Truck driver can make up to $8,000 a month – Mohamed Hulle

Mohamed Hulle, is the Chief Executive Officer of Global Freight Express Incorporated, Columbus, Ohio. He came to the United States of America in 1996 as a refugee from Somali. Mohamed became self-employed in 2003 when he registered his company and acquired one truck. In an interview with, the immigrant, Mohamed said “I started with one truck and increased up to 7units within four years.”

Global Freight Express Inc.

I registered the business as Global Freight Express Incorporated. I registered through the Secretary of State and I got the license. I called the Internal Revenue Service, IRS for the Employer Identification Number, EIN. I looked at the way I could make good money. I graduated in Chemistry back home but I didn’t go into school immediately when I arrived to the United States. If you’re not a graduate from here, it is difficult to get a good job. It is either you take up a job as cab driver or truck driver. I looked at the two and I chose truck business. It is better to go into self-business especially when you have a family to take care of. There is also an advantage of having community like ours. The challenge of learning a new language and the urgency of a job make cab or truck driving an affordable occupation in the new place of abode. Thank God we made it. We did our best.
Goal
The goal was to provide services for people and brokers who move freights from State to State. It was to establish a small truck business company and at the same time create employment for others. We serve our community and neighbors. At the beginning we were constantly increasing the fleet like almost every three to four months until we got to present fleet of 13units. Every day we learn new lessons. We look for business and make a lot of calls to different companies. That is how we’ve been growing the business.
Challenges
Truck business has its own challenges. It is hard to get reliable drivers in the business. The turnover rate is very high. They come and go. Some drivers may not be qualified, therefore they can’t be hired. Drivers need at least two years’ experience driving on the road and must be drug-free. The driver must be dedicated. That is why it is difficult getting drivers that meet such requirements.
Another area is that high percentage of what we make from the industry goes into maintenance. The cost of parts is very high. Also for instance if you have a breakdown in the middle of no-where you have to use what we call road-fix. For the service provider to come out alone is $100, even though they will charge you hourly rate later on. They charge like 90cent for every mile. If the truck breaks down in Dayton and that is 65miles from Columbus. That means paying 90cent per mile. It is a big cost on maintenance.
Opportunities
However it is a good business in America. The saying is that “if there is no truck there is no life in America!” There are millions of freights to be moved every day in America. There are truck companies that are having 500units and even more of trucks. We cover at least 48 States including Canada. We cannot go to Hawaii and Alaska because these are islands.
The best way for a new immigrant to make adequate income to take care of his family is to go into truck business. He will need to go to a truck school and it is just two months maximum to get the Commercial Driver License, CDL. Then he can go to the truck companies that are hiring driver graduates fresh from the school. They will give him training for two or three months and after that they will give him a truck.
The interesting thing is that the driver can become owner-operator. They will give him a truck and tell him that after he operates the truck for a certain period by paying certain amount monthly, he will own the truck. That is how many people have become truck owners and graduated to having fleets of trucks. And a truck driver can make between $7,000 to $8,000 a month. That is what some medical doctors and top company executives also earn in a month. The truck companies will even provide business for the driver.
But for very young and school age immigrants I will advise that they go to school – high school and college. And to also train in the health profession like radiology, nurse, pharmacy and doctor. These are areas where they can earn very good income. Even when they go back home, they can start clinics, chemists and laboratories that will continue to provide good income to them.

(Culled from The Immigrant)