Would you encourage your children to become truck drivers?

[TeamCaffee]

Channel 19 Trucking - or not- with the twenty-somethings

I just finished reading this article and I found it very interesting. Bob and I would have discouraged our girls from truck driving if they would have been interested. Starting a family and a life while looking through a windshield seems very difficult if not impossible.
As a second career I think it is a perfect fit - kids are grown- we have done the boring 9-5 job and always wishing our lives away wanting the weekend to get here and then dreading Mondays.

For us our kids leaving home and Bob and I driving off into the sunset was perfect timing and I am glad we did not enter this profession any sooner.

Read the article and see what you think?

Trucking ? or not ? with the twenty-somethings | Overdrive - Owner Operators Trucking Magazine

 

[Greg]

I have a nephew that is 20 something, he wanted to follow in his Uncle's footsteps, and be a truck driver. He went school, got his CDL, and started driving for a company. He found that it wasn't for him. All the while, I did not discourage him from being a truck driver, in fact, I encouraged him to do whatever he felt he wanted to do for a living.
I did however discourage him from becoming a truck driver and hauling household goods as I had done for more than 25 years. It is very hard on the body.

 

[RoadTime]

..."we have done the boring 9-5 job and always wishing our lives away wanting the weekend to get here and then dreading Mondays."

No truer statement of the rat race. If you enjoy what you do, I guess that may change things some. With all the jobs I have had in my life (and there have been many), I have only found this satisfaction with trucking. But this satisfaction comes with a price to be paid. That said, would I encourage my child to be a truck driver? I would have to say, no.

 

[TeamCaffee]

RoadTime we have not had many jobs but after ten years of being a team driver I still cannot imagine doing anything else.

I am glad Bob was home when the girls were growing up and I am also glad I had a job where I could work comp time. I was able to attend all of their school events and I am glad I was able to.

 

[fastman_1]

I've had all 4 of my sons in a truck or can with me at some time or another, 1 is a O/O now doing very well, 1 drives for a baking company delivering bread, and the other 2 went on to school and have pretty good jobs, however they all agreed that they would not ever drive with me again!

 

[cheri1122]

The first words out of [the interviewee] Bruce Jenkins' mouth raised my hackles: "we are a generation of lazy people" - really? Not the twenty-somethings I know! Especially not the one I raised, who works full time and goes to school, and has never expected anyone to 'give' her anything. Neither she nor her friends, nor any of my many nieces & nephews live with their parents - they all earn their own living, and are proud of it.
I also question his statement "Don't want to work? Unemployment." That is most definitely not how it works! Unemployment is granted only if you are out of work through no fault of your own, and actively looking for work. Also, it pays half whatever you earned when working, so it isn't enough to live on, unless you made extremely big bucks.
That said, no, I wouldn't advise my 'kids' to drive a truck, because they can and will do much better for themselves.

 

[skyraider]

Like they say at Schneider Truck Driving School, at the end of a year, maybe 2 of a class of 30 might still be driving--at the end of 2 years none will be driving...how do I know this? My daughter tried it and another one of my friends tried it,,they were right at the school, both gone in under 2 years. Note: the instructors told them the stats.