Are you interested in a truck drivers job in Canada? Trucking or truck drivers’ job has to do with the transportation of goods and commodities (sometimes heavy), in trucks over distant miles, between towns, States, provinces, and across many countries.
Truck driver jobs in Canada are on a progressive increase! This is partly because many people are retiring from active service. Therefore, the government of Canada is making frantic efforts to fix the gap that’ll be created.
Also, Canada is not a densely populated country, but with many transportation industries. Many people inside and outside Canada are interested in the truck driver’s job because the pay is high, it doesn’t require high education, and the conditions of the job are not tedious.
Truck Drivers Job Description in Canada
The job descriptions/duties for truck drivers in Canada varies from categories or types of truck, goods/commodities, companies, distances, etc.
Therefore, the following are examples of job descriptions for truck drivers in Canada:
- Driving long distances and delivery of goods and services to customers.
- Transporting materials between Canada and the United States
- Loading and unloading cargoes.
- Following traffic law.
- Maintenance of basic truck parts and Fueling
- Title cargo deliveries.
- Refueling and cleaning vehicles.
- Reporting road incidents to the dispatcher.
- Searching trucks and recording issues.
- Obeying accident procedures.
Truck Drivers Job Requirements in Canada
This is the same thing as employment requirements, and it is normally the first thing needed for the job. These are prerequisites that either qualify or disqualify any prospective truck driver applicant.
- Possession of a Secondary School Certificate is usually needed.
- On-the-job-training is provided.
- Accredited driver training courses of up to three months duration should be completed, and this can be through a vocational school or community college.
- Because of the diversity in the types of trucks, a Class 3 or D license is required to drive straight-body trucks.
- ‘A’ license or Class 1 is required to drive long combination vehicles.
- Air brake authorization (Z) is needed for drivers who run vehicles equipped with air brakes.
- There is a certification requirement for the Transportation of dangerous goods (TDG). Truck drivers who transport hazardous products or dangerous goods are required to have these certificates
- Much more licensing approval or certification may be required to drive complicated trucks.
List of Locations for Truck Drivers Job in Canada and How To Apply
Many industries and companies in different provinces of Canada are hiring truck drivers. These locations include Alberta, Brampton, Calgary, Mississauga, Ontario, Ottawa, Quebec, Toronto, and many others.
To find more about locations for truck driver jobs in Canada and How to Apply, Visit Here:
https://ca.indeed.com/Truck-Driver-Canada-Job
https://ca.linkedin.com/jobs/truck-driver-jobs
https://opportunitiescomers.info/truck-driver-jobs-in-canada-with-visa-sponsorship/
https:www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreports/jobs/10553/ca
Ordinarily, a Canadian will just apply for a job, wait for an appointment from the industry, and resume a job when an appointment Is offered.
On the other hand, the government of Canada requires foreign applicants for truck drivers’ jobs to have work permits.
So, as a foreigner who lives outside Canada, the first stage is to apply for a Job that provides free visa support for international workers, especially if the applicant has not procured one before.
Thereafter, the employer will send a reply (by mail) to the foreign applicant about the selection or denial.
Wages/Salaries And Other Benefits For Truck Drivers
Wage is the reward for labor. It is one of the main reasons many people are applying for the job.
The annual wage for a truck driver at the entry-level position begins at $38,509 per year, whereas a most experienced worker may earn up to $60,077 per annum.
Truck Drivers in Canada are highly paid! They mostly receive between $16.00/hour and $33.08/hour.
These truck drivers can earn lucrative salaries with which they help families and friends who request assistance.
Factors that influence the wages/salaries of truck drivers.
The following factors can influence how much a truck driver might make:
- Experience: In some cases, long years of experience enable some truck drivers to earn more than truck drivers who are at the beginning of their careers.
- Location: The longer the distance of a truck driver’s workplace to his residence, the likelier his low wages. Similarly, if the cost of living is higher in his area of residence, it is much more likely that the truck driver makes low earnings.
- Workplace: Sometimes, the workplace can also have serious consequences on the salary potential of a truck driver. The level of work involvement can influence wages. For example, Those who are attracted to work as part of a line of service vehicles earn lesser than struck drivers who run their single truck operation.
- Certification: When truck drivers possess more certificates on the job, it can increase their earning capacity.
- Job Demand: The demand for truck drivers in your region can drive wages up or down.
Other Benefits for Truck Drivers
Apart from the fat wages, truck drivers across Canada get the following list of remarkable benefits from their various companies:
- Stock options
- Employee discounts
- Flexible scheduling
- Maternity, paternity, and family leave
- Health insurance
- Accidental death or dismemberment insurance
- Dental Insurance
- Eyesight insurance
- Health savings account
- Healthiness perks
- Paid time off
- Paid sick time off
Reasons for Pursuing Truck Drivers Job
Truck driver jobs appeal to many people because they can pursue a career that makes them work independently and can find flexible hours of schedule. Some benefits of this career option include but are not limited to the following:
- Beginning a job quickly
Rather than several years of education, you can start a truck driver career fairly quickly. Requirements often include a high-school diploma and a particular license, which you can often seek within a year.
- Working unique hours
Truck drivers work throughout the days and nights for their companies. You might explore driving opportunities with unique hours, like nights or weekends that match your lifestyle better than standard working hours.
- Traveling
Some truck drivers may have local routes they ply regularly, while others can travel long distances. With longer hours, truck drivers often take breaks in different locations. This makes them travel far and wide and enables them to see many new places.
Truck drivers use nearly all of their working hours traveling to locations all over Canada and beyond. Someone who enjoys driving and being to new places regularly will find a truck driver’s job a good opportunity to travel while earning a salary.
Many trucking companies give their drivers the alternative to drive different routes based on availability. You may be able to drive a set route or change your route to visit new places. Some Canadian trucking companies also offer transportation to US and Mexico, which can offer the opportunity for international travel.
- Job stability and reliability
Truck drivers are an essential part of many industries because they enable many companies to receive the supplies they need and distribute their products.
This means that there is a stable and reliable demand for truck drivers and that trucking companies operate in all parts of the country. As a truck driver, this enables you to relocate and continue to work in the same industry.
- Self-esteem
Truck driver’s jobs sometimes provide some individuals the opportunity to mold their jobs and plans. Some owner-operators are in this category. They are owners of their trucks and they sell their services to transportation companies.
They are experts with self-esteem who choose which companies they want to work for, and for how long. Some trucking companies also give their drivers the freedom to choose their rosters.
- Extra earnings
Truck driver’s jobs can be very lucrative! This is especially true for individuals without a college degree. It may be true that salaries can differ based on experience, province, and company, but dedication to the duty of some truck drivers makes them earn a whopping average salary of $71,090 per year.
By being unrelenting and dedicated to work, some truck drivers earn their salaries per mile, and they may earn bonuses for performing extra tasks such as loading or off-loading their trucks or driving dangerous haul. Some of these extra earnings cover their daily food and lodging costs.
- Low education prerequisites
A truck driver’s job doesn’t require a high college degree like other jobs such as Engineering, Law, and Medicine. This allows truck drivers to save money, time, and energy when beginning their careers. The main qualification is a class A Commercial Driver’s License or CDL.
While it’s true that some companies may look for older drivers, some young but clever drivers decided to earn their CDL soon after high school and begin working early.
- Self-supervised work
Some truck drivers who possess self-motivated characteristics will naturally be disposed to working alone without interacting with coworkers. While they’re all responsible for the prompt delivery of goods and services, these truck drivers always spend much of their days alone and rarely interact with supervisors or coworkers.
Although your work as a truck driver is often unsupervised, this freedom can make truck driving an impressive choice for people who prefer to work alone.
- Different work atmosphere
Generally, truck drivers spend a lot of time on the road due to long transportation. This work condition enables them the chance to be in new territories of the country every day while working.
The variety of work environments where they often meet new people, listen to music, enjoy social life and witness fresh events and weather conditions make truck drivers avoid boredom brought about by the recurrence nature of office structure and work.
- Goal and objective
A truck driver’s job is so unique and indispensable that millions of people in Canada rely on it. This is simply because stores, warehouses, industries, and companies where goods are transported to and fro are situated on land across Canada and beyond.
This special sense of purpose where they sometimes exhibit expertise in transporting unusual and essential cargoes and heavy hazardous materials to customers, companies, and industries makes their goals and objectives fulfilling, satisfying, and accomplishing.
QUALITIES OF A GOOD TRUCK DRIVER
#1. Training and Education
Step one is to get the right education and training that is needed. Higher education or even high school is not essential to be a great truck driver.
But attending a driving school and getting a Class-A Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) is necessary. Some companies offer extensive driver training programs. It is very important to take these programs seriously and learn about the company’s policies and business.
#2. Tolerance or Patience
Loading, offloading, and everything requires patience. Driving requires patience. Many frustrating situations can make any driver nervous. These include getting stuck in traffic jams, schedules getting delayed, or there might be a customer who is taking longer than expected, or maybe there is no space at the truck stop where a rest break was planned, or a flat tire or some other urgent mechanical issue crops up. These are common occurrences for a truck driver.
But in all these situations, no matter what happens, it is very important to stay calm and be patient. It is always advisable to be patient and take time and go through all the steps, as a safe driver, instead of losing patience and rushing rashly on the road, and putting oneself and all others in jeopardy.
#3. Relaxation Instinct
Following close on the heels of staying patient, effective stress management is an equally important quality for a great truck driver. Driving, managing time on the road, as well as tackling the random roadblocks that emerge, cause stress. Adding to the stress is the relationship with coworkers, and personal life situations. Together all this can amount to a great deal of stress. Learning to manage all this stress effectively, is a very important skill to inculcate.
There are various ways to manage stress. Exercise, meditation, music, healthy food, and even talking to family, are a few ways to help with stress. To become a great truck driver, one must be adept at handling stress. One must figure out which stressbuster activity works best for them
#4. Alertness & Smartness
Being alert and smart on the road is of vital importance for the safety of ourselves and those around us. To be alert and aware as a truck driver means to utilize all the senses. There are some safety measures that a great and responsible truck driver must follow.
Awareness regarding accidents or some other dangerous situation up ahead, or some unusual sound or smell in the truck is important, and must never be bypassed. Being alert and being able to recognize a problem in its initial stage is the easiest way to maintain good safety standards on the road.
#5. Time-management Skills
Keeping track of time and practicing efficient time management skills is of great advantage for all. A truck driver must have excellent time management skills as it helps to deliver the orders to the customers on time, take efficient breaks, and eventually get back to the family on time. In short, good time management gets all the work done on time.
For good time management, drivers need to pre-plan their routes and stops throughout the trip.
#6. Reliability
Reliability is a virtue. Being a reliable employee for the employer, and a reliable driver for the customers is of vital importance. Completing all the work on time, as per deadlines, asking for help whenever needed, understanding safety requirements, and ensuring safe transportation of the goods to the customers, are just a few of the many ways to be a reliable truck driver
#7. Customer Service
Providing a good customer experience in the customer service sector is an excellent quality to have as a truck driver. Truck driving may not essentially be considered to be a customer-service-related job, but being able to provide good service to the customers when delivering products is a surefire way to go from “good” to “great.”
#8. Communication Skills
Good communication is the foundation of everything great. Clear communication goes a long way toward success, even for a truck driver. Whether talking to the dispatch personnel, customers, boss, fellow truck drivers, or family, the need is for effective, calm, and professional communication, irrespective of message content or any other circumstances
#9. Self-dependence
For truck drivers, the majority of the time is spent alone when not on the road. And co-passengers in the cab are not friends to depend upon unless one doesn’t belong to a group like a team truck driver.
An independent truck driver is empowered with the capability to face several challenges while on the road. Great truck drivers can solve problems and find solutions on their own, whenever they encounter those kinds of situations.
#10. Mechanical Knowledge
A primary requirement of a great truck driver is having adequate knowledge of the machine. Mechanical knowledge as a truck driver is extremely needed, when on the road. Knowing how to take care of minor maintenance issues can save time and provide a safe time margin to get to a safe location to fully address the issue.
Also, having basic machine knowledge and awareness about certain mechanical tasks helps to ensure that the truck is complying with all safety standards. And this is of utmost importance.
SEE ALSO: UK Farm Jobs 2023: How To Find Your Dream Job as a Foreigner
Types of Truck Driver’s job
There are several types of truck driver jobs you might pursue. The need to know the types of truck drivers’ jobs casts your choice of job widely open.
1 Less-than-truckload
Less-than-truckload (LTL) jobs handle smaller loads when delivering. This often involves delivering goods with several packages to different locations. Drivers often pick up or deliver goods to terminals where they transfer packages to other trucks and deliver loads on designated routes throughout their days.
Over-the-road
Over-the-road (OTR) truck drivers deliver larger amounts of goods in bigger trucks. OTR drivers often have unique routes they travel regularly as they transport goods long distances. Different from local or regional drivers, OTR drivers can expect to drive across the country and have one or several destinations to reach when delivering.
Freight haul
Freight hauling can transport any type of goods locally or over long distances. They might work for delivery companies, retailers, or manufacturers as they load and unload goods for delivery. You could also work with specialty freight, like liquid or hazardous materials when working as a freight hauler. Rather than small packages, you often handle larger goods and equipment.
Refrigerated
Refrigerated freight drivers, or reefer drivers, transport goods that require a specific temperature. Along with the standard driving duties, you might have to stop to verify your trailer is at the proper temperature and that the cargo is safe or coordinate maintenance for any refrigeration issues. This is a common role in the food manufacturing industry, where truck drivers deliver food products to grocery and restaurant locations.
Tanker
Tanker truck driving jobs are when you transport gas or liquids between locations. You might drive both large and small trucks depending on the materials and can drive long distances. To work in this role, you might need specialized training where you’ll learn how to handle this type of cargo and how you might manage emergencies, like spills.
Flatbed
Flatbed drivers often carry cars or other machinery, equipment, and vehicles on their trucks. Rather than in enclosed trailers, these goods lay on the bed of the truck. This requires knowledge in securing goods appropriately to ensure safe delivery and special handling for the unique handling of flatbeds.
Dry van
Dry van trucking is a traditional type of trucking where you’ll operate a large truck often with a trailer. These deliveries can be local and long-distance and often involve a full trailer of goods to transport. Though you might not need to load and unload these trucks, you might manage the inventory and signatures to verify delivery.
READ ALSO: Ultimate Guide On Farm workers jobs in Canada 2023
TRUCK DRIVERS JOB IN CANADA (FAQ)
How can I get a job as a truck driver in Canada?
You will need to complete a relevant driver training course which may last up to about three months. This may be through a community college, vocational school, or both. You will also require both an A Class 3 or D to drive straight-body trucks, and a Class 1 or A license is required to drive long combination vehicles.
What companies are hiring for Truck Driver jobs in Canada?
The following top companies are hiring for Truck Driver Jobs:
- Warren Gibson Ltd,
- Complete Distribution Services Ltd.
- Travelers Transportation Services,
- WM, Mario’s Towing Ltd,
- Sniper Pressure Services
- KLS Earthworks
- Troyer Ventures Ltd
Is it important I search on Glassdoor to find Truck Driver jobs in Canada?
A glassdoor is a search place for millions of jobs in Canada. You can get a Truck Driver Job there but it may take a lot of effort because of the volume.
Therefore, you may decide to streamline your job search for Truck Drivers to a sizable job search tool with specifications. A lot of people search for local drivers, tractor-trailer drivers, LTL drivers, forklift drivers, tanker drivers, etc. However, if the results for these searches are few, try a more general search term.
How can a truck driver get a work permit in Canada?
An eligible truck driver can get a work permit when he applies under three immigration programs.
These three immigration programs are LMIA-based Work Permit, Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP), and Nova Scotia Provincial Nominee Program (NSPNP).
Which province in Canada needs a truck driver?
The five Canadian provinces stated below have a high demand for truck drivers:
- Saskatchewan.
- British Columbia
- Nova Scotia
- Alberta
- Ontario.
SEE ALSO: Australia Farm Jobs: How to Find and Apply for the Best Opportunities
