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And not respected like jobs such as teachers and police officers? I never understood it. The response is generally "because the pay sucks and your out on the road all day long". Hogwash. Top level truck drivers make well north of $50k a year. So again I ask why is transportation jobs whether its truck driving or taxi or even a school bus driver not respected by the masses and only anti social people/ nanny haters seem to prefer the field.
There is no shame in honest work, but why do you feel all jobs should be respected equally? I don't think it has anything to do with the pay. If anything, it is the low bar required for entry into the field, coupled with working conditions that most people see as poor and not conducive to a normal lifestyle.
There is no shame in honest work, but why do you feel all jobs should be respected equally? I don't think it has anything to do with the pay. If anything, it is the low bar required for entry into the field.
Most of us prefer low bars compared to the hoops you must hop through to get into many other fields so it cannot be that.
It is not my particular opinion, but sometimes these jobs are seen as requiring less skill than other jobs out there. Additionally, pop culture tends to paint truck drivers, bus drivers, taxi drivers as unhygienic and weird (among other things). This tends to have a lingering influence on people who do not know better and creates stereotypes.
Also... People curse when they get stuck behind a semi-truck or a bus. Just sayin'.
Truthfully, driving is one of the most complex tasks a person can do. Amplify this with the additional safety, mechanical, and regulatory requirements involved in doing this for a living and I do not personally see this as a job lacking skill.
I don't think there's shame on it at all. Modern technologies add to it. Mini fridges, satellite radio, 4G networks and GPS. At the same point though you can be away from family. The regulations do add up just like unixfed said.
I made about $75K/year as a Teamster truck driver. I have been retired from trucking for the last 6 years. When I was driving I did not care if others looked down on my job - I was getting paid good money. Of course you have to work for that money - long nights on the road, weekends, holidays away from home. Also the job is hard on your body; trucks are designed to haul freight and not people. Then there is the stress factor and dangers of the job (it is one of the most dangerous jobs). Of course, if there is an accident; the truck driver is always at fault (your bigger, meaner and nastier than anybody else on the road).
One of the lesser-documented reasons is probably that the irregular hours place a greater stress on marriages and family life. Operating railroaders start out on the "extra board", where they can be called t work on two hours notice at any tie of day or night. And while, as a general rule, they don't go as far afield or stay out as long as when I worked in the industry years ago, truckers usually face similar pressures.
It is not my particular opinion, but sometimes these jobs are seen as requiring less skill than other jobs out there. Additionally, pop culture tends to paint truck drivers, bus drivers, taxi drivers as unhygienic and weird (among other things). This tends to have a lingering influence on people who do not know better and creates stereotypes.
Also... People curse when they get stuck behind a semi-truck or a bus. Just sayin'.
Truthfully, driving is one of the most complex tasks a person can do. Amplify this with the additional safety, mechanical, and regulatory requirements involved in doing this for a living and I do not personally see this as a job lacking skill.
What's all this hoopla about "skill"? Why should that be the determining factor in a job's value? People need good's delivered. Truck drivers satisfy that demand. The nation as a whole benefits. I don't care how TV portrays it. It's a job that has to get done.
As long as the benjamins keep showing up in my bank account every two weeks, I'm happy. I could care less what other people think of my job. Frankly, it disgusts me that so many people judge others based on their job, which is simply a way to generate income and nothing more. That said, I have as much respect for truck drivers as any other person earning an honest living, no matter what they do. The people I don't respect are able-bodied welfare bums.
I guess people figure "anybody can do it" which of course is not true.
I'm an electrical engineer that retired from the Federal Government. I got bored to tears after about a year and stumbled into driving a school bus for a large public school system. I absolutely love it. After 12 years, I'm earning close to $30 an hour ($51K last year) although I don't do it for the money, nor do I need it to get by. I'm involved in hiring/training now and anybody can NOT do it. We have tough standards, and out of every ten applicants, we are lucky to get one or two that make it into the drivers seat out doing runs.
It used to tickle me, back when I was doing runs, when kids would ask me (in a sympathetic tone), "did you ever think you would end up as a bus driver?". Instead of telling them my background and the fact that I could buy and sell most of their parents, I used to just sigh and tell them..."No, I sure didn't. That's why you want to apply yourself and work hard in school....so you don't end up like me"....(LOL to myself)
Some of these kids were pretty young, so I'm sure they heard their parents putting down folks that work jobs like driving a bus, etc. But that's okay, I don't need anybody's respect or approval...and if it helps make the kid strive to excel, then that's a good thing.
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