Calculating Hourly Rate

How big of a flux can it be Rhythm?

Tom, take what you'd expect from most 'normal' careers and throw it out the window. There's a reason why they say trucking is a lifestyle, especially in the truckload sector. I can appreciate your background, but trying to force .cpm into an hourly rate will only frustrate you. Unless you're comparing trucking gigs that actually do pay by the hour, it's better to keep in mind what these drivers are sharing and to think in terms of miles, averaged out by the week or the month. I think in monthly terms. There is flux in trucking that you'll have to account for when budgeting and planning.

Your right 6 string. Do you take a guitar on the road? Been trying to decide if I should take one once I get my own ride!

I agree wholeheartedly with everyone above - you'll drive yourself insane if you try to look at OTR or regional driving from an hourly pay perspective. I used to set weekly mileage goals but you're going to have slow weeks at times so I'd also set monthly goals to shoot for. I used to simply look at the entire body of work and decide if it was worth it or not. I'd get finished with a 12,000 mile month, I'd make $4,000 or so for my efforts, and I'd decide if that seemed worth it or not. To me it was worth it because I loved the travelling lifestyle. I agree that drivers deserve to be paid more considering the skillset, risks, and sacrifices involved but the market pays only what it has to pay.

How big of a flux can it be Rhythm?

Freight will fluctuate quite a bit throughout the course of the year, but more so around the holidays, and a little more so for dry van than most types of freight. Expect things to slow down around mid December as the holiday shipments are wrapping up. Things will stay a little slow for a couple of months and then pick up again as spring approaches. Things are busiest usually from late summer through mid December.

I agree with everyone when they say don't try to equate your pay into an hourly wage, it will only frustrate you.

I try and look at the average miles/week to figure out what my pay will be. I always try to average about 2500 miles/week, more if I can get them. So with that in mind, 2500 X .39/mile equals $975 and $3900/month before taxes. So you have to ask yourself are you willing to work upwards of 70 hours/week for that amount of pay.

It's all about what you as an individual are willing to work for and be happy with. As has been stated many times here on this forum, being OTR/Regional is more about a lifestyle, not a paycheck.

Just wanted to add that bit of information to try and put this into perspective.

Ernie

Let me try this: A recent paycheck shows $921.96 mileage pay (no deductions) for 2561 miles. (That's $0.36/mile.) I was a shuttle driver, so every day was exactly the same - drive from Memphis to St Louis, swap a trailer, and return.

(40 hour week) If I was paid for a 40 hour week, that comes to $23.05/hour.

(Driving time) Suppose my average speed was 58 mph (I was 95% on the interstate) so I drove 44+ hours. So my hourly pay would be $20.95/hour for my total driving time.

(On Duty Time) Usually I picked up my bills around 11am and returned to the terminal around 11pm. That makes for 11 1/2 hours "On duty" every day, not counting my 30 minute lunch break. So for the week, I "worked" 57 1/2 hours, so my pay rate would be $16.03/hour.

This is a sample week where every day was exactly the same. OTR drivers are working any time of the day and night, 7 days a week, much harder to calculate actual working time.

Let me try this: A recent paycheck shows $921.96 mileage pay (no deductions) for 2561 miles. (That's $0.36/mile.) I was a shuttle driver, so every day was exactly the same - drive from Memphis to St Louis, swap a trailer, and return.

(40 hour week) If I was paid for a 40 hour week, that comes to $23.05/hour.

(Driving time) Suppose my average speed was 58 mph (I was 95% on the interstate) so I drove 44+ hours. So my hourly pay would be $20.95/hour for my total driving time.

(On Duty Time) Usually I picked up my bills around 11am and returned to the terminal around 11pm. That makes for 11 1/2 hours "On duty" every day, not counting my 30 minute lunch break. So for the week, I "worked" 57 1/2 hours, so my pay rate would be $16.03/hour.

This is a sample week where every day was exactly the same. OTR drivers are working any time of the day and night, 7 days a week, much harder to calculate actual working time.

Or if on duty time was calculated with anything over 40 being OT it would equal approximately 13.85 per hour. Yikes

Thank you for the replies to this "newby"!

From the research I've done comparing similar trades/professions it appears commercial truck drivers are considerably under payed. Undoubtedly this is a huge contributing factor to the shortage of professional drivers. Like many industries you have a large group preparing to retire over the next few years and already a considerable lack of qualified replacements.

This in an industry that simply cannot "offshore" the jobs as for instance the Tech industry has. I saw my billing rate as a computer information tech worker plummet due to this and now simply cannot compete with workers/programmers from other areas of the world who can provide service from anywhere there is an internet connection.

I suspect that .CPM will increase dramatically for drivers as competition for their services increases over the next 6 months to a year.

I haven't looked at the fuel costs factor yet, and wonder if the lower cost of fuel due to the oil glut is having any effect on company profitability? I am sure some of the Owner/Lease operators might be able to speak to that.