Now it's MY turn!!!
I know some of you are going to see who's posting this and something "Oh boy, here we go again" This post is directed at a small group of members on this board and by the end of this post you will all know who you are. I have sat back long enough now, you guys are assuming first of all the brokers are evil people who are somehow taking food off your plates, I sure would like to know how you see it that way. I'll start with saying, yes I am a broker and am told I am good at my job by far more companies then you could imagine. Now that I've tooted my own horn, albeit not as loud as certain posters on this site it'll do. You people are claiming all these big numbers your making without a broker, OK, lets break this down, first off lets get real I've been around a long time on both sides of the steering wheel and I know that a lot of these numbers I'm seeing are, well lets just say $#$%$$%%$%^%. Now I've seen some of the posters clarify that the $6/mi they made were on loaded miles which is realistic, however if all you count is just what you make on the loaded miles then heck yea you're making a killing until you tally up all the actual miles on the truck, I'd be willing to venture a guess, if you calculate every single miles those 18 whels turn in any 12 consecutive months that your $5-6/mi actually turns out to be between $2 - $3/mi. I am confident in saying this because I've seen both sides of the wheel. Now, you all attack brokers with verocity the likes of which should be on the National Geographis Channel, why? Is it because we take care of all the time consumung negotiations with shippers?, or is it because when we negotiate contracts to get the loads we can get a better deal on the rates due to the volume we can move which makes the rate to the truck higher? or maybe it's because we take the punishment from the customers when the trucks dont show up on time or bring in dirty trailers or come in with nasty attitudes? Or I guess it could be the fact that we're are allowing the drivers to spend more hours driving rather than sitting on the phones & loadboards by doing all the footwork for you freeing up more time to actually drive. Or, could it simply be that you have no clue, you simply heard a driver somewhere one time say that brokers are bad and now you just simply follow what other say, I know many of the brokers being bashed on this forum and have been asked by some of them if I had ever heard of these haters before because the ones being bashed by them have no record of ever brokering a load to them which just simply fuels the idea that you don't really have any grounds to bash brokers PERIOD. As I have mentioned before there have been crooked brokers in history and I feel terrible for the hard working truckers who got burnt by them, me included. However, assuming all brokers are trash is like me saying all drivers are lazy, whining, fat filthy slobs, now we ALL know that aint true. It's been my experience that those who are complaining the loudest have been burnt more than once? well if thats the case man I'll bet your mirror will reveal the one to balme for it. In closing I will say, I have a great deal of respect for all those drivers out there racking up 3,500+ miles per week to pay the bills, but please remember all I want to do is pay the bills as well, if the bitching can stop there is plenty to go around, let me invest the hours in negotiating the deals which in the long run benefit all of us and if you dont like the rate you're offered just politely refuse to haul the damn load and refrain from trying to ruin the reputations of hard working people. My last sentence will go out to all the veterans out there, from the bottom of my heart THANK YOU!!!, You protect my right to live freely and post this message.