Team Driver Earnings: Schneider

Hello All,

Trying to find a balance of all things as I pace outside the gates of trucking...

After rookie year, would it be reasonable to assume a team driver at let's say Schneider can make $53-55k per year being out 2-3 weeks at a time (then home 3-4 days)? Would that be a reasonable estimate by industry standards for 2-3 weeks out?

Realize the team concept is a whole different animal to consider but just want to see if the earnings are there. Appreciate any feedback.....

Thanks! Andy

I highly doubt it, especially with that kind of hometime. I would put a driver in that position in the upper thirties maybe very low fourties. It's not that hard to make 40k your second year but that hometime will cripple his salary. That's my guess.

I assume you're wondering if you could make more money by teaming instead of going solo? The answer is no, not really. You might squeak out a few more bucks - maybe - but it's far from worth the sacrifices if you don't like running team. Obviously there's no privacy, you're normally sleeping while the truck is rolling, and every decision in your life is a compromise.

I also think your salary figure is a high for a second year driver and you wouldn't be home every other week as a team in most places. You'd be out 3-4 weeks at a time and off for 3-4 days at most places but there are exceptions to that. But I'd say a safer number is in the low to mid 40k range for your second year.

But you definitely don't want to team on the notion that you're going to make more money than going solo. Not only is that not necessarily the case, but even if you did it would be a very small difference.

Thank you Daniel and Brett..that is the feedback I was looking for. Looks like regional or national flatbed fleet will end up being the best fit overall.

Thanks and have a great week!

Zen if you have a team partner like your wife, parent, etc. someone you really can stand living in a box with for few weeks at a time then as a TEAM I think you can do $50K. Look into Schneider Bulk OTR Teams. If you have your tanker and haz-mat endorsements I think as a team $50K FOR THE TEAM is doable.

I drive solo for Schneider Bulk and I'm averaging $1000/week gross. And that does not include the $7,500 sign-on bonus paid over the first year, and the $150/month tuition reimbursement. I realize freight will slow down in winter, but I can still see myself hitting at least $40K this first year.

Send me a PM if you'd like to ask me any questions or get contact info for a recruiter.