Gap In Employment.

On the 17th of October it will have been 3 months since I obtained my CDL. From everything I've seen I am no longer a recent graduate at that point. Also, I worked for a month at a trucking company, but left on September 4th. Mind you...I did retire from a 20 year career that ended in may of this year. Question is...will the gap in employment and not being a recent graduate scare potential employers away? Thank you.

It will present a question, but there will probably be another question of why were only at your first driving job for a month.

The company told me I'd work 10-12 hour shifts, which was more like 12-14 with a 16 hour exception in there. Also see deceptive on pay.

I can't really figure out what's troubling you. I think it is more than just the small gap in employment.

There is a reason for the gap. I think you are just experiencing typical rookie frustration with the trucking career. Maybe trucking isn't really a good fit for you. There's no shame in that. If you don't think you are a good fit for this career, then move on to something else.

To say something like this...

The company told me I'd work 10-12 hour shifts, which was more like 12-14 with a 16 hour exception in there. Also see deceptive on pay.

indicates you are frustrated with your job, but also indicates some general false expectations about the trucking career. Truck drivers work long hours. Rookies work longer hours sometimes due to their inefficiencies. I know of very few truck drivers who don't work long days. It is part of our job, and it is legal according to the regulations we work under. I have never asked a potential trucking employer how many hours I would be working. I know that I will be working enough hours to get the job done. I understand that will involve wasted times of waiting and other frustrations that come with the territory. Trucking days are inconsistent for the most part. We learn to deal with the issues and try our best to be creative so we can overcome the obstacles. That's part of what I love about trucking. It challenges me to be pro-active and solve the problems that cause others to give up.

I think I agree with PackRat. Your one month stint is more of a problem than your three months out from trucking school. You are showing potential employers that you are willing to cut and run from frustration. All new truck drivers struggle with the hours and the demands of the job. Many of them don't understand how the pay works and then they start acting like the company is deceptive with their payroll methods. One month is way too short a time to get a feel for this career. You quit without really considering the ramifications of what you might be doing to your future trucking career. You lacked the commitment to dig in and learn how to make it out here.

How did you start? Did you go for an OTR job like we so strongly recommend? Did you try to start local or as an LTL driver? When you mentioned the 16 hour exception it makes me think you tried something local or maybe an LTL position. I know our LTL guys get upset with me and take this stuff too personal, but I think you may have gotten yourself into trouble by starting this way. What kind of job was it that you quit?

I still think you can get hired. Someone will take a chance on you. Are you up to it? Can you commit to someone for a year so that you can begin to get a small understanding of the career? You haven't really learned anything by quitting after just one month. You didn't like it or you thought you were being cheated so you quit. That is going to be a problem to any potential employers.

Here's a podcast I highly recommend you listening to...

Why You Need To Stick With Your First Company For One Full Year