Ain't No Money In Trucking...

I heard a few people say that when I was looking to start driving trucks, even more once I was a newly minted driver.

The first time I was told that it was from a guy I worked with at the time in the shipyards. I immediately thought one of two things are going on. Either he didn't know what he was talking about or he was just a bad driver. As it turns out he had his cdl. So that solved that mystery.

I knew better, I had family that drove. But that's hear say.

I just bought my first Harley Davidson. At the end of my week spent on Isla Mujeres Mexico. Got to dive the underwater museum (really cool) and swam with the whale sharks. I'd post a picture of the bike but it's not in the state as it's being shipped from a dealer in TN to my dealer. And they are going to have it for a few days putting on all the crap I ordered... nope... no money in trucking

People talk so much garbage when it comes to trucking I had to name this site Trucking Truth. Very few people seem to understand how trucking really works or what it takes to be a top tier driver, so I felt there ought to be someone out there willing to teach people how to succeed in this industry. Fortunately over the years an amazing group of top tier drivers joined the effort and now we have a bunch of awesome drivers helping people understand how to make your way in this industry.

My favorite part about it is that our moderators and experienced drivers work for all different companies hauling all different types of freight. So that puts to rest any myth about there being only a select group of "good companies" or that you can only make good money hauling certain types of freight in certain types of jobs.

I almost bought a Harley this year. Had one long ago, worked on them for a living for a short time too. Now it's getting late in the season so maybe next year.

Ain’t no money in trucking if you are lazy, unmotivated and lack focus. That’s true.

None of us here fall into any of this categories.

I don't expect to make a whole bunch of money my first year, if I can earn $40-$50k my first year I think I will have done well. I know my first year will be about survival and learning the ins and outs of this business, The money will no doubt come my third year after I have proven myself as a hard working, reliable driver that my future DM will tell people that guy (me) is in line for Saint hood and I get offer my endorsement deal 😁

I think sometimes, some people just don't understand how money works. While this is sort of rare, I probably have 1-2 applicants ask me what they are really getting paid per mile, after the company "steals" our "take" from the taxes! This really caught me off guard at first - Do they think the company is getting their taxes, or that we're not actually paying that money out?!? So while I'm on that topic, here is an actual conversation I had today with someone who applied, and this one was a doozy!:

Driver: "SO HOW MUCH DO YOU PAY?" ---

Me: "our true otr drivers will avg $1100 - $1500 per week, right now we are pacing for a $65,600 avg in 2018 for our otr drivers. we have home weekend drivers that take shorter stuff that will probably make around $50,000, and we have our northeast dedicated drivers that will be in the $80,000+" ---

"NO - HOW MUCH DO YOU ACTUALLY PAY?" ---

"that is what we actually pay them" ---

"SO YOUR DRIVERS ARE CASHING 4 DIGIT CHECKS EVERY WEEK? YEAH RIGHT" ---

"are you asking what our avg net/gross pay is? we aren't the government, or your ex, and I don't know what other deductions you have taken out, or what you claim on your taxes. the number I gave you is literally what we pay, out of our company’s bank account, to our drivers. everyone is in a different tax situation, so i can't tell you what your actual net pay would be, I can only tell you what you likely income will be." ---

"SO ITS JUST A TRICK THEN? YOU TELL PEOPLE THEY WILL MAKE $1200 PER WEEK EVEN THOUGH YOU KNOW THEY REALLY ONLY GET $750 PER WEEK?" ---

"again, I don't know what your tax situation is. I am giving you the literal amount of money that the company pays for your work. this sounds like more of a 'write your congressman situation' than a company situation. we are talking about your income. your income is how much you earn. whatever the gov takes out of your income is out of my hands." ---

"SO I'LL ONLY MAKE $750 FOR 7 DAYS OF WORK? THATS BS!" ---

"i don't know what they take out of your checks! I don’t know how else to tell you about how much you'll make. i can only tell you about what we pay. this is just exactly like every other job in the real world, your income is what you earned. this is not some scheme our company does, i'm not trying to trick anyone here. go online, look at any job listing, any company income review, at any type of work that isn't an "under-the-table-cash-only" situation. every income you see listed anywhere is gross. that is society’s agreed upon method of discussing income. the ‘net’ is up to you, your life, and your gov representatives. i don't know what deductions you have, and if i assume them and i am wrong, then you’ll call me a liar. this is why everyone talks about income, and not 'net income' because net involves factors that are impossible for me to know." ----

(This next part is probably not my best shining moment, but I was really frustrated, like "how do you not understand this?!?! What planet do you live on? And of course, I always bristle a little on the inside when I hear newer drivers complaining about pay that is at least $20k more than I will be taking home this year...I always try to remind myself that I get to go home every night and sleep in my bed, so I can't be too sore about it...)

"THIS SOUNDS LIKE JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF CORPORATE GREED, COMPANIES JUST LOOKING TO RIP OFF A DRIVER AND KEEP US POOR. I'LL HAVE TO THINK ABOUT IT" ---

"i will make it easy for you. You have 2.5 years of trucking and you’re already at 7 jobs…and no wonder, you have no idea how income works and you probably think everyone is lying to you about how much you'll make. I was trying to do you a favor by even processing your application for approval, you’re barely last 120 days at each job you hop to and i would have had to fight hard to get you approved with that sort of work history. I don’t think you’ll be a good fit here if you can’t even wrap your mind around the basic concept of income works. this is not some 'trucking industry' thing, this is how the entire workforce in the usa operates. Hows about you go get 18-24 months with a single carrier, a good referral, and then we can see about getting you approved to drive here. For now, we are going to have to decline your application."

"I KNEW YOU WERE JUST ANOTHER ******* TRUCKING C..."

(I just hung up on him. First time I have done that in a few years. Felt fired up, then immediately I felt guilty, but there are too many good drivers who need a good job to mess with a lost cause...)

I hope he posts something here...we’ll have fun with him! Haven’t had a good scrum in a while.

Jrod, you just gave me a good laugh!

Having been an employer for years, and having talked to truck drivers now for the length of my trucking career, I too have had some really crazy conversations with people. It is so funny (actually it's rather sad, in comical sort of way) how much misinformation is out here concerning truck driver pay. You can easily get in a conversation in a truck driver's lounge where one guy considers himself a "slave to the man," while the fellow next to him thinks he's making a quarter of a million dollars per year! If you understand this whole business, you can actually figure out that they are both making just about the same wage. It makes no sense!

The biggest thing that stands out to me is how most drivers don't understand The Competitive Nature Of Their Job. Drivers who know how to make things happen so that they are getting more things done will always be the ones earning the best pay. Wages are very similar across the board, but results seem to have huge variations. What makes those differences so pronounced? How the driver conducts himself out here. Our results have a direct correlation with our productivity. It is a performance based industry, and the folks who understand that strive to achieve the kind of results that bring in the most money. I have seen so many people jump ship for an extra penny or two per mile, when they could have increased their take home pay considerably by just paying attention to getting more done. The concept is simple, yet it escapes many people's grasp. A lot of truck drivers are constantly looking for better pay when it is lying right there within their grasp at their current job. They are never satisfied that they are being paid fairly because they are just not productive enough.

I realize I've veered from the point you were making about the guy not understanding about taxes and payroll deductions, but it is sad how many drivers can't seem to understand the basic rules for success at this stuff. It's not rocket science, but from the many conversations I've heard on this subject you'd think it is something that nobody can possibly understand. The status quo seems to be that you just keep moving from job to job until you find that super secret goose that lays golden eggs - she's out there somewhere.

People talk so much garbage when it comes to trucking I had to name this site Trucking Truth. Very few people seem to understand how trucking really works or what it takes to be a top tier driver, so I felt there ought to be someone out there willing to teach people how to succeed in this industry. Fortunately over the years an amazing group of top tier drivers joined the effort and now we have a bunch of awesome drivers helping people understand how to make your way in this industry.

My favorite part about it is that our moderators and experienced drivers work for all different companies hauling all different types of freight. So that puts to rest any myth about there being only a select group of "good companies" or that you can only make good money hauling certain types of freight in certain types of jobs.

I almost bought a Harley this year. Had one long ago, worked on them for a living for a short time too. Now it's getting late in the season so maybe next year.

I too have constantly hear stay away from this company that company they dont pay. Ive been looking into the minimum pay in worst case scenarios, for a whole bunch of companies, everything from mom and pop to megas, both through paystub postings and text posts, as well as video reviews, and i keep laughing bc the amounts of money NET pay these folks are complaining about , in most cases are 2.5-4x as much as i make a week at my current job which is fulltime 40-50 desk job.

Like Old School said, trucking is performance based. Just like sports.

So look at the New England Patriots, for example. Tom Brady makes like $20 million per year. Yet there are guys on the team making $350,000. They have the same coach, the same trainers, the same General Manager, and the same owner yet some guys are making 55 times more than other guys.

Why?

Because they're 55 times more productive.

So because some guys are only making $350,000 does that mean the New England Patriots suck? Are they scamming players? Are they a "bad franchise" who takes advantage of their players? Are their players a "slave to the man?"

Or are they an amazing team with coaches and ownership that genuinely cares, running a team that will do everything they can to help you get super rich and win Superbowls and make all of your dreams come true?

Well I guess it depends on who you ask. If you ask a superstar you'll get a completely different answer than you'd get from a guy sitting the bench. Trucking is no different.

While I don't feel like I'm being paid a quarter of a million dollars, I don't struggle with money.

I didn't do to bad while in the shipyards. As long as I wasn't being laid off.

Having said all that, I feel accomplished to have been able to go on a weeks vacation and come back and put down over half the cash on a new bike and pay for the accessories and labor for installation. It's not a sportster.

I wrote the original post because I was thinking about that guy that told me he couldn't make any money trucking. And then rembered a few others that said the same thing. Truth to the rescue!!

People all have different out looks and perspectives. But the reality is life is what you make it. I've met happy cancer patients and miserable wealthy people.