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The differences between garbage truck drivers and cdl drivers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a garbage truck driver and a cdl driver. Additionally, a cdl driver has an average salary of $63,112, which is higher than the $38,257 average annual salary of a garbage truck driver.
The top three skills for a garbage truck driver include CDL, customer service and post-trip inspections. The most important skills for a cdl driver are DOT, CDL-A, and customer service.
Just as the name implies, a garbage truck driver is someone who drives a truck and uses it to collect trash, waste products, and recycling from dumpsters and trash cans on a set route. Their responsibilities include driving the truck along a designated route and handling lifting devices to collect trash. Furthermore, they may have to operate a front-end loader truck that lifts the waste into a container behind the vehicle.
A CDL driver is responsible for the transportation of goods from the manufacturing warehouse to specific store locations. CDL drivers' duties include inspecting the items before and after the delivery to ensure that the orders are correct with the right quantity, providing proof of delivery from the receiving customers, following the delivery schedule and report any delays immediately, monitoring the vehicle's engine for efficiency, and escalating concerns of incorrect deliveries and defective items. A CDL driver must have excellent time-management and multi-tasking skills, following safety procedures and road rules at all times.
Garbage truck drivers and cdl drivers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Garbage Truck Driver | CDL Driver | |
| Average salary | $38,257 | $63,112 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $50,000 | Between $41,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Wyoming |
| Best paying company | Trucking Partners | GCP Applied Technologies |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Retail |
There are a few differences between a garbage truck driver and a cdl driver in terms of educational background:
| Garbage Truck Driver | CDL Driver | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 60% | High School Diploma, 38% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between garbage truck drivers' and cdl drivers' demographics:
| Garbage Truck Driver | CDL Driver | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.9% Female, 7.1% | Male, 92.8% Female, 7.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 4.0% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 12.7% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 3.4% White, 58.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |