You believe what the ATA tells you? The ATA has an agenda to put illegal aliens behind their wheels so they constantly spout off about the driver "shortage".

If there were a true shortage, you'd see freight piling up on the docks, produce rotting in warehouses, stuff not getting delivered, etc.

Nope. The more you make, the more vacation time you have vested, the more they want to get rid of you and get a guy to do your job for .26 cpm. There's a reason so many trucking companies were unionized back in the day.

Oh really? Name them.

Mine doesn't. Snowman's doesn't. Belpre's doesn't.

Yeah, that's great advice. Get stuck sitting around waiting on loads, doing short-hauls, not getting home...and suck up the BS just to hone your skills. LOL there's a big difference between paying your dues and playing the fool.

 

Nope. The biggest reason most trucking companies were union was because most trucker made turn around routes. You didn't have go anywhere routes like you do today.

As an example. One of the better union runs was from Kansas City to Rawlins, WY. by P.I.E. which closed their door years ago. They used a three man team and drove non stop. Spent the next day, or days, in a bunk house and then made the return run. Upon returning they went to the bottom of the driver board and waited for next run. Depending on the needs of the company you might get to the top of the board in a couple of days or you might not get another run for two week. All that time was unpaid both at Rawlins and Kansas City. Also you paid for all your meals while you were away from home. All that for a income of around $25k if you had a good year.

I might also add it took about 10 years to get a regular route. Before that you were on the extra board. You got a run when the company needed a extra man. However, you had to be available subject to a two hour call time.

Secondly, there are very few trucking companies that were operation back in the day. I wonder why?

kc0iv

 

Hence, the unfortunate birth of irregular route, hobo style, coolie carrier OTR trucking.

We are fortunately watching the demise of that circus.

Don't know what that has to do with unions KC0IV, but as long as it hastens the end of irregular-route, hobo style coolier carrier OTR trucking, I'm all for it.

73

 

I think if GMAN were to compare those employees to his own business relationships, he might sing a different tune. When an O/O accepts a load, he does so based upon certain criteria, most of which have to do with profit. If the load has some unusual circumstances about it, then the O/O will adjust the rate accordingly. Running OTR as a company driver should be no different. Being forced to spend weeks (even months) away from home should be considered an "unusual circumstance", and should require a higher rate of pay than a local or regional driver who gets home more often. But it doesn't, and the OTR carriers know they don't have to make it so. The reason they can get away with this is for one reason, and one reason only:

The drivers don't know any better, and the OTR carriers take advantage of it. It's really not all that different from the lease purchase scams, only in one scenario they own you because you are renting a job, and in the other scenario they own you because you think that's the way it has to be.

Unfortunately, an OTR driver's worst enemy is himself, and the coolie carriers laugh all the way to the bank knowing it.

I'm sure the OTR carriers love those phrases (It's a lifestyle, it's what you make of it, etc etc etc), because it helps them pull the crap they do when their employees develop that type of attitude.

 

Belpre...I'm still not getting this here....

Why and how do you see OTR driving dissappearing? I just don't get it. There are companies going under, but there are others, like MINE who are expanding in the current market.

How else are they gonna do it? Send everything LTL? :P Dedicated runs for EVERY business? :roll: Every business having it's own FLEET? :?

How's it gonna work, oh all-knowing oracle? :twisted:

 

Here in Ohio I think they will be an abundance of people willing to become truckers. It is estimated that 250,000 people lost jobs in manufacturing from 2000-2005.

General Motors has been shutting down plants about every other year here in Ohio and just announced it will be shutting down its SUV plant in Dayton in 2010, that will affect about 5,000 people directly but will indirectly impact several thousand more.

THERE WILL BE NO MORE GM PLANTS IN THIS PART OF OHIO AFTER 2010 :sad:

I was a machinist making $35,000 a year ( for 5 years) till I was laid off in 2004.

In 2005 I had the great oppurtunity to work at Walmart, Target and Lowes for a whopping $190.00 a week and decided to try OTR. I did OTR for 15 months with Schneider/Walmart then found a local company and i am home daily :lol:

OTR was no picnic but kept the bills paid and sure beat retail but I have decided to go to school online while I drive locally.

 

Rail is expanding at a dramatic pace. Coolie carrier companies like JB Hunt and Schneider are moving a HUGE portion of their long haul freight via rail now. They are even expanding the size of many tunnels to accomodate these intermodal cars.

OTR will never entirely disappear, but in today's market it doesn't have as much of an impact.

 

Oh, I agree, the industry will have to change with the times, and that's to be expected. I heard one major railroad company is investing over 5 billion dollars into expanding it's network and improving tunnels, as you just mentioned. Much of the long haul, coast to coast stuff IS moving to rail...

But there is so much a train just can't do, and never will be able to do. Like it or not, OTR driving will NEVER disappear; I don't even think it'll get a whole lot smaller than it is right now.

Which is fine, as it serves as a great way to get into the industry, and there are those of us who really enjoy the traveling.

May not be your cup o' tea, but that doesn't mean that there aren't people who enjoy it...

 

The funny thing is, those guys running the coolie carriers' trailers on rail are getting paid a heck of a lot better than the guys running those same trailers on the road.

The rail companies know that it's a difficult profession, and they pay better rates to get better employees. If rail companies paid lousy rates, they'd get lousy employees too. But they know they cannot afford to do put a multi-million dollar piece of equipment with millions of dollars of freight into the hands of an unqualified person. Perhaps if the OTR carriers would reach this same conclusion, we would see a change.

 

they wouldn't do that rev, it would be the INTELLIGENT thing to do!