Thinking Of Getting My CDL. Have A Few Questions...
Topic 10124 | Page 1
Hey everyone, I have been using this site for a few weeks now to research getting into the trucking industry. Driving a truck has always been something that has excited me since i can remember. The more I look into it though the more nervous i get. I have read lots of different stories of people who get there CDL's but have a hard time (1.) finding a company who will train them and give them the almighty "1 years experience" or (2.) Have found a company willing to train them, but are making barely enough money to support themselves. The idea of driving OTR scares me a little. Mainly the lifestyle and the long hours. I am confident in my ability to do so, but still a apprehensive to the idea. I guess my main question here is if i do get my CDL are my only chances of getting my 1st years experience going to come through one of the big companies willing to train (IE: swift, prime, werner, CRE, USX) or is there another way for a fresh out of school driver to gain there first job? In addition to that, which company compensates their trainees the best with pay and home time? I would appreciate any feedback. Thank you for your time!
Joe - Chicago land area
Joe, you came to the right place. FYI, last November (2014) I decided to take that plunge. At the time, I had no experience, no CDL, "no nothin" for trucking. But I had registered here several months earlier, preparing for a church bus CDL-B which I never completed. Went full bore over Thanksgiving to complete the High Road Training Program. Also looked at Company-Sponsored Training . I wanted to go to school locally (Memphis, TN) and found a few company schools here. I also Applied For Truck Driving Jobs, a shotgun style application. By the first week of December I was set for the second week to start Swift's school. So, my experience is, if you keep on top of things, using the phone and driving around to DMV and DOT Physical, it can happen quickly.
I have read lots of different stories of people who get there CDL's but have a hard time (1.) finding a company who will train them and give them the almighty "1 years experience"
Not so. Even going through Truck Driving Schools you can get a company to hire you and pick up the tuition. Look into Understanding Pre-Hires .
if you are not sure, at the start, whether this gig is for you, check out the Truck Driver's Career Guide and/or read Brett's Book.
And read other experiences here, as well as ask any question. Especially when you get cross-eyed frustrated with backing a trailer. (Yes, you will get frustrated.)
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
Pre-hire:
What Exactly Is A Pre-Hire Letter?
Pre-hire letters are acceptance letters from trucking companies to students, or even potential students, to verify placement. The trucking companies are saying in writing that the student, or potential student, appears to meet the company's minimum hiring requirements and is welcome to attend their orientation at the company’s expense once he or she graduates from truck driving school and has their CDL in hand.
We have an excellent article that will help you Understand The Pre-Hire Process.
A Pre-Hire Letter Is Not A Guarantee Of Employment
The people that receive a pre-hire letter are people who meet the company's minimum hiring requirements, but it is not an employment contract. It is an invitation to orientation, and the orientation itself is a prerequisite to employment.
During the orientation you will get a physical, drug screen, and background check done. These and other qualifications must be met before someone in orientation is officially hired.
Pre-hires:
What Exactly Is A Pre-Hire Letter?
Pre-hire letters are acceptance letters from trucking companies to students, or even potential students, to verify placement. The trucking companies are saying in writing that the student, or potential student, appears to meet the company's minimum hiring requirements and is welcome to attend their orientation at the company’s expense once he or she graduates from truck driving school and has their CDL in hand.
We have an excellent article that will help you Understand The Pre-Hire Process.
A Pre-Hire Letter Is Not A Guarantee Of Employment
The people that receive a pre-hire letter are people who meet the company's minimum hiring requirements, but it is not an employment contract. It is an invitation to orientation, and the orientation itself is a prerequisite to employment.
During the orientation you will get a physical, drug screen, and background check done. These and other qualifications must be met before someone in orientation is officially hired.
Company-sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.
Thanks for the response man. Are you currently driving OTR? If so is it your choice our are you doing it for the experience through your company?
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Also it's nice to read a positive story from someone who was in my position not long ago!
Awesome help from Errol! Nice!
Welcome Joseph.
I would simply add that you should pretty much ignore the "reviews" you'll find on numerous trucking websites about trucking schools or companies. There is quite a bit of unhelpful garbage out there. We heavily moderate this forum to make sure the information presented is accurate and helpful. Most websites don't.
So we always advise people to figure out what they're looking for in trucking and find a company they feel will best provide that. Don't worry too much about anything you hear on the Web about them. Just stick with the facts and ignore the opinions. The most important things are what type of freight do you want to haul and how often would you like to get home? Once you figure out those two items then you'll have a short list of companies to choose from and it won't be too difficult to find the one you feel most comfortable with.
In the links Errol provided you'll find tons of information that will help you understand the industry, choose the right school, and choose the right company.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Joe asks:
Thanks for the response man. Are you currently driving OTR? If so is it your choice our are you doing it for the experience through your company?
My road training was with a mentor who drove a dedicated account. I said I'd like to join up. He (verbally) recommended me to the Driver Manager of the account. But I needed to go OTR first. So, OTR for 5 months. Then I was offered a shuttle run getting me just over 2500 miles a week, and home every night.
Last week, they needed another driver on the shuttle. The new driver was just off her road training, and had no OTR experience. The general rule is it's OTR for you, unless the company needs something else.
BTW for shuttle routes like mine you need to live near one end of the route. You get a day cab that you share with other drivers.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Day Cab:
A tractor which does not have a sleeper berth attached to it. Normally used for local routes where drivers go home every night.
Driver Manager:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Thanks for he response Brett I was hoping I would hear from you! As far as freight I would like to haul pretty much anything that would get me good miles. Is there anything you guys recommend for a newbie? As for home time every night would be ideal but I could defiantly live with weekly. Though I'm not expecting that in my first year.
Also Errol what was your traing pay with swift?
Joe asks:
Also Errol what was your training pay with swift?
Hourly. My mentor kept me in the driver seat as much as possible, including simply driving around sometimes.
* On Duty Driving: $9.50
* On Duty Not Driving: $7.25
Joe boldly states:
I could defiantly live with weekly [home time]
"Hey! It's Friday! I'm going home now! Call me Monday morning!"
Lol a man can dream right? That would be better for me then 10-14 days on the road followed by a couple days off.
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Hey everyone, I have been using this site for a few weeks now to research getting into the trucking industry. Driving a truck has always been something that has excited me since i can remember. The more I look into it though the more nervous i get. I have read lots of different stories of people who get there CDL's but have a hard time (1.) finding a company who will train them and give them the almighty "1 years experience" or (2.) Have found a company willing to train them, but are making barely enough money to support themselves. The idea of driving OTR scares me a little. Mainly the lifestyle and the long hours. I am confident in my ability to do so, but still a apprehensive to the idea. I guess my main question here is if i do get my CDL are my only chances of getting my 1st years experience going to come through one of the big companies willing to train (IE: swift, prime, werner, CRE, USX) or is there another way for a fresh out of school driver to gain there first job? In addition to that, which company compensates their trainees the best with pay and home time? I would appreciate any feedback. Thank you for your time!
Joe - Chicago land area
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.