You should pursue a career in trucking and make sacrifices, particularly running the short haul or long haul driving. This offers you a chance to make a good income out there. The stresses and sacrifices of a trucking career are many. It's one job that deserves decent pay for all the gruelling, long driving hours and several miles away from your loved ones. In most cases, you can find the highest-paying truck driver jobs in the niche market. Niche markets are specialized segments in the trucking field.
The specialty niche trucking jobs California come with different risks and dangers.
What you need to be eligible for the high-paying trucking jobs
To make the highest income as a trucker, drivers with vast experience are chosen, meaning a complex skill set is needed. Especially the average driver who hauls dry freight goods on a truck trailer.
Significant risks: you must be ready to take more significant risks since the duties involve a high level of danger
- Liability: since the risks are high, there is more liability
- Complex skill set: the highest level of skills are needed for specialized niche
- Incident or accident-free: you must have a clean driving history
- Many years of driving experience: firms demand experienced truckers with more than five years of successful CDL experience with no accidents on their record
Most lucrative truck driving jobs
- Private fleets
Walmart is one of the best examples of companies with its fleet of trucks. They provide the best-paying trucking jobs in California. Walmart’s private fleet requires flawless driving records with no preventable accidents, no serious violations, most minor moving violations, and a clean criminal record.
- Ice road trucking jobs
Ice road trucking work can earn drivers anywhere from $20k-$75k for a couple of months of work. Because the media has glorified trucking jobs, securing the job is becoming hard every day. Numerous job risks and challenges are involved in the trucking work in the ice regions, like extreme temperatures, winter storms, and poorer road conditions.
- Liquid/tanker hauling
Hauling hazardous goods like gasoline and a range of explosive and causative liquid items provides lucrative pay for the job. Note that you will require a TWIC card to qualify.
The drivers transport dangerous products and are exposed to hazardous chemical fumes when piping off the effects.
- Specialty car haulers
Some carriers have higher skills in hauling vintage and expensive cars. These trailers are enclosed, requiring an extraordinarily patient and meticulous driver to handle the higher-dollar cargo with diligence.
- Union drivers
Union truck drivers earn a better income than average truck drivers. These unions have a standard rate of income, and drivers are paid for every task they complete. The standard of living raises are incorporated into the union drivers' income packages. Therefore, their income is cut above the average truck driver, who’s salary isn’t indexed within the cost of living.
Truck driving jobs that need complex skill sets and where there are great risks than the average driving work pays better. So, make sure you know all the risks and liabilities involved before signing the agreement.