Question:
HELLO TRUCKER WORLD! I AM CURRENTLY A CAREER FIREMEN IN JACKSON,MS THAT FOR AWHILE NOW IS SERIOUSLY THINKING ABOUT MAKING THE CAREER MOVE TO BECOME A PROFESSIONAL DRIVER. I HAVE DID ALOT OF RESEARCH AND TALK TO DRIVING ACADEMY THAT HAVE SAID ALOT OF NICE THINGS MAINLY THE MONEY. I HAVE ALSO TALK AT LENGTH WITH MY WIFE WHO IS 100% BEHIND IT, BECAUSE OF THE POTENTIAL MONEY THAT CAN BE MADE. I THINK THAT I AM ABOUT 95% SURE THAT I WILL DO IT. BUT THE ONLY DOWNSIDE THAT I WANT BE A FIREMEN ANYMORE, BUT CAN EASILY FORGET ABOUT THAT IF I HAVE A NICE CHECK COMING IN. LIKE TO HEAR FROM ANYONE WHO CAN OFFER SOME ADVICE OR WHO HAS MADE A CAREER MOVE THAT WAS SO DEAR TO THEM.

Answer:
Before you do anything for a career change think
about the wage and benifit difference. I don't know what career firemen earn in Jackson. A Chicago firemen would need his head examined to
change jobs,they work 24 on,48 off and work a second job on those off hours,some driving local.
Mike
Answer:
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TALK TO DRIVING ACADEMY THAT HAVE SAID ALOT OF NICE THINGS MAINLY THE MONEY. I HAVE ALSO TALK AT LENGTH WITH MY WIFE WHO IS 100% BEHIND IT, BECAUSE OF THE POTENTIAL MONEY THAT CAN BE MADE.
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"Money that can be made"----------Somebody has really been "messing" with you. Sure, if you can land a job with a LTL company, which is very doubtful, then you could possibly make a good living wage. But just out of school, you will be looking at 20 to 25 cpm, being out for weeks, and when you do get home, maybe two or three days and you are gone again. Think real hard.

Answer:
A couple of years ago, my brother (a computer programmer) made this program that showed the REAL amount of money you are making per hour at any job. Basically, the program took variables such as unpaid waiting time, uncompensated overtime, taxes, money spent on company equipment, etc and then it spit out what your real 'take home' would be. One of my friends boasted about the money he was making as an OTR driver until my brother ran his numbers into the computer program. It showed that my friend was getting a whopping $6.16 per hour. Sure, he made some change, but he was working 70+ hour weeks to get that money.
Companies and recruiters saying that you can make $35,000 you first year out aren't necessarily lying to you. Just don't expect to see home very much or spend much time with your family if you want to make that money. If you're single and have no bills, it's not so bad but as a family man you should reconsider. The trucking industry has created alot of broken homes.
http://www.subway.com

Answer:
If your mind is set and wife supports the change, then make it happen. By researching you should have noticed the training companies pay is similar. Someone mentioned after training expect to make 20-25cpm, but its more like 24-28cpm. If you average about 2500 miles a week, you could earn 28-32k 1st yr. Not bad for entry level income. Also, my suggestion is to choose a company that you may be interested in staying with, even longer than 1 yr.
You may want to consider Schneider or Werner, they seem to be the better of the training companies.

Answer:
I ALSO WORK 24/ON AND 48/OFF AND LIKE EVERY OTHER FIREMEN I KNOW WORK A SECOND JOB, AND LET ME TELL YOU, MAKE NOTHING LIKE THE FIREMEN UP NORTH MAKE. MOST COMPANIES I'VE TALK TO ARE SAYING ABOUT 28 CPM. ONE EVEN TOLD WITH A SPOT FREE BACKGROUND IT COULD BE 32CPM, BUT THAT SOUND A LITTLE FISHIE TO ME. THE ONLY BIG TRUCK EXPERIENCE THAT I HAVE IS DRIVING A 55 FOOT LADDERTRUCK WITH A BUCKET FOR OVER THREE YEARS.

Answer:
Another thing you should consider is benefits and retirement. Most OTR trucking company benefits stink. I know that firemen usually have very good benefits and often a pension plan, so you might want to consider that before you move to trucking.
http://www.subway.com

Answer:
Know several big city fireman and they make darn good denero, much more than a Truck Driver would make after driving for 40 years with the same company!
I know firemen work hard during a fire, but in general it is a very good job. I was a Fireman in the Coast Guard, on piers. If it were me, I would stay with firefighting, you have much better benefits and chance for promotion to make even bigger bucks.
Keep the Crapy Government off my back and out of my business.
[This message was edited by GoodBuddie on January 04, 2003 at 20:53.]

Answer:
Troll
Peacekeeper
GIVE A MAN A FISH AND HE WILL EAT FOR A DAY. TEACH HIM HOW TO FISH, AND HE WILL SIT IN A BOAT AND DRINK BEER ALL DAY.
www.chimartialarts.org

Answer:
I THINK YOU GUYS ARE CONFUSING THE SIZE OF JACKSON,MS WITH THE SIZE OF BIG CITYS LIKE CHICAGO AND NEW YORK ETC... MY CITY POPULATION IS LITTLE OVER A (100,000) SO THAT MEAN OUR TAX BASE IS NOT AS LARGE AS THE BIG CITY. BESIDE BIG CITY GOVERNMENT TREAT THEIR FIREMEN AWHOLE LOT BETTER AND PAY THEM WHAT THEY ARE WORTH. JACKSON,MS GIVE YOU A RAISE AND OOH!! FOR SOME REASONS THEIR GOES UP YOUR INSURANCES RATES. LET ME JUST SAY I RAN INTO AN EX-FIREMEN BUDDY THAT CAME ON WITH ME ABOUT THREE MONTHS AGO CAN'T REMEMBER IF HE HAD BEEN IN TRUCKING FOR A YEAR OR NOT. BUT WAS BRINGING IN $800-$900 A WEEK AND WAS LOVING THE CAREER MOVE, SAID IT WHAT THE BEST THING HE EVERY DID. AND I COULD SEE IT IN HIS FACE AND HIS ATTITUDE.
JUST WANTED TO ADD I'M A SEVEN YEAR VETERAN.

Answer:
I don't know about your benefits package, but that would be a big factor. All of the big paying fire depts. are unionized and in big cities. The one factor that many don't realize is that even though you are in a smaller city the health risks of a fireman are tremendous. I was a volunteer in 2 different states and finally quit when I realized the true danger of it. I have friends that are NYFD either active or retired. Many have health problems that are directly related to firefighting.
Because of the schedule you have worked and that your wife is OK with it I would look furthur into it. I would stay away from the 2wk. CDL mills and look more towards a comm. college for your license. Look around a lot at companies that don't advertise.

Answer:
I worked as a NYC school teacher before driving a truck. The money was ok but driving a truck actually paid me more. I had some political and moral conflicts with the principal in my school and she made going to work everyday a living He!!. Anyway, Driving a truck can be rewarding financially but you really need to do your research and you need to be sure of yourself. Only you know what you need. It's not like a regular pay check will be coming in. Some weeks will be better than others. sometimes you might make 700.00 others you might make 300.00. That's just how it goes. If you can stick it out and get a year or two under your belt than you might be able to find a better company and some more money. Lots of companies run OTR, Regional, and Dedicated. These are other areas you might want to ask a prospective employer about. Sometimes a regional or dedicated driver can make as much, if not more, than an OTR driver. Check out This Site, click HERE they have lots of info. I am not suggesting that you buy anything but there is a lot of info there and it helped me to make my decision when I was making my career change.
Good Luck in whatever you decide.
ready to go to joplin...found two CB's a really big amp. and an old log book. All I have to do now is change my name to billy and get myself a big rig.

Answer:
Originally posted by Beeman:
I don't know about your benefits package, but that would be a big factor. All of the big paying fire depts. are unionized and in big cities. The one factor that many don't realize is that even though you are in a smaller city the health risks of a fireman are tremendous. I was a volunteer in 2 different states and finally quit when I realized the true danger of it. I have friends that are NYFD either active or retired. Many have health problems that are directly related to firefighting.
Because of the schedule you have worked and that your wife is OK with it I would look furthur into it. I would stay away from the 2wk. CDL mills and look more towards a comm. college for your license. Look around a lot at companies that don't advertise.I'M IN A UNION TOO, BELONG TO LOCAL 87 AND IT IN A SMALL CITY, BELIEVE ME OUR MEMBER CAUGHT HELL GETTING IT. THREAT WITH EMPLOYERMENT, HARASSMENT, JOB SECURITY.


Answer:
HCHARPE123, have you considered that you will be away from home for extended periods of time? Not like the 24 on 48 off you are used to, but more like 7-30 days out, 2-5 at home. Can you and your wife handle you being gone for weeks at a time? most companies have a policy of 1 day home for every week out. Some require that you stay out a minimum of 2 weeks before you can take your 2 days home.
Do you have a substantial savings or does your wife work and make enough money to support you? You won't be making much money for the first 6 months or more.
Also keep in mind that your daily expenses will be much greater than they are now. Out of that $700 a week ,if you make that much, you must pay for all your meals out, all your supplies, basically all your living expenses on the road, plus whatever bills you have at home. It is not hard to blow $200 a week just on lunch and dinner every day, to say nothing for laundry, tolls, scales, supplies, etc.
A realistic income after training would be between $500 and $700 a week gross. Maybe more, likely less. You won't make squat during training, so be prepared.
WHY IS MY BEER DARKER THAN YOUR COFFEE??