School Choice Pay Comparison
Topic 8052 | Page 1
So my question is this: Other than stopping at every WalMart in the nation, why choose Swift over Prime?
We have a number of drivers from both companies here regularly so I'm sure they'll share their reasons for choosing one or the other.
My first thought would be that Swift would have more home time options. Prime is definitely going to keep you out for extended periods of time, especially in the beginning. But Swift will have local, regional , intermodal , and dedicated runs available that can keep you in a certain region of the country or get you home more often. You might have to get a little experience with the company before you qualify for some of those opportunities.
Both companies have numerous opportunities with different types of freight.
If you want to be analytical, keep in mind the duration of time you should be focused on - long term. That's not to say you ignore the short term stuff like which company you'll make more money at. But in the end you should focus on where you want to be a few years down the road. Ultimately you can't go wrong with either company. So don't focus too hard on trying to squeeze an extra few thousand bucks out of your rookie year. Focus on finding the company that seems to suit you the best. That's where you'll be happiest.
Dedicated Run:
A driver or carrier who transports cargo between regular, prescribed routes. Normally it means a driver will be dedicated to working for one particular customer like Walmart or Home Depot and they will only haul freight for that customer. You'll often hear drivers say something like, "I'm on the Walmart dedicated account."
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
Intermodal:
Transporting freight using two or more transportation modes. An example would be freight that is moved by truck from the shipper's dock to the rail yard, then placed on a train to the next rail yard, and finally returned to a truck for delivery to the receiving customer.
In trucking when you hear someone refer to an intermodal job they're normally talking about hauling shipping containers to and from the shipyards and railyards.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
I'm at Swift, and you need to re-do the math, Don.
The first mileage I got was at 33cpm, not two bits*. Also, FWIW, Swift is catching up with a 2¢ raise to 0.35 CPM.
* old-fashioned term for 25¢.
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
I'm at Swift, and you need to re-do the math, Don.
The first mileage I got was at 33cpm, not two bits*. Also, FWIW, Swift is catching up with a 2¢ raise to 0.35 CPM.
* old-fashioned term for 25¢.
Thank you Errol! I figured some of the info on this site might be a bit out of date.
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
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I have a tendency to be hyper analytical, and really want to know the dollar value in choice; so I decided to compare two schools and what my year (Yes, its only 360 days long) would look like pay wise. We're going to completely ignore home expenses; and just look at income and school cost. This should in no way be taken as a bash against any company; just sort of a reality check:
The companies: Prime and Swift
Prime: School cost=3500; Out of pocket=1260 (if I can, I only sleep with my wife.); 30 days of my life; 90 days OTJ training @ 600/wk leaves me with 2954.29 in my pocket; 120 days of the year gone.
Swift: School cost=3900; Out of pocket=550; 21 days of my life; 42 days OTJ training @ 450/wk leaves me with -1750 in my pocket; 63 days of the year gone.
But that's isn't the story for the year; we sort of have to take a look at "What's in the wallet for the rest of the year." So we'll make a broad assumption the miles are the same, and modest. I set a simple target of 2050 miles per week. YMM (Actually) V.
Prime@90days solo(.39cpm)=10279.29; @180days solo(.39cpm)=10279.29 and for the balance of the year(.40cpm)=7028.57. Total income=$30541.43
Swift@90days solo(.25cpm)=6589.29; @180days solo(.26cpm)=6852.86; @270days solo(.33cpm)=8697.86 and for the balance of the year(.34cpm)=2688.43. Total income=$23078.43
So my question is this: Other than stopping at every WalMart in the nation, why choose Swift over Prime?
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.