How Much Pay Should I Ask For?
Topic 23924 | Page 1
Hi everyone! I just scored a nice little part-time gig driving a truck for a college cheerleading team. My cousin is the coach, and he told me to let him know how much I need to be paid. I'm not really sure how to go about this. Some trips will be long (800+ miles), but others will probably not be long enough for per-mile pay to be worth my time, especially since all the events are at least two days long. Does anyone have any suggestions on a reasonable hourly rate to charge for shorter trips? And what would you charge per mile for the longer ones? And for the longer ones where there will be a couple of days between arrival and departure, how should I handle the days where I'm not driving or setting up, seeing as how I'm still away from home for the job? I'm not an O/O, the school has rented the truck and trailer (53 ft) for me to drive. So I have no financial responsibility. And I will be helping with loading/unloading and setting up of equipment. My experience is as a company driver with Prime, so I'm just used to doing what I'm told and taking what I get. Now that I get to set the terms, I'm at a loss. :-) I would appreciate any advice!
I would ask for a daily rate while driving, u could make nice money on shorter trips, and with helping to unload, u could get a decent rate.. the colleges cost would be fixed and u get consistent income... I didn't see u mention per diem or hotel stays, or the logistics of where u will park, all things u would take care of...
Per Diem:
Getting paid per diem means getting a portion of your salary paid to you without taxes taken out. It's technically classified as a meal and expense reimbursement.
Truck drivers and others who travel for a living get large tax deductions for meal expenses. The Government set up per diem pay as a way to reimburse some of the taxes you pay with each paycheck instead of making you wait until tax filing season.
Getting per diem pay means a driver will get a larger paycheck each week but a smaller tax return at tax time.
We have a ton of information on our wiki page on per diem pay
I didn't see u mention per diem or hotel stays, or the logistics of where u will park, all things u would take care of...
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention hotels are taken care of.
Per Diem:
Getting paid per diem means getting a portion of your salary paid to you without taxes taken out. It's technically classified as a meal and expense reimbursement.
Truck drivers and others who travel for a living get large tax deductions for meal expenses. The Government set up per diem pay as a way to reimburse some of the taxes you pay with each paycheck instead of making you wait until tax filing season.
Getting per diem pay means a driver will get a larger paycheck each week but a smaller tax return at tax time.
We have a ton of information on our wiki page on per diem pay
Driving around a bunch of college cheerleaders? And you want pay???
Driving around a bunch of college cheerleaders? And you want pay???
Ha! It's the equipment, not the cheerleaders. Although honestly, I'd probably want to be paid more to drive a bus full of college kids, cheerleaders or not. :-)
Paul, is this part time gig in addition to your regular driving job?
Are you still working at Prime?
Paul, is this part time gig in addition to your regular driving job?
Are you still working at Prime?
No, I left Prime a couple of years ago and moved to Colorado for a sous chef position. But I just moved back home to Florida and am piecing together different income sources (music gigs, online transcription and writing work, and now this UCF gig) rather than going back into a kitchen or a truck full time. Trying to live outside the box for once. :-)
Paul says:
The school has rented the truck and trailer (53 ft) for me to drive. So I have no financial responsibility.
Be careful with that idea. If you are in an accident and lawyers get involved you may share some responsibility.
As for the bus driving gig, first figure an hourly rate. Say $20/hour. If you drive and charge $0.40/mile, an average overall speed of 50mph will equal the twenty bucks an hour. Bid a combination of time and miles. This might be a place to start.
I've recently started doing truck driveway. Here's my "training" topic. For this I don't own any trucks and as an independent I can work when I want (which for me is all the time, but I can take off when I want to.)
Errol says:
I've recently started doing truck driveway. Here's my "training" topic. For this I don't own any trucks and as an independent I can work when I want (which for me is all the time, but I can take off when I want to.)
That is the best of the company driver and owner operator worlds, in my (no experience) opinion. You have a lot of the benefits of an OO, without a lot of the liability.
Owner Operator:
An owner-operator is a driver who either owns or leases the truck they are driving. A self-employed driver.
Grumpy gives a thumbs-up:
You have a lot of the benefits of an OO, without a lot of the liability.
True enough, but being self employed (I set up an LLC) still has its "running a business to keep food on the table" headaches. And you do need a few years' driving experience before you can do this.
DAC:
Drive-A-Check Report
A truck drivers DAC report will contain detailed information about their job history of the last 10 years as a CDL driver (as required by the DOT).
It may also contain your criminal history, drug test results, DOT infractions and accident history. The program is strictly voluntary from a company standpoint, but most of the medium-to-large carriers will participate.
Most trucking companies use DAC reports as part of their hiring and background check process. It is extremely important that drivers verify that the information contained in it is correct, and have it fixed if it's not.
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Hi everyone! I just scored a nice little part-time gig driving a truck for a college cheerleading team. My cousin is the coach, and he told me to let him know how much I need to be paid. I'm not really sure how to go about this. Some trips will be long (800+ miles), but others will probably not be long enough for per-mile pay to be worth my time, especially since all the events are at least two days long. Does anyone have any suggestions on a reasonable hourly rate to charge for shorter trips? And what would you charge per mile for the longer ones? And for the longer ones where there will be a couple of days between arrival and departure, how should I handle the days where I'm not driving or setting up, seeing as how I'm still away from home for the job? I'm not an O/O, the school has rented the truck and trailer (53 ft) for me to drive. So I have no financial responsibility. And I will be helping with loading/unloading and setting up of equipment. My experience is as a company driver with Prime, so I'm just used to doing what I'm told and taking what I get. Now that I get to set the terms, I'm at a loss. :-) I would appreciate any advice!