Trucking: contract negotiations, private fleets, contract negotiations

Question
QUESTION: My brother wants to get back on the road and would like to work on getting a contract so he can have the piece of mind if you will knowing he always has freight to haul.  How do you get your foot in the door with a company and how do you know where to start on the money issue?

ANSWER: Clay, the first step is to identify what type of work he is looking for.  I assume he is not an Owner Operator.  If he wants to run long haul over the road and willing to be gone days or weeks at a time check with the big truckload carriers.  They always need drivers and should be able to provide regular work if he is flexible regarding geography and schedules.  On the other hand if he is looking for local home every day work which generally pays less, he should look to local warehouse companies or private fleets based in his area.  Again flexibility is key since a lot of this is night work. Regarding the money issue make a lot of calls and find out what they are offering.  Here is a link to a list of job sites for drivers:
http://www.ptdi.org/errata/JOB_WEBSITES.pdf
Good luck.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: He will be purchasing his own truck and he wants to run all over, or at least everywhere but the Northeast. He is thinking about flatbed but is also considering a reefer. He has no problem with staying out for weeks or months at a time as he is single and just wants to work.

Answer
That changes the answer a little.  As an owner operator you can either contract to a regular trucking company or get your own operation authority from DOT - FMCSA.  With your own authority it will be up to you to find the loads and you will probably have to use a broker at least some of the time which cut's into the profit margin.  The other option is contracting to a common or contract carrier who will keep you loaded to keep you as a source of capacity.  Some will pay the OO a percentage of the load but most now may by the mile.  Things to be aware of don't accept the highest per mile pay stated without getting details.  Does it apply to all miles or only loaded miles?  do they pay a fair fuel surcharge? all miles?  Do they pay for detention, stop pay, unload pay, and any other accessorial services?  The bottom line is you want to make enough at the end of the day to cover all truck expenses including allocations for tires, oil, and general R