Now is the time. Perhaps you need a change of life, perhaps you need to be your own boss, perhaps you need to chuck it all and hit the open road. Whatever the reason, now is the perfect time to get your CDL and become one of the people who keeps America supplied, moving and happy. Now is the time to be part of the backbone of this great country and become a truck driver.

Folks are certainly thrilled that they can get on a website and have anything they want or need delivered right to their front door. Hell, some places are saying they will deliver a package to your car. It’s happening, it’s instant and it’s the way we function as a society now. And, it’s great. It’s great for the economy, it’s great for our well being and, it’s especially great for truck drivers. See, what most people see as just a convenience, truck drivers see as opportunity. Who do you think moves all the goods that Americans consume across this great nation of ours? Well, the answer is truck drivers.

In a time when jobs are being pushed over seas or twelve year old kids are sitting on tech jobs that, well, they seem great for the moment, that is until the next wave of younger kids shows up and the great job is now gone, driving trucks is a reliable, stable, well paying job that is yours for as long as you want it. And there has never been a better time than now to want this job.

According to the ATA, the American Trucking Associations, there is a need for 51,000 more truckers to meet the demands of those online, point and click companies like Amazon and Walmart, to ship goods across the country. And, the ATA predicts that the number of truckers needed is only going to rise as more and more companies start an e-commerce section of their business. Truck drivers are in demand, which means experienced truck drivers can write their own ticket if they get with the right company.

Why So Few Drivers

There are so many benefits to being a truck driver that one wonders why there is such a great need for more. Well, that’s mostly to do with the fact that more goods are being shipped across the nation than ever before, but it also has to do with the fact that truck driving, while a great job, is not an easy life. Also, a lot of trucking companies use questionable tactics to get drivers to work for them and they don’t really work hard to retain drivers or keep them happy. In fact, some  experienced truck drivers look at their situation and, when asked about driving trucks say; “Companies don't treat you like you’re human, you’re a machine that makes money for them, not you, for them.” Sadly, this is a fact across the trucking industry. Truckers don't feel respected, heard, cared for or part of the company they drive with. Truckers are often treated like side workers, hired hands who don’t have to be spoken to with respect or given their due despite the difficulties of the job they undertake. Companies need good drivers but they don’t seem to want to make them feel appreciated and cared for. That’s why people aren’t filling the jobs.

Tell The Truth

One of the problems I heard again and again when starting to write this piece is that truckers are not told the truth. They are lied to about pay, about miles, about time off, among other things and the reason this happens is because companies don’t really care about drivers the way they should. Telling the driver the truth, treating them like a human being, is very important to truck drivers and many say, if you’re honest and up front with me, I’ll be as hardworking and loyal as you can imagine. Telling the truth shows respect and concern for the trucker’s wellbeing, you drop respect and care, then you lose your drivers.

What To Do

The best advice I’ve heard from truckers is to value yourself and what you have to offer a company. If you have years of experience, that is a great value to a company. If you know your own value and respect yourself, then you won’t work for a company that tells lies and doesn’t care about their drivers as people and not just money making machines. Respect for yourself is going to lead you to the best companies and the best trucking jobs around. It really makes perfect sense, If you have pride in yourself, in your work, in your abilities, that pride is going to show and make you a worthwhile investment.

Speaking of Pride

There are many trucking companies in business across this great land of ours but one name keeps popping up for all the right reasons. Pride Transport. If you were to put together a list of the many things that make truckers unhappy, you’re not going to find any of those complaints at Pride Transport. One of the first things that truckers who drive for Pride say is: “They treated me well and they told me the truth.”

Telling the truth is very important to the people at Pride. Why? Because this is a family owned company and that family is a family of truck drivers. That’s a big deal. These folks know how to treat truckers because they are truckers. For them, a driver isn’t just a job they know about because it’s part of their payroll, they have been on the road, done the miles, hauled the freight and, some of them still drive. Working as a trucker for truckers is about as good as it gets.

If you stop listening to all the yelling and take a look at a company like Pride Transport, you’re going to find a lot of your questions answered and a lot of your fears assuaged. No one says that driving trucks is an easy job but if you’re working for a company that respects you, tells you the truth and does everything they can to support their drivers, which is what Pride transport does and does right, then the benefits far outweigh the negatives.So, now is the time. The opportunities are abundant. If truck driving is a job that you think you may like, the freedom, the open road, the chance to make really good money, now is the perfect time to take a serious look at it. So, now is the time.

The opportunities are abundant. If truck driving is a job that you think you may like, the freedom, the open road, the chance to make really good money, now is the perfect time to take a serious look at it.

But, as a few drivers have said, know your worth and have pride in what you bring to the table, that way, you’re not going in blind and you’re not going to allow yourself to get taken advantage of. Be realistic and look for a company that’s honest, that supports their truckers and that knows what the life of a truck driver is all about. Pride Transport is one of those places, one of the few it seems. A family operation, run by a family of truck drivers. If you're a driver, you’re in demand, why not demand the very best. Drive with Pride.