Thinking About Career Change From Law Enforcement To Truck Driving
Topic 28390 | Page 2
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DannyB - I retired after 28 years municipal as a patrol dog: truck enforcement, FTO, Rangemaster, supervision, Training Sgt and Admin Sgt. I can tell you with certainty, there is MUCH less drama in this industry than the one you are contemplating leaving. Unless you want drama, then you can make as much as you want, and the people surrounding you will doubtless assist you with it. The first year or so is tough if you have kids, or a spouse or sig-ot that wants you around a lot. I worked pm's and nights, so my wife and I were used to not seeing each other every day. I did miss my high school aged son's entire junior year which was tough. I spent 15 months OTR with my first outfit, and was glad to go to local day cab work. Until I started to get into my wife's routine.
OTR is rough for the family, but the opportunity to learn, and develop good driving habits is better if you run the 14-10 clock out of a sleeper berth. On the plus side of the circle - your interaction skills will play well in the industry. If you treat every interaction as an opportunity to practice your street persuasion skills, before long you'll be a star player for your outfit. The self reliance, basic willingness to follow rules and policies, and integrity that our background entails are positives to a company looking for talent.
Good luck, Brother, and Stay Safe until the big day gets here!
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.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
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.