semi truck drivers how and where could i find good ones?

Question

iam thinkin of investing in a trucking company and i need good dependable truck drivers where and what is a good way to do this

Answer 1

Do yourself a favor and talk to some small-fleet owners before you do anything. If you are serious, contact me (click on my user name) and I can give you the contact info for the small company I work for.

My boss about 20 trucks, and he'll likely tell you that unless you like headaches, money worries, never having a day off, a high driver turnover rate, and being woken up at 3am with people broke down 200 miles away from services in Montana.....to invest your money somewhere else :)

Almost every single trucking company in the US is plagued with an ASTRONOMICAL driver turnover rate. The larger companies have it worse (Covenant Transport, for example, has something like a 120% turnover rate. They hire around 200 drivers EVERY WEEK....on average, only 1 driver from each orientation week is still with the company after a year) but even the smaller, family-owned, treat-you-right kind of companies can't seem to hang on to drivers. There is so much competition among companies, and it's REAL hard to please some drivers, no matter what you offer, they'll want something different or something more.

The guy before me who said it's a "new breed" of drivers out here....He's pretty much right. Back in the day, if you got into trucking, it was because you had someone in your family who did it, and you were brought up with it, taught from an early age....and there was a pride and sense of duty that was handed down with it.

Nowadays there are a lot of people getting into trucking who have NO BUSINESS out here. People who knew nothing about the industry to begin with, but got promised a load of sugar and sunshine and a 50,000 dollar paycheck by company recruiters or driving-school recruiters....and now they're out here missing Junior's birthday and soccer games, getting chewed by the wife for not being home on their anniversary AND for not making enough money....and they are miserable.

You can set you requirements high....require 5 years of OTR experience. You can check the driver's MVR and DAC records and call their references. You can interview them. You can follow them into the bathroom to make sure they wipe and wash their hands. You can pay well, offer benefits, and do your best to keep them rolling and happy....and you will STILL have drivers who badmouth your company, damage your equipment, complain 23 hours a day about every little thing, abandon your trucks beside a rural Texas meth lab and quit, drivers who sell fuel, and even problem-free drivers who work for you for 3 months and quit anyway for no apparent reason.

Not saying there aren't good, dependable drivers who love their jobs out here....WE DO EXIST :). But for every good, dependable driver you hire, you'll have 5 who are flaky morons and either quit or get fired within 6 months. Turnover costs money....and it is an unavoidable fact of this industry.

All you can really do is put out ads in the newspaper and try to be as selective as you can when hiring drivers. You will find good ones and bad ones....just be prepared for anything.

Answer 2

First off if you are serious about starting a company or investing in one you must first look to see if they have dedicated accounts. If so are they written contracts. If not you stand to have another company come in and say they can do it cheaper. Smaller companies >50 trucks need to specialize in a particular expertise in the business for example heavy haul or maybe tankers.

Once you ave established written contracts then you might have a chance.

As far as quality drivers go that can be a toss up. I do know that most insurance carriers will give you better rates with more experienced drivers with great safety ratings. The way to get them is by advertising local and our national truck publications such as The Truckers News.

The US DOT gives each carrier 2 safety ratings . One is for the drivers the other is for your equipment. The better your ratings the less you will be audited and inspected by the DOT.
These ratings can be found on the US DOT website.

In closing most experienced good drivers look for good equipment,good pay for the job done, home time and benefits not necessarily in that order. This is a dog eat dog business right now and I can only wish you the best of luck.

Answer 3

a good truck driver is hard to find , i been driving for 27 years now and its a different breed of drivers out there now, back in the 80's we had the best drivers

Answer 4

There are thousands of them going up and down the roads every day. Try radio advertising or adds in trucking magazines

Answer 5

Maybe you should advertise and then check driving records and references for those who apply, isn't that the way most people are hired? You might try some of the truck-driving schools also, they might have some ideas.

Answer 6

Advertise at a school that teaches truck driving.

Answer 7

my hubby wants to drive so bad, and he can't because he is diabetic, ok, to answer the question: look and advertise in the paper. You will be swamped! I promise. word of mouth, too. ppl will wanna know if u are as good as u say u are. let them know, u are serious.

Answer 8

i dont know