I Need Recent TMC TR Info. Please No Sarcasm.

I am young and have been professionally employed since I was 18. I've spent a good amount of time in college and have worked hard to learn as much as I can about as much as I can. I've recently been in a position making close to 40k a year and then I lost that position due to circumstances that were completely out of my control. I am responsible. I am hard working. I am goal-oriented and will do anything within my physical capability to make sure that my family succeeds. I give this "Schpeel" to you guys/gals to try to dampen some of the comments I tend to find on other forums regarding this question.

I did have THC in my system and have been cleaned up for months. In the meantime, I've been working at the same style job that I was employed in before but making far less while doing harder work (would average to around 20k a month). My family and I have talked about it and decided that we're comfortable with me taking on a trucking career to make sure that we reach our life goals. I am happy to wait as long as I need to so that I prove to whichever company I choose that I am no addict and will happily stop partaking in what used to be a free time after work hobby BUT I would rather jump into the trucking industry as soon as possible to pull my family out of near poverty. Basically I say all of this to ask if TMC Transportation does hair follicle testing. I have read on other websites that they did not as of 2017/2018 but can not find any recent information. I've never done anything else that would make me fail a drug screening but I am nervous about wasting my time/ jumping the gun and applying for this job because I obviously do not want to embarrass myself and ruin my chances at a good career.

I'll be open and positive about any shaming that may come my way by this question but I would really appreciate good information. My hobby was only that and will never be taken back up again as long as I am an OTR driver. If the only requirements for this company, in particular, are a standard 5-panel test I will ace it no problem and will feel very confident about applying asap. If they will do hair follicle testing I will more than likely continue my waiting, keep my current miserable job, and grind through the months until I am confident I can pass the hair follicle test as well.

If nobody here can answer that question, a recruiter surely can. You don't have to tell them all of what you told us here, just ask the question along with the other 500 questions you will most likely have about the company. I asked a few recruiters the same question and it was not held against me.

I just finished my two week orientation. TMC doesn’t do hair tests at the SOuth Carolina training facility. I would assume their one in Iowa is the same

Looks to me like you are just trying to better yourself bud. No harm in asking. You def don’t want to shoot yourself in the foot over bad timing. Just make sure you pass the **** test! And if you are hired we wanna hear all about the experience! I love tmc tags.

Hey Josh, I've got a question about something you may not have thought about yet. Then just a few comments for you to think about.

1) How will you answer this question: "Have you ever failed a drug test?" It will come up on a federal form that you are required to fill out. It is a federal offense to perjure yourself on this form. The trucking career is a "safety sensitive" occupation. These trucking companies have an incredible exposure to liability. You will be scrutinized thoroughly. Just passing a current drug test may not be enough to secure yourself a position.

Trucking is a major Commitment. Getting into it is not just like switching jobs. It is a lifestyle choice. It hits a lot of people right in the teeth unexpectedly.

I love trucking. I hope you will too. I meet truckers everyday. Most of them seem miserable. Personally, I would never pursue a career that I despised. Yet I meet truckers everyday who blame all their problems on their career. They've chosen this job because they can make decent money at it. They keep the job because they make decent money, but they continue in their complaining about the "lifestyle."

What I find really disturbing, when conversing with these folks who are "hanging on to misery," is that they are earning far less than me. Trucking is a performance based career. A person who enjoys this lifestyle will have a much easier time excelling at it. There are long hours, erratic sleep schedules, and a lot of time alone with your thoughts. Some people handle that well. For some it's pure torture.

Choose well my friend. Are you raising children? Do you think they will do okay with an absentee Dad? Will you be okay being an absentee Dad? I remember missing my youngest daughter's solo dance in her annual ballet recital. It crushed her. We got past it and she's still crazy about me, but some things like this need to be considered when you take on this type of commitment.

You refer to your smoking as a "free time after work hobby." That's an unusual phrasing to me. I'm not sure what to make of it. I can't make any accusations - I certainly don't know you or care what you do in your free time. I do want you to be aware that a successful trucker has very little "free time." I just think you need to realize the commitment required to do well at this. The concept of a performance based business is lost on most people who've never been in a position where their results are measured as opposed to their time.

I hope you'll hang around here in our forum. We've got a tremendous group of helpful people here who can really help you make a go of this. Avail yourself to them. You're gonna need a lot of advice. This is the only place I know where you'll find honesty, compassion, and genuine understanding of how to get your trucking career off to a good start.

Hello OldSchool,

Feels nice to catch your eye. I've read a bit of your past posts all over the forum. I feel like you misunderstand me a little with your line of questions but i'll start by anwsering your questions.

To your first question I will anwser truthfully. I have never failed a drug test. So I will anwser truthfully on any forms and say that I have never failed one. I have taken many drug tests. I have passed them all naturally.

As far as being prepared for the trucking industry; I've been exposed to it my entire life. My father has been driving since his army days nearly 40 years ago. He only recently (past 10 years) decided to start hauling crude oil to be home daily. I talk with him on a consistent basis. He gives me extremely helpful advice. My father missed almost every single sports game, every single school function, every surgery, and anything else most kids would be hurt deeply by. But I never once had a single negative feeling towards him. He is a great man, a great father, and the hardest working man i've ever met. And i've met more great men then most. I've always known that I was able to be on my sports team, in my high-school/university, able to get the medical attention, etc.. Because of his sacrifice.

I'm certaintly not one to complain about much of anything. I work hard and take on any responsibilities that come my way without batting an eye. I'm applying to TMC in specific so that I can be home most weekends to be with my family. By most I do mean that I am well aware that there will be weekends I will have to work through, and that is perfectly understood and fine with my family and I. While this may end up being a long term career, being an OTR driver in specific will not be. I may not start out as an elite driver that will be able to have any job I want in the industry, but I will bust my ass until i'm at least something close to it. Once I have enough experience and confidence I will definitely look for jobs that will allow me to be home more frequently if this is the career I choose long term. I say "long-term" because I have a seperate business that is being started that does not need my time as much as it needs my money. If that works out well I will pursue that long-term. If it does not work out then I will have a CDL and the experience needed to provide for my family and still achieve my life goals.

By "free time after work hobby" I mean that my average day consisted of waking up sober, going to work sober, coming home, and then enjoying a joint before dinner. While this may seem weird to you I never saw it as any different than having a glass of wine with dinner. My boss knew, my coworkers knew, and my entire family knew. It never made me any less responsible and it never made me a liability or any other negative connotations that come along with marijuana use. In fact, in a field of labor based off of commision, i was consitently the highest grossing and tasked with the most responsibilites. With that being said, I never considered it a habit. I decided I wanted to get my CDL and I quit that minute and havent considered taking it back up since.

As far as hanging around I am 100% certain that I will. It may not be as Josh Jackson but I do really enjoy the comraderie, the tips, the diaries, and everything else that comes with the website. It's really an A+ forum that achieves its purpose.

I have never failed a drug test.

Excellent - that eliminates the issue I was concerned with. You're new in here so we don't know much about you yet. Many people don't realize they're going to be answering questions like that. I wasn't trying to implicate you, I just wanted you to be aware of it. The other thing about posing questions to a newcomer is that others reading this conversation will also learn from our interaction.

my average day consisted of waking up sober, going to work sober, coming home, and then enjoying a joint before dinner. While this may seem weird to you I never saw it as any different than having a glass of wine with dinner.

Actually, it doesn't seem weird to me. I just know most people don't just lay it down like you did. I think it's commendable the way you want to do something positive for your family. I applaud your work ethic and attitude. I always want people to be aware that marijuana use, while acceptable in many areas now, is still something that will end your trucking career immediately upon discovery. I was random checked something like 8 or 9 times in maybe less than a 2 year time frame. I began to think somebody was suspicious, but they assured me it was just sort of a lottery draw. I started buying lottery tickets that year just to see if my luck will hold in the financial arena. No such luck!