Profile For Tyler W.

Update!

Swift showed interest in me, but unfortunately with me being unemployed, I don't have enough $$ to get through the 3 weeks of training + the first week of driving with mentor until I get my first paycheck. I have had some stuff come up at home, like my car needing to go to shop, that prevents me from continuing. I am not giving up completely.. I do intend on reapplying. I just have to find some job around here and save up about 2 grand to pay my bills, buy food, etc while I'm off training.

Generally "Team Driving" means the truck is always moving. Both drivers need to be licensed CDL drivers. Some company do train like this. If you are just a permit holder and your trainer goes into the sleeper that is unsafe as well as illegal. One call to training or safety would shut that down.

I did 15K miles with my Millis trainers and I was never required to sleep in a moving truck. I did almost all the driving and we basically took our breaks at the same time. Trainer trucks always have double bunks.

Maybe I don't understand the training then. I'm going to be with Swift hopefully soon and I believe I'll only have my permit when I go out with a mentor. So are you saying that both of us will be awake all day and sleep at the same time? If so, that relieves some of my worries. I thought it was team driving where he sleeps and I drive... whew..glad that may not be what happens.

Tyler: Not all companies require you to team drive when you are training. I trained through Millis Transfer and you don't typically get your CDL until well into your training period so team driving really isn't possible because the trainer is "On Duty" while you are driving so he is using up his hours sitting in the passenger seat. Even once you get your CDL some trainers want you to team, others just run a solo truck with maybe a few extra hours of trainer driving.

I would ask your recruiters what their company policy is. Also, if possible, try to avoid training with an owner operator. They are going to be much more likely to push for team driving.

By team driving I meant basically what you do with a trainer.. which is team driving. 200 hours of team driving... is that not team driving? I'm new so I honestly don't know.. but I figured one person sleeping while the other drives is what team driving was. So yeah the 3-4 weeks of "team/mentor" driving is what I'm dreading...but I guess we all gotta do it.

This is what I was worried about. I hopefully we will getting my CDL and training soon with Swift..and I am a very light sleeper. If I'm by myself, there isn't an issue...but trying to sleep while someone is driving? What if they are listening to music? I am afraid I'm gonna get 2 hours of sleep then be expected to drive 8 hours at night... and this will go on for 3-4 weeks? Thank god I'm not gonna be a team driver after all is said and done... there is absolutely no way. And people say earplugs work...but earplugs don't completely stop the sound..they just muffle it.

Swift is a very solid choice to get started, and even make a career at. One of our moderators, G town, got his start there and found enough success he's still there several years later enjoying a very lucrative career. You will hear a lot of trash talk and "jokes". Ignore them, dont give them the satisfaction of getting you worked up. That's what they're trying to do. Swift didnt become the largest carrier in the country by their employees being incompetent. Swift has the most trucks on the road which is why it seems they're more frequently spotted making typical rookie mistakes. I've posted the screenshot from the FMCSA before and believe it or not Swift is involved in less accidents and placed out of service much less as a percentage than the national average.

Well you have motivated me to continue with them, should they accept me. I have heard their pay is low but for my first year as long as I can pay my bills ($700 a month) and have a little to save, I'll be completely fine :).

When reporting your work history, present it as a time line. Leave no gaps. If you were in college - list it. If you were unemployed - list that time period as "looking for employment." All they need is accuracy and a way to verify it. You can verify college enrollment easily with paperwork or transcripts. Other times can be verified with notarized letters from friends who can verify you were living where you say, and doing what you say. Include the friends phone numbers for verification.

Honestly, most of them aren't even considering your work history. They are developing a "file" on you that is required to hold certain information satisfying FMCSA requirements for new drivers. One of those requirements is a record of where you've been and what you've been doing for the past three years. They build that information from your work history. The truth is that this whole effort is to prevent terrorists from getting trucking jobs and thereby threatening our nation again like they did on 9/11. They just need accurate verifiable information of your constant whereabouts and activity. That satisfies the requirements, but it must be thorough.

I have listed all of my work history in a timeline, and even sent them the SSA form to verify all my work history and income. I listed all the times I was in school from community college all the way to university. I listed 10 years worth with no gaps, including unemployment. I'm about to hit up Swift and if they hire me and people make fun of Swift or whatever, I'll let them know real quick that they were the first company to give me my shot and allow me to build my future. Thanks for the info guys. I'll update everyone on my status.

Hello Trucking Truth Users,

My name is Tyler and I am looking to get my CDL. I can't afford trucking school, that is just out of the question right now. I applied to Prime, Schneider and Wilson Logistics. I believe it was Schneider that said I needed my permit before they would hire me, Prime just wouldn't hire me because of my work history. So I applied to Wilson and the recruiter told me that my work history shouldn't be an issue, so I waited a week for them to do all their application procedures only to be called back this past Monday and told that because of my work history they won't hire me. All these companies ask for the past 3 years of work history and these past 3 years have been the worst for me.. dropping out of college, moving, etc. I did deliver pharmaceuticals for 5 years but that was from 2011 to 2016... and I feel that would be the most applicable experience considering it's driving. In the 12 years I've been driving (27 years old), I haven't had a ticket or an accident. I'm not a trucker so I don't know if any of these things matter, but I assumed having driving experience, even if it was in an SUV for 5 years, and having a good driving record would make a difference. I keep reading awful things about Swift (which it seems to be mainly from non-swift drivers), and I'm a little reluctant to hit them up. However, they may be the only company that gives me a chance to change my future. Ever since my mom died, I've been trying to find myself and what I want to do... I love driving and trucking seems to be a good career for me. It's unfortunate that these companies only see my work history and say NOPE. Can anyone give me insight as to what to do or who I should look into for PAID CDL training? I can get my permit, that's not a problem. Sorry this is a long post, just kind of venting right now. Have a great day!

Tyler