines how those "We pay 60 cents a mile" trucking companies recruit and operate (and it's usually not in the driver's favor):

https://www.npr.org/2020/08/10/901110994/big-rigged

 

[JTK]

That's probably the hardest way to make a living as a truck driver.

HAZMAT is where it's at. The drivers out of my plant essentially work shift work given our products are delivered around the clock, but I don't think any of them make much less than $100k/year.

 

[Dave Hess]

Zip code to zip code cheats drivers out of miles driven and pay.

Yes, HAZMAT pays well. Some long haul over the road truckers barely make it month to month, others can do good if their rig is reliable , gets decent fuel economy and they find good paying loads on the load boards.

OTR trucks ‘see‘ the economy change before its even reported on the news of a slow down.

.


skyactiv,

How many years does it take to get to $38.53 an hour ?

 

[dlundblad]

Truck driving is a career that I’ve often thought about, but I like being home too. Constantly being away from home, having to use nasty restrooms all the time, eat fast food. I could do it and highly respect those who do.

 

[Dave Hess]

A great podcast that outlines how those "We pay 60 cents a mile" trucking companies recruit and operate (and it's usually not in the driver's favor):

https://www.npr.org/2020/08/10/901110994/big-rigged

Just listened to this podcast. Every trucking company is trying to undercut the next trucking company.

I understand why trucking companies want new drivers with zero experience so they can take advantage of them. Kimberly was just trying to feed her 3 kids and working 70 hours per week for less than minimum wage. ☹

 

[Deplorable]

I drove trucks for 40 years. I had Haz mat, tanker and doubles/triples endorsement on my CDL. The main reason companies are having trouble getting drivers is all of the requirements to obtain and keep a CDL. I retired at 62 in 2018 with 4+ million miles safe driving without a moving violation. I had to get a physical and a stress test every year, be fingerprinted every 4 years and pay $95.00 every 4 years for CDL and tests. Truck drivers are treated worse than convicted felons by law enforcement. I made very good money with excellent benefits but enough of the BS for me.

 

[PandaBear]

How are all the e-commerce local delivery vs their long haul (Amazon for example), and how how do they compare to say, Walmart, UPS, USPS, etc?

I am starting to think that the bigger concern for those in the industry today is the threat of driver-less "trailer", following a real driver up front. If 2 semi driver take turn leading with 8 in between, they can literally reduce the driver demand by 80% (the remaining 20% of them may make 50% more due to higher experience requirement).

 

[sloinker]

Autonomous trucks will make drivers obsolete in the next decade or two.

 

[JTK]

Autonomous trucks will make drivers obsolete in the next decade or two.

In freight applications it's possible. In hazmat tanker truck applications where the driver also delivers the product and all the hazards associated with that, we're a long way off.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

$.60 a mile? My dad was making that 11 years ago when he retired.

It's a hard way to make money. Not sure I could do it.

Terrible food. Sedimentary lifestyle. Not good.

 

[Chris142]

Zip code to zip code cheats drivers out of miles driven and pay.

Yes, HAZMAT pays well. Some long haul over the road truckers barely make it month to month, others can do good if their rig is reliable , gets decent fuel economy and they find good paying loads on the load boards.

OTR trucks ‘see‘ the economy change before its even reported on the news of a slow down.

.


skyactiv,

How many years does it take to get to $38.53 an hour ?

20 years ago I applied @UPS. I wanted to get into the 18 wheeler. They drive a few hours. Meet another truck,swap trailers and go home. I understand that where you live determines how fast you move up the ladder..

Here it is decades! During the interview they told me that I would be throwing boxes part time for 10 years,then go full time for another 5 or so.

Then get on the list for the package car job etc. I would have been in my 70's by the time I got into an 18 wheeler.

 

[Snagglefoot]

To me, trucking has always attracted people who don’t want to deal with the constant multi-tasking involved with working with a lot of people. If they recognize they are the type, it’s a great match that can’t be beat. That dominates all issues regarding earnings.

Also I have a lot of respect for truckers, with the incredible responsibility for safety on the highway. In the office, people don’t usually get killed by a lapse of attention.
As for pay, the upside doesn’t look very good as there is always a stream of people who need work and the current movement of recruiting people new to the country.

Reminds me of a story I saw about early coal miners. The supervisor asked one of the older workers why he liked shovelling coal so much, one of the entry level jobs. He replied that If you have a job that you like, it is heaven, if not it is hell. The supervisor just stood their thinking, with nothing to say. His life was hell.

 

[Zee09]

I guess the trains put a hit on trucking too.
See tons of trailers on the trains daily