True, true, and I'm not in a desperate position here. I'm trying this to see how it all goes over time, and I'm still here. It's working out so far, but it's still not as good of a deal as I used to have as the top man on the totem pole with a good company. I used to think my deal wasn't so good, and this whole thing has been a real reality check for me. I make a lot more now, but if you factor in what my old employer used to pay in taxes, it's only about $80 more a week now for another 20-30 hours, and much more reponsibility. (I used to haul all loads out of the repair shop, and my old boss/mechanic/dispatcher/fleet manager used to look my truck over with a fine toothed comb at least five times a week. I really miss the extra eyeballs.)

(I got laid off, if that story hasn't travelled to the four corners of the world by now. Else I would still be where I used to be, and would have stayed there forever and a day.)
That much is definitely true, and I'm trying to maximize the opportunity in that. (Though I will have to pay more taxes on the money I earn with my tax money. They get you coming and going, don't they?)

 

You may not need to pay more taxes, Silvan. There are a lot of ways to shelter money, such as a Roth IRA, real estate investments, government bonds, T-Bills, etc.,

 

I'd wait a bit and see how this HOS Garbage shakes out first

 

Gman,
I'm wondering if there is any way at all to have someone under you in any way in CA and not pay his workers compensation especially, and God knows what else. You say that it is the irs, but you have to remember how oppresive CA is and how they can write laws. I would like input on this in case anybody has some facts.

 

You are talking about something other than income taxes and Social Security Tax. If you pay workers comp on a driver they will likely be considered an employee. Most states don't require a company to have workers comp unless they have a certain number of employee's. In my state it is 5 employees. Some states may not require it until you have at least 8 employees. I believe North Carolina forces a company to have it with only one employee. I am not sure about California. I know they have been making some changes the last couple of years or so. You may want to check with them or OOIDA to see what they require. You can buy a APP or OPP policy rather than having workers comp in some states, which is basically the same thing, but much less expensive. I usually get one for my drivers through OOIDA for about $140/month. If you 1099 them, you will probably want them to reimburse you for that cost. It will pay the driver about $400 or $500/week, depending on the policy. In addition, it will take care of any hospital or doctors expenses if the driver is injured on the job. It is essentially an accident policy. I had a driver a couple of years ago who slipped and fell from my trailer the first day he started with me. Fortunately, I had this policy on him and they took care of all of the doctor and other expenses. It gives both you and the driver some protection. Workers comp is for employees. If a driver isn't an employee, then he would not be under workers comp. In any case, the APP or OPP policy is a good way to go for both the driver and carrier.

 

Yeah, I need to get with an accountant, but it costs me $200 to take time off during normal business hours. Blah.

Anyway, I just want to make clear that I'm not accusing anybody here of ripping anyone off, or being bad to work for, or whatever, and not trying to discourage anyone from considering driving for an O/O. I'm making broad statements about a specific situation that isn't necessarily representative of the whole spectrum of possibilities here.

I'm just bitter right now. I hate change, and I hate unpredictability. I stayed at my first job out of school until the day they cut me loose, and I probably never would have driven for anyone else. I've been turning down jobs for years, including the one I have now. I don't want to be here, but I can't go back, because my home is full of Warren trucks now. Bastards.

I'll try to stay out of this now, because I'm not helping the original poster figure out what to do about a second truck.

 

GMAN you are right NC make ya have it with only one employee.

tootie