Just A Matter Of Money

I failed a pre-employment drug test, so obviously no job, a week later I was signed up with my SAP , paid $850 for material and a few days after was done and in the RTD status. I am using a third party to continue with my drug testing to get cleared to drive again. Honestly, after reading article after article and hearing how companies won't touch you, what's the point? It's already hard enough just finding a driving job without experience. Experience, Experience, but no one will hire you to get the experience. How frustrating. My uncle has been a driver for 30 yrs and back in his day they all learned on the job, that's how it should be. I feel like the $850 I spent was a waste of money for no future in trucking. The clearinghouse makes it seem like, oh you'll be good to go after you finish your RTD, NO we won't. 5 yrs it stays on your record, I'm being treated like I committed a felony. I messed up one night, the weekend, my personal time, I would never drive under the influence. This Clearing house is so black and white and it shouldn't be.

I failed a pre-employment drug test, so obviously no job, a week later I was signed up with my SAP , paid $850 for material and a few days after was done and in the RTD status. I am using a third party to continue with my drug testing to get cleared to drive again. Honestly, after reading article after article and hearing how companies won't touch you, what's the point? It's already hard enough just finding a driving job without experience. Experience, Experience, but no one will hire you to get the experience. How frustrating. My uncle has been a driver for 30 yrs and back in his day they all learned on the job, that's how it should be. I feel like the $850 I spent was a waste of money for no future in trucking. The clearinghouse makes it seem like, oh you'll be good to go after you finish your RTD, NO we won't. 5 yrs it stays on your record, I'm being treated like I committed a felony. I messed up one night, the weekend, my personal time, I would never drive under the influence. This Clearing house is so black and white and it shouldn't be.

Wendy, you are obviously someone who needs to find employment in a field that does not require drug testing. The trucking industry offers many, many opportunities for “on the job training”, but only to individuals who can stay away from drugs. You state that you only messed up one night. If you mess up “just one night” while driving, people could die as a result. Therefore, there are those black and white rules. My advice to you is to find another profession where zero drug use and not accepting the consequences of your actions are not so critical.

It's already hard enough just finding a driving job without experience. Experience, Experience, but no one will hire you to get the experience. How frustrating. My uncle has been a driver for 30 yrs and back in his day they all learned on the job, that's how it should be. I feel like the $850 I spent was a waste of money for no future in trucking. The clearinghouse makes it seem like, oh you'll be good to go after you finish your RTD, NO we won't. 5 yrs it stays on your record, I'm being treated like I committed a felony. I messed up one night, the weekend, my personal time, I would never drive under the influence. This Clearing house is so black and white and it shouldn't be.

How do you think you get experience? You get it by going to school, going out with a trainer for a certain length of time and then for the first year or two you are learning on the job. Your time out with the trainer gives you some experience but you will mostly get it when you run solo.

However, what does experience have to do with you popping hot on the pre-employment test? That should be your sole focus. While the Clearing House keeps failed drug tests for 5 years, if we didn't have the Clearing House, it sounds like you would apply to drive and quite possibly not tell the company that you failed the drug test previously. It's not the companies that you have to worry about, you have to worry about the company's insurance company. They are the ones that set the rules for how long after getting a failed drug or alcohol test. Some companies require 10 years clean, some seven, but pretty much most of them have the minimum of 5 years clean. So, how would you prove to them that you only did drugs one time in your life? There is no way you can prove it. So, you pretty much have to put your wish of being a driver off for a number of years and get time between your failed drug test and when companies may be willing to take you on.

With a downturn in freight, which is slow right now, you don't stand a chance against the person who has never done drugs and has always tested clean and takes responsibilities for when they screw up. You need to do that.

The OP joined the Trucking Truth 8 years ago! Maybe should have been reading some of the posts since 2015 would have prevented this self-made problem?

The OP joined the Trucking Truth 8 years ago! Maybe should have been reading some of the posts since 2015 would have prevented this self-made problem?

YUUUPPP!

We now live in the age of “I shouldn’t have to suffer the consequences of my actions!” The offspring of the “entitlement community.” 🤔

You seem to lack a general understanding of what accountability is and you absolutely chose to try entering the wrong field with that kind of mentality. Trucking requires a very high degree of accountability. You have a long, long way to go before you can ever consider being successful as a truck driver.

As a CDL Instructor at a mega carrier... I call BS on the "it's so hard to get experience". If you were rejected by trucking companies before your failed drug test, then you have other issues in your past. Whether that be tickets, accidents, or lack of work history .

Next it will be "trucking is sexist and they won't hire me cause I'm a woman". Another BS excuse people give.

Your uncle of 30 years should have explained how important staying clean is.

... what's the point? It's already hard enough just finding a driving job without experience. Experience, Experience, but no one will hire you to get the experience. How frustrating.

In a time of shrinking freight volumes and experienced drivers with clean records being laid off or furloughed it's going to be tough to get started with your history of drug addiction. I wouldn't recommend any of these choices to someone who had better options. You have limited options but you do have options:

A) You don't mention what part of the country you are from or I would give you a list. Here are the DIY instructions:

1) Go to Indeed.com

2) Type, "SAP Friendly" into the box marked, "What".

3) Type the name of a city and state near where you live in the box marked, "Where".

4) Apply. Apply. Apply. Ignore the requirements in the ads (ie, "two years of experience") - that's what they want, what they're willing to settle for may be very different. Call back the next business day to, "check on your application"

B) Go to Craigslist.com for your area. Look for jobs seeking CDL drivers in fields other than logistics. Dump trucks, road construction, movers, etc. These companies tend to be less picky.

C) If all else fails, go 1099. You'll pay a fortune in insurance but you will gain experience and time between you and your FMCSA Clearinghouse record. Time and experience driving with a clean record are the only things that will fix your situation.

Pacific pearl.... This person does not have a CDL from what I gathered. She needs training and schooling. Your options are not available.

Good points though