Questions For The Recruiters

Hello all and good day. I have a list of potential carriers that I will be applying for. Before I start getting bombarded by emails and phone calls I would like it if the community could fill me in on any important items I need to address, or questions I should ask. Anything beyond what a rookie is going to ask that can tell me more about the carrier I’m about to sign with. All the carriers I have on my list are ones that offer their own training. Also, any advice on the different carriers you’ve experienced, or other carriers would be great full. Thanks you all stay safe out there. Hopefully be meeting you all at a truck stop soon.

Before the question is asked I thought I would include my list of potential carriers: Celadon
Central Refrigerated
C.R. England
Knight
Maverick
Millis
PAM
Swift
TMC
USA Truck

Also, In my research I've found that TMC and a few others offer 2 pay categories. In regards to TMC they offer mileage or percentage. Now since it states that most of their mileage is within 500 miles I can see where it benefits to take the percentage option. I can also see that as the price of freight is raised so does your pay but if the freight price is lowered so is your pay, so I'm wondering how often does freight price fluctuate? Does, it rise more than it falls?

Thanks again for your time and advice. Stay safe out there.

Central Refrigerated is Swift

Look here. questions to ask trucking company recruiters. Read through those and you should have all the questions you need. I would also suggest looking at CFI. With a one year commitment you end up paying zero for you CDL training and license and get paid. Good luck.

Workhorse, a couple of things here.

First of all, it doesn't help that much to gather first hand experiences from other drivers. Great drivers have great experiences anywhere they work, lousy drivers have lousy experiences anywhere they work. Every company in the nation has a chorus of people singing their praises and a chorus of people blasting them to bits.

If you have very specific questions about a carrier then first hand experience is more helpful. But the general, "How do you like it there?" kind of stuff isn't going to be helpful.

You really only need to worry about a few things, mainly:

1) How often do you want to get home?

2) What type of freight do you want to haul?

3) What regions of the country would you like to run?

I noticed your list includes everything - flatbed carriers, dry van carriers, refrigerated carriers, and some with a mix of various types of freight. You'll want to decide up front which type you'd like to start with. Unless your heart is really set on flatbed I would start with dry van or refrigerated, depending on how often you'd like to get home.

Once you answer those questions you'll narrow down the choices considerably. At that point apply to any companies that fit those choices and see who offers you a position. People are always spending tons of time evaluating companies only to find out they're not even being offered a position by most of the companies they had on their list. So apply first, then do a deeper evaluation of the companies that are actually interested in hiring you.

You can Apply For Paid CDL Training right here on our website and it will go to several different carriers. You can then apply directly to others you may be interested in.

Also, read through these if you haven't already:

• Trucker's Career Guide: Choosing Your First Truck Driving Job
• Article Category: Finding The Right Truck Driving Job
• Forum Topics Tagged "Choosing A Trucking Company"

Apply For Paid CDL Training

Someone must play the role of Captain Obvious...might as well be me.

Malcom,...now "Workhorse", the issue you are going to have no matter how well you prepare for interacting with a recruiter is the question found on every application; "have you ever failed a drug test?"

Unless you lie, you will likely be prompted for the date of the failure; in your case rather recent, May-ish 2016. Everything will then come to a grinding halt... Implied here, you must answer the question truthfully, they will find out if you don't disclose this, be honest. Reality; you are competing with an overwhelming majority of applicants who have never failed a drug test. "Never" always trumps "recent" every time.

Here is what I suggest you try; narrow your search focusing on second chance companies that might conditionally consider hiring you. Two that come to mind are Western Express and Carolina Cargo. Call them and tell them your story, see if they will work with you. Use Google search to find archived threads on second chance companies.

Realize something; you are attempting to enter an industry having zero tolerance for drug use and alcohol. A trace of any prohibited substance will cause a fail, no matter how legitiment the explanation. A "trace", is all it takes. To further emphasize this we all need to exercise care to the point of using alcohol free mouth wash.

Don't give up, just redirect your focus.

Good luck.

Thank you Big Scott for your shout out to CFI is there anything you can tell me about their training process? Any and all information would be helpful.

To G-town thanks for your input as well, I know that my semi-recent bad decision is a hurtle that I must pass before I can continue to Step 2. I have been honest as I received a call from a recruiter with CRST just this morning and that conversation is already over. I will look into the "Second chance" companies as you called them. Should I be concerned though that since they are taking chances with people that they are hiring the drivers who want to be paid to drive and use? I'm not looking to get with a company that will tarnish my reputation due to association. I want to be a true professional in the industry known for Safety, Efficiency, and Punctuality.

Workhorse, a couple of things here.

First of all, it doesn't help that much to gather first hand experiences from other drivers. Great drivers have great experiences anywhere they work, lousy drivers have lousy experiences anywhere they work. Every company in the nation has a chorus of people singing their praises and a chorus of people blasting them to bits.

If you have very specific questions about a carrier then first hand experience is more helpful. But the general, "How do you like it there?" kind of stuff isn't going to be helpful.

You really only need to worry about a few things, mainly:

1) How often do you want to get home?

2) What type of freight do you want to haul?

3) What regions of the country would you like to run?

I noticed your list includes everything - flatbed carriers, dry van carriers, refrigerated carriers, and some with a mix of various types of freight. You'll want to decide up front which type you'd like to start with. Unless your heart is really set on flatbed I would start with dry van or refrigerated, depending on how often you'd like to get home.

Once you answer those questions you'll narrow down the choices considerably. At that point apply to any companies that fit those choices and see who offers you a position. People are always spending tons of time evaluating companies only to find out they're not even being offered a position by most of the companies they had on their list. So apply first, then do a deeper evaluation of the companies that are actually interested in hiring you.

You can Apply For Paid CDL Training right here on our website and it will go to several different carriers. You can then apply directly to others you may be interested in.

Also, read through these if you haven't already:

• Trucker's Career Guide: Choosing Your First Truck Driving Job
• Article Category: Finding The Right Truck Driving Job
• Forum Topics Tagged "Choosing A Trucking Company"

Apply For Paid CDL Training

Thanks Bret, that covered A LOT of useful information. I also want to say that I'm not really concerned with the type of freight that I run, does that matter? Not being a professional driver I don't know the pro's and con's of the different types and just as it's repeatedly suggested to get as many endorsements as I can for marketability I thought perhaps having experience in the different freight types would be just as beneficial. I have thought though that starting out it might be better to do dry van or reefer. What are your thoughts?

I will look into the "Second chance" companies as you called them. Should I be concerned though that since they are taking chances with people that they are hiring the drivers who want to be paid to drive and use? I'm not looking to get with a company that will tarnish my reputation due to association.

Those companies are not looking for drivers who want to "use." They are just a little more lenient with their hiring standards so they can keep drivers in their trucks. If association with them tarnishes one's reputation, then mine is ruined. I started at Western Express, and got a great foundation for my career there.

Workhorse, as difficult as it may be, you are going to have to accept that your reputation is already tarnished. It will be very difficult for you to get started in this career. The very first thing you need to work on is getting several pre-hire letters lined up. Then you've got to figure out how to get your license. It's highly unlikely a Paid CDL Training Program will take you with that recent failed drug test. Maybe CFI will do it, but I just don't know. If they will, you should jump all over it.

Here's some links to help you understand the whole pre-hire letter process:

• Article: Understanding Pre-Hire Letters: The What, Why, And How Of This Important Step
• Trucker's Wiki: "Pre-Hire Letters"
• Forum Topics Tagged "CDL Pre-Hire Letters"