Posted by
Angelique on
27 April 2010, 3:15 am
My name is Angelique and I’m from the Netherlands. Over here we have a big problem because our drivers are paid far more than drivers from Eastern Europe and it’s hard to keep a job. The international jobs are going to the lower paid drivers in Eastern Europe where the cost of living is much lower.
Wow, it’s hard to believe, but I’ve been at my current employer for 1 year as of today. I began Truck Driving School in January of 2009, completed that in February of 2009, and was hired on in March of 2009. This post will simply serve as some observations that I’ve made as my first year of a truck driver.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, being a truck driver, dealing with the boss, driver responsibilities, First year on the road, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, truck driving stories
In the past, truckers were known as “Knights of the Road”. Those days are long forgotten, though, and through time the truckers and their rigs have lost their knightly reputation. Truckers are no longer depicted in a positive light and the situation looks like it may be getting worse for a number of reasons, including our own (lack of) pride and personal discipline, attitude, driving skills, and factors outside of our control including the media, more dangers on the highway, and recent waves of terrorism. Is there anything we can do to improve our reputations? Oh indeed there is plenty we can do.
I decided to hypothetically put two people seeking professional careers, one a prospective college student, the other a truck driving school candidate, up against each other in a comparison of job training, annual salary, debt accumulation, and investment capability throughout their careers. The results are quite interesting.
Truck driving has always been a great career for those of us who were cut out for the lifestyle. If you’re not the right person for the job, you’re really not going to like it much and you’re not going to last long. But if you feel like truck driving might be the right career for you, the outlook for the industry looks to be very solid for many years to come.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, The Economy and Politics.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, CDL training, getting your CDL, new drivers in a slow economy, truck driver training
Posted by
Rhonda on
11 January 2010, 5:27 am
If you are the type of driver that thinks about the cost of doing business for your employer or the trucking industry in general, you are in the minority. If you’re not thinking about it, you should be – it has a major effect on your paycheck.
Posted by
Rhonda on
28 December 2009, 1:31 pm
Once you enter trucking, there is a lot that you get to experience. So many “interesting” things come your way. Many things you don’t give much thought to until it is brought to your attention thru company training, newsletters put out by employers, the trucking magazines, and over the Qualcomm – the truck’s messaging computer.
Posted by
Rhonda on
30 November 2009, 6:36 am
October 27 2009 is a special day for me because it was October 27 1976 when I entered the transportation world. My only experience in this world was riding the school bus for all the years in school. What an amazing journey it’s been.
Filed under Becoming A Truck Driver, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Great Stories, Women In Trucking.
Tagged becoming a bus driver, Becoming A Truck Driver, bus driving stories, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking
Last week was National Truck Driver Appreciation Week. It certainly was nice to feel appreciated for a week. The list of sacrifices that drivers make can go on and on for days. Most of the sacrifices can’t be explained in words, they simply have to be experienced to truly be understood.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, driver responsibilities, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driver appreciation week, truck driving lifestyle
Posted by
Rhonda on
1 November 2009, 6:44 am
Sometimes you’re put in a position as a driver where you just can’t win. One day I was leaving the shipper with a heavy load and was pulled over to see if my weight was legal. Problem was, I never got a chance to weight it myself – they nailed me on the way to the scale. What is a driver supposed to do?
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Great Stories, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, being a truck driver, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, Women In Trucking
The number of Federal Rules and Regulations for truck drivers and trucking companies has continuously increased over the years, along with stricter enforcement both on and off the highways. A recent announcement by the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration shows that there will be even greater scrutiny just around the corner.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, truck driving jobs, truck driving lifestyle
Recently I heard a story of a truck driving student who was on the road with a trainer and discovered that the trainer was smoking pot in the truck while the student was driving. How did the student handle this? Did it backfire on him? There are some things that everyone needs to understand about the realities of life in the trucking industry.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Stories of the Road.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, dealing with the boss, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, On The Road In Training, Stories of the Road, truck driver training, truck driving lifestyle
Finances on the road can be tough when first getting started, but hopefully this will provide you with a little insight on how to stay out of trouble.
Posted by
Rhonda on
8 October 2009, 5:21 am
Let me start out by saying I entered trucking in 2001 because I needed a job. A job that paid a livable wage. So I entered as a warm body that companies put in the drivers seat. My pleas for an office duty/inside job were not being heard. At first this new driving thing was not too bad, but soon the newness and “fun” wears off.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Women In Trucking.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, dealing with the boss, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking
Wow, I can’t believe it’s been 6 months already. I’ve completed training, and have been on my own now for a couple months. So, I thought I’d share a few of my initial impressions of my early truck driving career, having experienced it for 6 months now.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, First Solo Months On The Road, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, dealing with the boss, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, truck driving stories