Questions you need to answer (for yourself, not me):
Do you have the time? Will you turn down better paying work to take these? What (or who) will you miss at home if you do it?
Do you need / want the money?
Is this scheduler one that helps you out when they can, and treats you fairly when allocating or bonusing shops? Or is it more of a one-way street kind of thing?
If I have the time I will do a shop that is uninteresting (financially or otherwise) to me just to build goodwill with a scheduler. If time is tight I follow the dollars and let the effort that flows toward me from the scheduler / MSC arbitrate any conflicts in those factors. Most profitable job takes priority with tiebreakers going to MSC that has been most helpful to me lately. Or at least to the MSC / scheduler that hasn't annoyed me lately. But I don't knowingly do jobs at a loss if I can help it. $5 for 30 miles would meet my definition of "at a loss" pretty easily. It's business, not a charity.
So what's the amount that would make you feel good about how you spent your day?
I try to make sure I am earning a certain rate per hour, and I try to make sure I cover my hard costs too. Hard costs doesn't mean gasoline only. It means the true cost of owning, replacing, and maintaining the vehicle PLUS the cost of filling the tank. A target number for me is somewhere around a dollar per mile but never less than the IRS rate which is currently 58 cents a mile. Plus my minimum hourly rate. Add that up then say the number out loud to your self and see if it puts a smile or a frown on your face. If you're still frowning, add a couple more bucks and try again. If you're still frowning after that, just tell them you're sorry it won't work out this time.
Assuming you've gotten to a smile, now cut that number in half and you're probably still well above the maximum they'd like to give you. So start off by giving them your "smile" number from above, but decide up front how you'll respond when they refuse it or counter.
If you don't ask, you won't get. Don't be shy about asking for the smile number, because sometimes they are OK with that number! You'll never know if you don't ask.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/2019 05:42AM by JustForFun.