It's been awhile now, are things looking better?

[pktruckdriver]

Well a few months after the last time I asked, how are things going?


For me , terrible and getting worse, and it may be a sign of how the country is doing when the truckers are not hauling freight around, yet the stores are charging more claiming it costs more for delivering it, which is the biggest lie out there, we are actually being paid less than 10 years ago to haul freight now.

Yes we no longer have 5.00 fuel, but 2.50 is still high when you put in 250-300 gallons at a time, 2-3 times a week , it adds up quickly. Also with the rates dropping to all time lows, we , the Independent Truckers are losing are azz, yet others are well insulated with secure freight such as mail haulers and a few other areas, but those like me hauling General Freight, we are feeling the crunch. Just today I had to quit , why because I was not making any money and had not for almost 2 months, 650.00 in 2 months is not enough to make it, so I am out among the vast majority of unemployed truckers wondering how I am going to make it, and with 2 payments left, yep the same 2 payments I had left 2-3 months ago, I wish to thank my finance company for taking my truck, and they won't , they have too many repo's already, and I will opay them soon enough ,somehow. I always find a way and will keep at it and find a way again, but it is very scary out here right now, and if trucking is any indication, and I FEEL IT IS, then we are in trouble and I'm going along for the ride. Enough about my sorry situation, unemployed, recently got struck by lighting, not a direct hit, a glancing blow, but, it blew up my computer, and I was on it at the time, had a few tickets from a petty DOT Officer, but the tickets were fair, but ... don't we all think they could'a given us a break, 300+ in fines, oh well life goes on....

So let me know how things are where you're at

[ArlJim78]

holding on, but its still very bad in manufacturing. our goal is to survive this year, and keep our fingers crossed that next year we'll see some real green shoots.:D

still employed but its tough, pay cuts, holidays gone, layoffs, etc. GM accounted for about half our business so that says it all.

keep your eyes open and your hopes up PK, things will work out.

[rastajenk]

In the next presidential election cycle, whoever asks "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" is going to have a big advantage.

[cmoore]

Things are not looking better...This stock market surge is all fake...It will collapse again..They are cutting again at my place of employment...Third time there's been cuts in the last 18 months..But the good thing is I took the voluntary layoff for 6 weeks..It's summer time..Couldn't pass it up..

[cmoore]

holding on, but its still very bad in manufacturing. our goal is to survive this year, and keep our fingers crossed that next year we'll see some real green shoots.:D

still employed but its tough, pay cuts, holidays gone, layoffs, etc. GM accounted for about half our business so that says it all.

keep your eyes open and your hopes up PK, things will work out.

Our company has cut bonuses, bonus days, floating holidays, overtime and just recently 401k match..On top of that..I haven't had a raise in like 4 or 5 years..I'll make less this year then I did in the last 4 years..We could be open for another 6 months or 5 years...It's a crap shoot.

[michiken]

Two words F*** No!

Obama has sold off our future.

I am asked to work at Chinese wages. Still can't find a job.

Bankrupt corporations and banks.

We are done.

[chickenhead]

business came to a dead stop for us towards end of last year, but then picked back up and is looking good right now. So long as internet traffic is growing, especially mobile, we do alright. We've had some cuts, but we're sized right now.

[Lefty]

the poll is superfluous. Obama said if his stimulus bill wasn't right away, pronto, unemployment would top 8%. His stimulus was the only thing that could save us. Well, it passed and unemployment is over 9%. Nuff said.

[acorn54]

i'm working in a supermarket as a grocer. so it's business as usual. however do i think things will get worse. yes. the government is printing so much money i think the next thing to come along will be inflation. that will be something to behold. the chinese have a saying that they say when they put a curse upon you that goes "may you live in interesting times"

[wisconsin]

I sell cars for a living, and it is not getting any better for us, either. New cars are slow sellers, but there is also a shortage of used cars in the market due to a lack of trade-ins, and that alone is driving used car prices through the roof.

Where will it end? I don't know. But nobody is parting with their money the way that they used to.

[jballscalls]

i know personally i'm doing better financially, but that is because some good financial options have come my way, don't think it has anything to do with anything going on in the government though.

family business is starting to come back after a bottom out in march, so hopefully the traditional slow summer months arent so slow.

[Valuist]

I'm not even bothering handicapping races for now......too busy job hunting as I expect the company I work for will go down like that Air France airliner sometime in the next month.

[Tom]

Hope not, but good luck to you if it does.:ThmbUp:

[pktruckdriver]

Boy




What a difference a few months make, things really are looking a little scary.


Me losing my job is normal, but you others , y'all are the consumate 9-5 'ers, and you are all worried, what may be around the corner.


Well let me wish the best for you, and maybe planning ahead and getting those resumes in the mail , may not be a bad idea.
I hope thibgs turn around, but from my point of view, it does not look to good, at least not now anyway, if it chnages I will definetly post it here.


Patrick

I almost paid a off a 50k truck, 1 lousy balloon pymt short, before it hit a million miles ( 975,000) and I seem to break down every other day, as it needs the standard ( things are ment to last only so long-about million miles) work to go another million miles, ( a new engine and trannny, plus many minor replacements too) which costs about 10k or so, and then another 5-8 years could be had with this truck , or just go buy another 50k truck, and hope for a million miles, not likely, especially now-a-days, oh well , I just let things fall where they may, and if it works out then fine, if not ......

[Valuist]

Hope not, but good luck to you if it does.:ThmbUp:

Thanks. I've talked to a few out there who've been out of work and the competition for jobs is unreal.

[boxcar]

But no matter how bad it gets out there, fellas, we can all rejoice in the fact that the "messiah" will never be touched or adversely affected with any of our woes or tales thereof. He'll continue to rule from on high and keep his perspective on everything. :rolleyes:

Boxcar

[jonnielu]

Listen to the lightning, Patrick. It is telling you that you are being displaced, there just isn't much need for an independent trucker these days. Before need can arise again, there will be plenty of company drivers doing the job for $7 plus a cheap HMO.

Let it go, you are an old cowboy on a fenced in range.

Find a need and fill it, there are a couple of million people trying to protest income taxes and needing to know how.

A 50-1 / 20k horse won the recent Kentucky Derby, many are in need of horse racing information.

You can finally connect directly with a potential customer via the internet with Twitter.

Another old cowboy on a fenced-in range once observed:

" as the herd is always driven to open up new lands for the bosses, there are always many opportunities to stray off on the paths less followed."

jdl

[BetHorses!]

I'm not even bothering handicapping races for now......too busy job hunting as I expect the company I work for will go down like that Air France airliner sometime in the next month.


Sorry to hear that Val. I wish you the best...

[Valuist]

Sorry to hear that Val. I wish you the best...

Thanks. I survived round 2 of layoffs, which were another 30% gone. But yeah, I'm looking pretty hard.

[Lefty]

valuist, I hope you survivei n your present job, if not I'm hoping you quickly pick up another. Best of luck.

[BetHorses!]

Thanks. I survived round 2 of layoffs, which were another 30% gone. But yeah, I'm looking pretty hard.


You are pretty sharp with the sports and horses, didn't think you needed a job :)

[pktruckdriver]

It seems that My company decided i was making them too much money and they decided to keep me for now, But let me state the obvious here



That decision is not great for me, yes I have a job for now, but the money still is not coming in, still practically working for nothing, so I am looking for a new job and will leave the minute I get one, if and when I do.

Everyone else I wish you all the best, hang in there and things will get better, just don't know when that will be, But I do believe it will, doesn't it always.


Patrick

[46zilzal]

I met a man years ago who had a job as a laborer and I envied him a lot. His goal was to be useful and make enough to get by and that was IT.

Too many people swear at the alter of the almighty $$$$$$ never thinking how chasing that carrot at the end of the string changes them. When your job does not seem to be a job, then you have found Nirvana.....I know that now.

[ArlJim78]

let the good times roll. here (http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/career-articles-7_lucrative_jobs_from_obama_s_stimulus_plan-900) are the hot lucrative job sectors from the Obama stimulus program.
____________________________________________

President Barack Obama's plan to get the U.S. economy going has a strong focus on creating jobs. Two of the bills he's recently signed, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the Making Home Affordable program, provide funding that will create a wide variety of job opportunities with good salaries. Better yet, many of these jobs don't require a four-year degree, so job-seekers may be able to move into these careers pretty quickly.

Computer Security Specialist Median annual salary: $78,376
Cost Estimator Median annual salary: $58,868
Civil Engineer Median annual salary: $66,638
Insulation Installer Median annual salary: $44,460
Solar Panel Installer Median annual salary: $44,460
Physical Therapy Assistants Median annual salary: $48,999
Loan Officer Median annual salary: $43,070

[jballscalls]

those look like good paying jobs. are those jobs that were saved or created LOL

[Secretariat]

I feel things are worse since the S*** hit the fan last September with the Lehman Brothers collapse, and the Bush-Paulsen bailout.

I had hoped Obama would move in a different direction, but on the economic side he is essentially continuing the policies of Bush under Geitner. It is not surprising since the Fed pretty much is dictating what is happening here. Whether its Bernake or Geitner (two of the same ilk). It's frustrating that private market financial forces are dictating to the government what they need to do here, and Paulsen, Bernake and Geitner are pretty much following the same path. Paulsen made out well with Goldman as they've got huge bonuses coming since they've less competition and since he was the former CEO of the company he's done well.

I give Obama an D on the economy, and Bush an F-. The market is up somewhat since Obama took office, but the guy on the street is getting burnt in the process. I went to buy some clothes the other day and couldn't find a damn shirt or pair of pants made in the US. I thought of our textile manufacturing base. Destroyed. I am guilty of abandoning the US car industry when it comes to buying a car, but felt helpless because Detroit couldn't make a damn fuel efficient green car. I needed customer support on my computer and was forced to call India. You want steel, go to China. Until this country starts re-making stuff and hiring Americans and stops exporting our people's job and knowledge to the lowest bidder, we are going to continue to sink in terms of providing a decent standard of living for the middle class.

I think we will recover from this. I have to beleive that, but I still fear we're feeling the effects of the religion of globalization crap we've been fed, and the absurd belief that what is purchased cheaper in a foreign country is necessarily a good thing for the future of America as a whole.

[RaceBookJoe]

If you want a true view of the 'big picture" , then you need to read the TIC report. Biggest problem of the TIC is that the data lags 2 months. Basically what the tells is whether more or less money is coming into the US. In the most recent report, the scary part is that China is selling treasuries more than buying right now, and also that lending decreased by 1%. Geitner has gotten scared and flew to china to reassure them the bond holdings are safe. If he continues to make trips to china..watch out...or at least put some stop losses on holdings. rbj

[Lefty]

They laughed at geitner In China.

[Buckeye]

The United States needs to stop exporting jobs and ideas? How bout the United States needs to create jobs and ideas? We exported our old jobs and ideas to the lowest bidder, but that's the American Way. Next thing the United States of America needs to do is create new jobs based upon new ideas. Wouldn't be the first time. And by the way, is there anybody else out there NOW creating new jobs or ideas in this World? Didn't think so. Next thing to examine is how USA came up with almost every new job idea? Was it because we were just "lucky" or was it because of something else?

[sammy the sage]

""we can all rejoice in the fact that the "messiah" will never be touched or adversely affected with any of our woes or tales thereof. He'll continue to rule from on high and keep his perspective on everything.""

Ah yes...vERY true...but the AGAIN...so TRUE for Bush as well!

It's the banker's...HELLOOOO...look at GS bonus's...funded by YOU & I... :(

[PaceAdvantage]

It's the banker's...HELLOOOO...look at GS bonus's...funded by YOU & I... :(I'd take this over gov't control any day of the week....

I am astonished that people act as if nobody ever lost money before in the stock market, nobody ever lost their job before, America has never gone through recession before, there has never been banking scandals before....

All of this is somehow new? :lol:

Please. But what this does do, is it allows the liberals who currently control Washington to fast forward their agenda of "gov't control of everything is good...we know what's best for YOU!"

I leave you with the following that I heard on the radio the other day (I believe it was Mark Levin, although it could have been Wilkow).

Obama recently got up and proclaimed how he wants to overhaul the finance system in terms of oversight and regulation....blah blah blah....Obama said this would be the biggest overhaul since the Great Depression....blah blah blah....

The radio host made the very salient point that he thought that big overhaul after the Great Depression was SUPPOSED TO PREVENT something like what's happening today, from ever happening in the FIRST PLACE! :lol:

Complete proof that GOVERNMENT has the SOLUTION to NOTHING. All those sweeping changes imposed after the Depression FAILED to stop what is happening today. But yet, we're going to trust the GOVERNMENT to once again overhaul the system in order to save us from something in the future they most likely won't have a damn bit of control over....

Like I said before....Jefferson is spinning so much in his grave these days, he's halfway to China by now....

[boxcar]

""we can all rejoice in the fact that the "messiah" will never be touched or adversely affected with any of our woes or tales thereof. He'll continue to rule from on high and keep his perspective on everything.""

Ah yes...vERY true...but the AGAIN...so TRUE for Bush as well!

It's the banker's...HELLOOOO...look at GS bonus's...funded by YOU & I... :(

Far be it from me to tinkle on your fantasy, but...the U.S. government itself ain't exactly the quintessential paragon of virtue, Sammy. I would liken our mighty fine government to a den of thieves or street whores the ghetto who would sell themselves for just about anything.

Boxcar
P.S. Feel free to continue on with your fantasy, though.