Hired by Knight Transportation and Celadon...Which One?

[Gunstra]

I am currently approved to come to Orientation for both Knight Transportation out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal and Celadon Trucking out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal. Here is what they both tell me:

Knight Transport: $0.34 cpm, out 5-7 days and home 2, claims they no longer ask you were you feel comfortable running according to the recruiter, you just take general freight I guess.

Celadon: $0.32 cpm out 14 and home 2, run where ever they ask make to run, as in I guess forced dispatch. Earn 1 week off and $1000 every 30k miles (no week off with first 30K).

Which one would you take? I have to make a decision today and start either one on Monday for orientation. Any information you have that is recent on either company I would appreciate. Especially if you can give me a run down of what to expect at orientation from either company, such as the physical, paperwork, driving test and etc.

[BIG JEEP on 44's]

I am currently approved to come to Orientation for both Knight Transportation out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal and Celadon Trucking out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal. Here is what they both tell me:

Knight Transport: $0.34 cpm, out 5-7 days and home 2, claims they no longer ask you were you feel comfortable running according to the recruiter, you just take general freight I guess.

Celadon: $0.32 cpm out 14 and home 2, run where ever they ask make to run, as in I guess forced dispatch. Earn 1 week off and $1000 every 30k miles (no week off with first 30K).

Which one would you take? I have to make a decision today and start either one on Monday for orientation. Any information you have that is recent on either company I would appreciate. Especially if you can give me a run down of what to expect at orientation from either company, such as the physical, paperwork, driving test and etc.

I would go with Knight .

[dobry4u]

I am currently approved to come to Orientation for both Knight Transportation out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal and Celadon Trucking out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal. Here is what they both tell me:

Knight Transport: $0.34 cpm, out 5-7 days and home 2, claims they no longer ask you were you feel comfortable running according to the recruiter, you just take general freight I guess.

Celadon: $0.32 cpm out 14 and home 2, run where ever they ask make to run, as in I guess forced dispatch. Earn 1 week off and $1000 every 30k miles (no week off with first 30K).

Which one would you take? I have to make a decision today and start either one on Monday for orientation. Any information you have that is recent on either company I would appreciate. Especially if you can give me a run down of what to expect at orientation from either company, such as the physical, paperwork, driving test and etc.

Great news that you have work!!!! You are going to have to figure out which company you are more suited to succeed at. No one can make that decision for you.

BOL, be safe, and see you on the road!

[belpre122]

I am currently approved to come to Orientation for both Knight Transportation out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal and Celadon Trucking out of the Indianapolis, IN terminal. Here is what they both tell me:

Knight Transport: $0.34 cpm, out 5-7 days and home 2, claims they no longer ask you were you feel comfortable running according to the recruiter, you just take general freight I guess.

Celadon: $0.32 cpm out 14 and home 2, run where ever they ask make to run, as in I guess forced dispatch. Earn 1 week off and $1000 every 30k miles (no week off with first 30K).

Which one would you take? I have to make a decision today and start either one on Monday for orientation. Any information you have that is recent on either company I would appreciate. Especially if you can give me a run down of what to expect at orientation from either company, such as the physical, paperwork, driving test and etc.

I dunno Brent. A few weeks ago you were looking for local (central Indiana). I floated the fuel hauling jobs out of Indianapolis to you. To which, you replied.........in effect........'Saturday is for family and Sunday is for God.' OK, if those are your beliefs, I totally respect that. I respectfully gave up and let it go at that point as I believed that you were dead set on finding a local position with weekends off.

Maybe I am missing something here. Fast forward to 21 Nov, and you are asking for guidance about two OTR companies (coolie carriers) that are going to keep you out for at least a minimum of 7 days at a time, possibly up to 3 weeks on a cycle? Huh? Guess that I misread everything. My bad. I guess.

[Gunstra]

I dunno Brent. A few weeks ago you were looking for local (central Indiana). I floated the fuel hauling jobs out of Indianapolis to you. To which, you replied.........in effect........'Saturday is for family and Sunday is for God.' OK, if those are your beliefs, I totally respect that. I respectfully gave up and let it go at that point as I believed that you were dead set on finding a local position with weekends off.

Maybe I am missing something here. Fast forward to 21 Nov, and you are asking for guidance about two OTR companies (coolie carriers) that are going to keep you out for at least a minimum of 7 days at a time, possibly up to 3 weeks on a cycle? Huh? Guess that I misread everything. My bad. I guess.

No you didn't misread anything lol, jobs seem to be very scarce right now in the local areas as everyone seems to be closing up shop and filing chapter 13 or 11.

I applied to OTR companies in the hopes that I could get home weekends, Celadon's website claims they have regional and their site claims they let the driver choose what fits them best, but I am hearing from others this is a lie that you have to be chosen for regional after working there awhile.

Basically I have been out of work for weeks now, MKM has had my unemployment put on hold and I am running out of money in the bank pretty much as of this month and will be about $600 short for Decembers bills. So I feel it's left to nothing but going out on the road even though I don't want to but am pretty much forced to with a wife and 2 kids at home and child support on 2 others.

I would jump on the first local driving job I could find that would pay at least $14 an hour right now but they don't seem to exist right now.

[belpre122]

I would jump on the first local driving job I could find that would pay at least $14 an hour right now but they don't seem to exist right now.

Oh man! I was trying to steer you towards a $20.00 hour local fuel hauling job that pays OT after 40 hours and they were desperately looking for drivers and were willing to train!

These guys regularly work around 60 hours per week.

40 X $20.00 = $800.00 (before overtime)
20 X $30.00 = $600.00 (with overtime)
= $1400.00 weekly gross. And, yes, they are all getting it. And yes, they are home every day! Maybe not Saturday or Sunday..........but they are making that kind of money. Some actually do get the weekend off! (seniority)

Just trying to help you bro............but you made it very hard.

[BHG0069]

I would go with neither company. Go with the fuel hauling gig belpre122 told you about.

You will hate working with either of those companys if you have a wife and two kids at home.

[Gunstra]

Oh man! I was trying to steer you towards a $20.00 hour local fuel hauling job that pays OT after 40 hours and they were desperately looking for drivers and were willing to train!

These guys regularly work around 60 hours per week.

40 X $20.00 = $800.00 (before overtime)
20 X $30.00 = $600.00 (with overtime)
= $1400.00 weekly gross. And, yes, they are all getting it. And yes, they are home every day! Maybe not Saturday or Sunday..........but they are making that kind of money. Some actually do get the weekend off! (seniority)

Just trying to help you bro............but you made it very hard.

That would be great, I would love a job like that but I do not have Hazmat (which would take weeks to get) and I don't have Tanker either. Now if they are willing to hire someone, pay them while training them to get their hazmat and tanker that could work but I doubt they would do that.

I do appreciate your help, don't get me wrong and I am not saying I didn't read your post when you sent it to my last thread, it's just I don't seem to either have the endorsements or qualifications when it comes to alot of jobs, which most companies are so very hard up these days I don't understand why my experience doesn't cut it, I have local and otr experience.

[bongo]

I dunno Brent. A few weeks ago you were looking for local (central Indiana). I floated the fuel hauling jobs out of Indianapolis to you. To which, you replied.........in effect........'Saturday is for family and Sunday is for God.' OK, if those are your beliefs, I totally respect that. I respectfully gave up and let it go at that point as I believed that you were dead set on finding a local position with weekends off.

Maybe I am missing something here. Fast forward to 21 Nov, and you are asking for guidance about two OTR companies (coolie carriers) that are going to keep you out for at least a minimum of 7 days at a time, possibly up to 3 weeks on a cycle? Huh? Guess that I misread everything. My bad. I guess.

I'm new on this board but have been reading it for a while. I noticed that there are a lot of new drivers seeking advice and thats great. Myself I have been driving for 15 years. Had local gigs,some over the road. I have had mostly lucrative jobs in the food industry and a few lousey ones too.
My question is this "coolie carrier" characteration? Whats up with that? I must be in the presence of greatness.
It not for all and maybe not me but that seems to be a huge slam to some looking to find there way. One always needs to remember what is here today might not be here tommorow. I'm in no way a fan of the mega carriers but it can be someones path to figuring this industry out for themselves.

[catalinaflyer]

which most companies are so very hard up these days I don't understand why my experience doesn't cut it, I have local and otr experience.

You had better take which ever one is still available, there have been a huge number of huge and small companies alike that have gone on a hiring freeze this past week. I was lucky to get hired on to LoneStar when I did because they are not scheduling any more new orientations for company drivers till February. I was sitting with the head of recruiting yesterday morning and he was talking to 12 other companies on Wednesday and all but one has froze and 5 of them aren't even taking applications.

A good friend and former co-worker of mine with 16 years OTR and local experience called me this evening and his local tanker job has gone to hell and he's down to 4 to 6 hours a day. He was asking if I could get him on here because he has been calling around all week and out of the 20+ companies he talked to none of them are hiring right now. He gave up a specialized/heavy haul position a year ago making $75k for the local tanker job and now he's not making enough each week to pay his bills let alone buy christmas presents. I put him in touch with a specialized carrier that I had applied to a couple of months ago that had offered me a position hauling wind blades early last week. He called me back 15 minutes later to tell me that they had told him they would take his app. but they weren't taking any more drivers till February or March.

So in short, if you have got a job offer of any kind you might want to take it no mater how much it's outside your "desired" position just to have a job. As for the difference between Celadon and Knight, which one is your favorite color. I don't think there's a difference between the two other than the paint job on the trucks. Your going to be out 2 to 3 weeks at a time with either one no matter what the recruiter tells you. Go into the job telling yourself and your family that you WILL be gone at least three weeks at a time and then when you do make it home sooner it will be a bonus.

Anybody remember 1929?? While your sitting this weekend you might want to take a trip to the Library or Barnes & Nobel and read about it then be thankful you have a job right now. I'm not a doomsday'er but it could get really dark and cold here in the "land of prosperity" real soon.

[Colts Fan]

My outfit is hiring 4 drivers right now. We are right next to MKM on 74th St.

[Bug]

I have heard the same thing alot of companies arent hiring at the moment . Sure hope freight picks up sooner than later.

[scythe08]

In the local paper, the only Ads for Drivers are the ones that are there from the mega carriers,,,Swift,Knight,Schneider,,ect. Last weeks ad had 7 ads compared to when they would take up an entire page.

[Howard]

Iwork for BAYLOR main office in Milan In. truck can go home with you Home very sat and sun leave early mon morn Call them ask for Robin. She is a nice lady to talk to. You will start at 39 cents a mile. They have regional like you want.





Thanks

[Howard]

Heres baylor no. 1-800-322-9567

[slipseater]

Holy cow! With 1-2 years experience, why would you want to give up weekends for 32-34 cents a mile and forced dispatch? If you HAVE to take a job, I'd say it was a toss up and I would go for the most money, but I made that much money OTR in 1996!! Plus, I only worked 2 weekends that year. Indianapolis should offer more than that. It's a big metro area. Look harder for more money. For what drivers go through, you deserve more than $850 a week (2500 miles x 34 cents). I made $58,000 in my last OTR job and was off over 48 hours every weekend, then went to a local making $55,000 a year. Don't give yourself away for 34 ents a mile. This industry is too hard on you, your body and your family to work for low pay.

If I were you I would start Googling "local truck driving jobs in Indianapolis" and list other cities in your area or google "trucking companies in Indianapolis" and nearby cities. There is freight everywhere that runs through Indy. It should be an excellent area to be hired from. Keep searching. See if you can get a local tank hauler to train you. The test is easy to study for and take and it doesn't cost much to add it to your license if you already have hazmat. There are better things than 32-34 cents a mile jobs. Gheesh, pretty soon people making minimum wage will be making more than OTR truck drivers.

[rkeck]

I's have to agree with one reply, take whatever you can get into. Knight has a sliding pay scale, depending on trip length. But they work on a "local" business and dispatch model which I've found to be pretty good. I don't know anything about Celadon except they rely heavily on auto parts freight and I think we know where that's headed for the near term.

Carriers can lower rates slightly now and they can stop hiring, or both. They have to do what they can to keep their heads above water, just like you. Many have fallen out lately, and rest assured the culling is not done yet.

In this climate, don't be too choosy, take what you can get, and try and ride out this next year or so and pray that Obama doesn't implement many of his desired policies and run us further into the ground than we already are ... yes, things can get worse than they are right now and we may well have that proven to us over the next year or so. But look at the bright side, imagine the worst HMO plan you were ever on and multiply that by 10, that's what you'll have for health care, and it will be ALMOST cheap! And if your employer pays for your health care, you can look forward to having that taxed as an income benefit! And having your 401k participation moving from non-taxed to taxed. yeah!!!

Oh joy, socialism and near communism are just around the corner (and most are clueless) I'll get flamed because they think I'm exagerating far too much. Have you not seen the Obama rallies with the old USSR flags and banners being displayed by Obama supporters? And his hinting about eventually creating a "civilian defense force"? (with no explanation what he means by that)

[TomB985]

In this climate, don't be too choosy, take what you can get, and try and ride out this next year or so and pray that Obama doesn't implement many of his desired policies and run us further into the ground than we already are ... yes, things can get worse than they are right now and we may well have that proven to us over the next year or so. But look at the bright side, imagine the worst HMO plan you were ever on and multiply that by 10, that's what you'll have for health care, and it will be ALMOST cheap! And if your employer pays for your health care, you can look forward to having that taxed as an income benefit! And having your 401k participation moving from non-taxed to taxed. yeah!!!

Oh joy, socialism and near communism are just around the corner (and most are clueless) I'll get flamed because they think I'm exagerating far too much. Have you not seen the Obama rallies with the old USSR flags and banners being displayed by Obama supporters? And his hinting about eventually creating a "civilian defense force"? (with no explanation what he means by that)

While I agree with you 100%, this is NOT the place for this, nor is it relevent to the discussion. Will just serve to derail the thread, and end up in another 10 page slugfest...

[Gunstra]

Update:

I actually ended up going back to Rapid Logistics as an Independent Contractor driver with a % of the load. I used to work for this company when they had a contract with Bax Global. It's not a bad company and it keeps my butt at home to see my kids grow up & to help watch the kids while my wife is in college to become an RN.

I want to thank everyone who offered help in this thread, I appreciate it very much. God Bless and Be Safe.

Brent

[Bug]

Thats great news keep us posted and let us know how it goes.