How much do you REALLY make per hour?

Okay I'll bite!

This is hard to do but lets assume we run our 70 up, and we were only getting reimbursed for that time, since we have time we aren't getting reimbursed for where we cant be home too >.> Now we are team so its a bit harder to calculate.

Trucking company Name: Werner
Ave Monthly Days Home time: 4 days
Ave Weekly Drive Hours: 70
Ave Weekly Total On Duty Hours: 70
Ave Calculated Hourly rate: 24.05
Why it's worth it: Well its harder to answer now since before it was combination of okay money and time to spend with my hubby... now its really just money


Of course... if we did it for real at 50 mph rather then 65 mph it is 18.50

 

I'd say even with the on-duty not driving, I average about 45mph, #.$42/mile it's $18.90/hr.

Last trip out west I did, I actually did the math.
Taking into account only the driving, I was getting $21/hr.
All on-duty was about $18/hr.
Total time away from home, I was getting 8.50, about minimum wage. But that included all off duty and sleeper.

 

IROCUBabe

Not saying anything negative but in all actuality if you logged a perfect 70 hours there is actually more that goes into that then just 70 hours.. more like 80 or 90 once you figure in time being on the phone with dispatcher/shipper/receiver, time that you actually spent fueling and so so much more that is not really into that 70....


And if you take 24.05 an hour X 70= $1683.5 gross a week...
$1683 X 52 weeks = $87,542 a year working a Werner

I will use somebody who makes a $1000 a week average working 70 hours per week ($52,000 year typical pay)

$11.8 an hr X 40 hours a week = $472
11.8 X 0.5 (time and half overtime) = $17.7 an hr X 30 hours = $531

So
$11.80 an hour is
40 hours is $472
30 hours overtime is $531
______________________
$1003 per week


If you gross $1000 a week average as a truck driver and work 70 hours a week you are making around $11.80 an hour at a typical job....


For most out here the answer is around
$11.80 an hour with 30 hours overtime a week......

 

First off attempting to calculate ALL the hours you spend away from home in the truck will be truly discouraging. Many drivers will divide their hours worked into their weekly gross pay and deduce they are indeed making less than minimum wage.

A couple of problems with that thought process though. First of all I do not believe there are any "normal" jobs (factory, warehouse, manual labor, etc) that pay you to sleep, commute back and forth to work, or even pay you for your lunch break (most make you punch out and this time is UNPAID).

Now with that understanding lets look at trucking. As an otr driver you will in essense being "living" in that truck. You ONLY get paid when the tires are turning. Most other duties are "unpaid" such as fueling the truck, counting freight, inspecting the vehicle, checking in at shippers and receivers, waiting for dispatch, doing computer and paper work etc.

Under the current regs we are permitted to drive up to 11 hours within a 14 hour time frame. Now if you get paid by the mile (most common) you will be told how many miles it is from the point of origin to the point of destination. This total will be LESS than the actual hub mileage but this is also common. So lets say you are getting paid .30 cpm (.25 to .32 cpm is average starting wage for new drivers today). If you have a load that goes 650 miles and you turn that within 11 hours (average speed of 59 mph) you will have "earned" $195.00 or $17.73 per hour to sit on your butt and drive for 11 hours. Now if you want to factor in the extra 3 hours of your "work period" (possible loading, fueling, restroom breaks, food breaks etc.) your pay per mile would drop to $13.93 per hour. Now lets take it one more step. If you factor in earning $195.00 for 24 hours (the time you are away from home) your hourly wage drops to $8.13 per hour.

Of course as you get more experience your pay rate will go higher. Normally .01 to .02 cpm per year (depending upon carrier). Union Carriers will start at a higher rate and normally only take 2 or 3 years to get to top pay whereas their non union counter parts start lower and take many years to get to the top of the pay scale (in some cases 15 years or more).

If all you want is money to drive truck then you will be unhappy. You must actually enjoy the job, the solitude, and the travel.

The other factors in truckings' favor is; no commute "to" work. When you wake up you are "at" the job. Sleeping in the bed if you get tired. No supervisor looking over your shoulder (although they can monitor your progress via computer), Traveling all over the country, Trying different foods. In the event of a layover somewhere you can rent a car and go exploring or ride your bike (some drivers carry their bikes with them).

Now for your specific questions;

Trucking company name: Eastern Freightways
Average of monthly days at home: 6 Days
Average weekly drive hours: 84 hours (team operation, split would be 42 each).
Average weekly on duty hours: 6 hours (split between 2 drivers 3 hrs each).
Average weekly earnings: $2,531.37 (split between 2 drivers)
Average hourly earnings: $2,531.37 Divide by 90= $28.13


Now there are a few more details you did not ask for but I will offer. In our case we are on a dedicated run back and forth between Ga and Pa. We drive a little over 5000 miles per week. We also get paid for every drop, every hook, every stop, detention, breakdown, congestion, and a monthly .01 cpm bonus. The other plus is we are together every day.

So to answer your question; "is it worth it?" ABSOLUTELY.

 

You could not figure that way because a typical job would be time and half anything over 40 hours....

So, 10 hours of your alls work would be time and a half.....

 

You just have to be happy about what you're doing and don't think too deep about everything.
I used to work offshore,we'd get paid for 12 hrs a day but spent 24 hrs a day out there on the water.

Now I'm 45 years old and I sure do have that itch to hit the road myself.

 

Not everyone gets overtime. I'm salaried exempt and work considerably more than 40 hours a week. If I figured my hourly wage based on the hours I actually work, I'd probably be pretty discouraged... so I try not to think about it. What keeps me there is that I like my job and my co-workers... and that's as important to me as the money.

 

I was in your boat once. Had 9 employees, lots of work. Lost vacation, about 4 weeks each year. Supposed to get comp time for hours worked. Couldn't get the vacation in, what made them think I could get that.


Made the mistake and really figured the hourly wage, left about 9 months later. Only miss the benefits. Hometime, sometimes. Actually, may be home about the same as before.