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Location: I'm looking for a place to call home actually
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What are some of the best areas for transportation/logistic jobs with a reasonable cost of living? I have a CDL, hazmat, all the endorsements, never been arrested, pass a drug test and meet all physical requirements to do the job. I was checking out some towns on I-91, I've been doing some research and it sounds like the "Mill Towns" are in a state of decline which has led to my doing more research. I am in the process of getting a passport so I can go to Montreal if I wanted to catch a concert or grab a brew and watch some hockey, plus a lot of the larger companies will send you to Toronto for lumber or steel it looks like. I am also pretty resistant to the cold so that's not a major concern. What is my main concern is being able to secure employment, afford a modestly priced home, and an area that's not blanketed with crime. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't getting pretty bad down here and to be honest I'm just down right sick of it. I was hoping find some hard working people with good values to raise a family around.
Last edited by Joshua2010; 04-28-2010 at 05:56 PM..
I don't care 'what experience' or 'qualifications' you have, getting a job here is very hard, and the living is expensive. Think of needing heat from the end of Sept or October till the end of April or May, the cost of utilities being higher than in many other 'more built up' places, and the general preference (though others may argue not) of natives being hired before 'transplants.'
Now, the last part can happen anywhere you 'don't have an in' so I am not particularly saying this is unique to Vermont but I have seen time and again 'someone else' being hired because 'they knew someone or had connections.'
The other day I went into the supermarket to buy a newspaper (out of state) and mentioned to the check out clerk who was probably 60 something I was looking for a job out of state. She and I talked a little and said she works 2 jobs to get by.
So, yeah, that is another 'problem' as you will..you have many people working 2 jobs (part time) and it's hard for the rest of us to get one....
Hard working people..yes, if they have jobs, they better be because you BUST your butt here for low pay...
Family values...well, sure, in some respects...but because of people scrambling for work, you have a lot of 'latch key kids.'
Again, these are just based on my observations of 3 years. Others will have differing opinions.
What are some of the best areas for transportation/logistic jobs with a reasonable cost of living? I have a CDL, hazmat, all the endorsements, never been arrested, pass a drug test and meet all physical requirements to do the job. I was checking out some towns on I-91, I've been doing some research and it sounds like the "Mill Towns" are in a state of decline which has led to my doing more research. I am in the process of getting a passport so I can go to Montreal if I wanted to catch a concert or grab a brew and watch some hockey, plus a lot of the larger companies will send you to Toronto for lumber or steel it looks like. I am also pretty resistant to the cold so that's not a major concern. What is my main concern is being able to secure employment, afford a modestly priced home, and an area that's not blanketed with crime. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't getting pretty bad down here and to be honest I'm just down right sick of it. I was hoping find some hard working people with good values to raise a family around.
You can take this with a grain of salt, from a "realist" Joshua.
I don't know where you're moving up from, but I've been here 20 years from a much more prosperous state, moved here not knowing how bad the job market and difference in economies were from just 120 miles south of here.
I've been in the hazmat/tanker game (only because my own business went down hill, long story, easy topic,) for 15 years up here, doing the gasoline/fuel/propane/chemical relocation game.
The cold hard truth is, IF you were fortunate enough to land a job in this field up here Joshua, it will be far less money than you are used to. Coupled with the fact that the winters here are more severe, it boils down to working WAY harder for your money, for less money unfortunately. I know every petroleum transport company and fuel marketing/distributor in the entire state and surrounding states. My search began once I sold my own equipment and tried to become "gainfully employed"...and I use that term loosely.
I did manage to raise a good family (boy's 21, girl's 16 now,) by paying close attention to detail, and still do to this day. That's a challenge no matter what the location, so living here wouldn't affect that issue, it's all in the intervention and caring of good parents, period... IMHO.
Getting back to jobs and pay...let's be honest. Those of us that assume the responsibility and risk nowadays of possessing a CDL/HAZMAT/TWIC/Homeland Insecurity Background Check, etc., should be compensated accordingly across the board, fair assumption? I just renewed mine 4 weeks ago, everything cost about $350.00 with TWIC and everything. The average hazmat job will offer you a whopping $42-$48K/yr. up here. GROSS that is. Pull taxes out of that, and you'll be depressed. I searched high & low for years for that "dream job" that pays decent enough so I am not aggrevated, don't have to travel far to get to work, and have a decent lifestyle. The results: I have to work out of state (NY state) travel 1.5 hours to get there, and hate the lifestyle because it's a long ride, and my work keeps me away some nights, 2-4 nights a week sometimes. But, the pay is "normal", insurance and benefits are "normal", and it's what we need to have a decent lifestyle here in Vt.
I have always had to shake my head in disgust when calling around this area for a closer, lesser-paying (but day job,) in tanker/hazmat hauling. They think they're doing you a favor offering you the mandatory 6 day work schedule, at rates around $12-$15.00/hr. TOPS! Then if you comment on not wanting to work every Saturday because you'd like to have a life, they think you're lazy and won't hire you. It's a "make hay while the sun shines" mentality. Fact is, we're not dealing with HAY...it's gasoline, fuel, propane, stuff that blows up and goes BOOM. Mix in freezing rain, sub-standard roads and poorly maintained roads, hazardous conditions and small pay, and I still wonder why I've stayed here 20 years.
I live on a route that's highly traveled by truck traffic east to west, and it's a trecherous run across here in the winter. Once you cross into NY or Mass., the roads are usually fine. This state has a poor maintenence attitude. Plus, everythings UPHILL, both ways...literally.
I'm not trying to paint a completely negative picture of Vt. Fact is it's a great place to live if you don't need a few things (like money,) and can adapt to the small, do-without mentality we had to morph into ourselves.
The Burlington area would be a better chance of looking for work. Champlain Oil Co., R.L.Vallee,Inc.(St.Albans,) and S.B.Collins,Inc.(also St.Albans,) are just to name a few that may possibly be hiring, but knowing the business and the economy right now Joshua, I wouldn't count on it honestly.
If you choose to do other types of trucking such as freight or flatbed, Bellevance Trucking in Barre, Vt. is a good choice, although it's OTR mostly. There's a lot of choices in the freight end of it, but again, they make you work more for less for some reason.
If out of the trucking industry and considering something else, it gets a little thinner. Trucking (if you have the qualifications,) will always offer one a weeks pay, no matter where you reside, as we well know.
So there you have it. Straight from the horses' mouth...
I hope that will help you make a decision.
Good luck.
^
Good post and why in a nutshell I am leaving the state. (the economic part and the scraping for crumbs). Just to reiterate--I know people who travel over 2 hours total to get to workand home-some examples:
1. My friend's sister who lives in/near Concord, NH and travels to Lebanon, NH (1 hour each way, maybe more) for work. She is in the EMT field.
2. Our apartment's handy man who I believe lives outside Concord, NH and travels up here to where we are (10 minutes from Lebanon).
3. Several people from where I used to work near Woodstock. One lady came from Bradford and the other came from Welles River. Both are in the tourism field.
Feel free to google the length of these commutes.
I don't know, in NY you commute to NYC and it's often 2 or more hours total but you're making big bucks...
Is it worth it for $10 an hour? In bad weather?
Oh, and yeah, they love shifts here. I don't know if it's the bi-product of the recession but 'normal hours' seem very hard to get now. And a normal work day is 37.5 and don't dare do overtime because there isn't the $$ to pay for it...
I've been in the hazmat/tanker game (only because my own business went down hill, long story, easy topic,) for 15 years up here, doing the gasoline/fuel/propane/chemical relocation game.
Wow, great advice speaking specifically to the OP's questions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LowboyTZ
That's a challenge no matter what the location, so living here wouldn't affect that issue, it's all in the intervention and caring of good parents, period... IMHO.
I agree that caring/good parents are the most important ingredient. I also believe where families live makes a difference. My friends and family raising children in Vermont and other lower-crime/lower population areas say their caring parenting is much enhanced by their location. Whereas people I know raising children in areas where there are more people & crime feel like their parenting needs to offset what their kids are exposed to daily. Of course, anyone can get in trouble (or thrive) nearly anywhere, but with greater population and crime, there are simply more opportunities for trouble just as there are for education and culture.
Wow, great advice speaking specifically to the OP's questions.
I agree that caring/good parents are the most important ingredient. I also believe where families live makes a difference. My friends and family raising children in Vermont and other lower-crime/lower population areas say their caring parenting is much enhanced by their location. Whereas people I know raising children in areas where there are more people & crime feel like their parenting needs to offset what their kids are exposed to daily. Of course, anyone can get in trouble (or thrive) nearly anywhere, but with greater population and crime, there are simply more opportunities for trouble just as there are for education and culture.
Actually, there is LESS for kids to do and both parents often work various hours. It's why drugs are so popular here. There's not much else to do. Compared to schools in more populated areas, there are few dances for the kids, few after school clubs, less to do except 'hang out.'
Now many Vermonters are not anti 'soft drugs' like pot and have no problem if their kids are smoking it (they are, too) but we prefer a no tolerance policy in my family so I feel like the 'culture' here is not for us.
I disagree on that, kids are only going to be bored if they're brought up with an urban mindset. By that I mean, bring them up to enjoy what there is here: outdoor activities. They'll be less inclined to get into drugs. Too many kids do nothing but sit in front of TV's and video games, and are convinced by the consumerist culture of urban America that there's nothing to do outdoors in a place like VT. I wasn't bored when I was growing up, I spent time exploring the woods, I got into building things with wood in the backyard, fished, hunted, trapped, camped...it seems to me most of those I knew who were really into that stuff like I was were the ones less likely to get into the drugs. The ones who thought they wanted to live in NYC or CA and that there's "nothing" to do here, are the ones by and large who are drug addicts and bad alcoholics right now...there's exceptions to any rule but these are my observations. I wouldn't trade growing up in the NEK for anything.
Personally I'd homeschool if I had kids too but that's a subject all its own. I've seen the ugly insides of our public schools here first hand.
Actually, there is LESS for kids to do and both parents often work various hours. It's why drugs are so popular here. There's not much else to do. Compared to schools in more populated areas, there are few dances for the kids, few after school clubs, less to do except 'hang out.'
Now many Vermonters are not anti 'soft drugs' like pot and have no problem if their kids are smoking it (they are, too) but we prefer a no tolerance policy in my family so I feel like the 'culture' here is not for us.
You are a parent with different experiences to share so I'm glad you're posting, too.
What you say is true. I can only tell you what parents regularly tell me, since my children are feline. Much more than my friends&family in urban/suburban areas, Vermonters and other rural parents tell me their kids spend lots of time outside playing sports and in nature, and feel it's generally safe to let them do it.
In my paid and volunteer work, I encounter children volunteering with their parents, which is something my city friends say generally they don't see.
In Vermont & rural areas, parents tell me that community members know and look out for each other's children. I don't hear that from city/suburban friends either.
This is not scientific, of course, just what people have told me.
Hmm, did the OP ask about raising children here? I can't even remember.
Hmm, did the OP ask about raising children here? I can't even remember.
Yep, last sentence of their post.
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