One aspect of long distance hauling that often is discussed among drivers is Freight and Truck Load Brokers.
Many of the trucker comment boards complain about commissions these people receive as part of the customer's shipping costs.
The purpose of this article is to try to erase some of the mystery as to what these brokers do as their part in getting a shipment from its source to its final destination.
The purpose of a broker is to connect an individual or company that needs something shipped with a carrier.
This means that they must locate both the company in need and the trucker, or company that is available to deliver the goods.
In order to locate these jobs they must often make hundreds of 'cold calls' to see who needs this service.
Many times, they will only connect with 1 out of 10 calls.
At no time are they in actual possession of a shipment.
Brokers are required to be licensed by the FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and hold a state permit.
In addition, they are required to carry surety bonds.
Should a shipper, for example, fail to pay for a shipment, the broker is required, by law, to make the payment.
There are no basic educational requirements to become a broker, but regular training and online software courses are available.
They are the ones who negotiate with shippers to set the shipment rate, from which they receive a fee or commission.
A transport freight broker's duty priority is to plan the route of a shipment.
This may include trucks, trains, ships, or whatever type of transportation is needed to move freight.
The entire movement is tracked by computer.
The job of the truckload broker is to connect shippers with minimum truckloads of freight with companies that have regular runs to specific locations.
The U.
S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in 2009 that the average freight broker's salary was $38,940, with a range of $22,190 to $58,110 per year.
Those who worked as brokers for a company earned an average wage from $47,050 to $60,960.
In spite of the resentment of some truckers, brokers definitely have a place in the shipping industry.
Yes, they do get a cut of the money involved in any shipping, but so does the manufacturer or farmer, the government (taxes and tolls), the gas station, the parts house, the shipping company, etc.
, etc.
In reality, it is a wonder that any product is reasonably priced for the consumer by the time it reaches the marketplace.
Many brokers use truckload boards, which are located on the Internet.
This allows them to instantly post any load information, which is convenient for truckers who are looking for a return load.
This keeps the trucker from having to deadhead a load back home and lose money.
Although there have been a number of articles regarding setting up a truck driver organization to take over these duties, so far nothing has seemed to work out so far.
There is a lot of responsibility in connecting manufacturers with truckers and the job requires hours of dedicated work.
Being bonded, making contacts, tracking shipments, etc.
is time consuming and require a great deal of dedication to become well known in the field.