hey guys, i just got out of trucking school but my age is getting in the way of my new career. im 21 years old and a lot of companys require you to be 23+ and experience. i do think schneider, werner(heard bad things about them tho), and conway/cfi would take me but i'd like some more opinions. i would also like to be home every week or close to that. i know everyone has their own views on companys but i'm sure you guys can still point me in the right direction.

oh and one more thing. my current job is laying me off june 15 w/ severance pay. so it would be stupid for me to quit now. but that means i will have a month of no truck driving experience. will that affect a company hiring me...do i have to do the training all over again?

 

At 21 you are not going to be able to afford to be overly picky when it comes to that first job. As you are finding out there are not many companies willing to hire someone under 23-25 y/o, and the whole truth is that until you get a few more years of life under you the age thing is going to be an issue no matter how much experience you get.

The answer to your question about being out of school....etc is yes. After 30 days passes from the time you "graduate" the fewer companies will hire a student. In other words, your most options for employment will be in the 1st 30 days and then they will start dwindling.

 

It also depends on where you are...

Where do you live?

 

You'll hear bad things about most everybody.

Being 21 your options are not very plenty. Being home every week :shock: Good Luck.

How close are you to your birthday?

According to the company listings here on Class A These companies accept 21 year olds:
Arrow Trucking
C.R. England
CRST Van Expedited
FFE
KLLM
May Trucking Company
Millis Transfer
Schnieder
Trans Am
USF Glen More


June 15th is not that far away. Get your applications out, Get your pre-hires in.

Unless you are willing to cough up some extra money for the refresher course that you may be required to take -- is that how you want to spend that severence pay?
If your severance is going to be big enough to pay for:
a refresher course (when i priced them they ranged from $400 to $2k)
live on
tie you over until your paychecks start coming in
then by all means wait.

Otherwise, in a layoff situation you have to look at your own long and short term needs.

 

yeah, get started now. i had some issues with the grad date being far from my application date. CFI was one of them.

get the app started now and let them know you cant start til june 15
you should be fine. i think CFI was 45 or 60 days from grad to hire time required.

 

Virginia Beach, Virginia. Home of the small waves haha.

-April 16th was my birthday
-Thanks for the list of companys. I'm going to look those guys up and see what they offer
-My school just told me I could come in whenever I want to refresh my driving skills
-severance pay will pay off school and the rest is play money

Good to hear from someone in the same situation as me (hope it all worked out for you tho). thanks for the advice!

 

It can take time to get through the application process. The sooner you get started, the better. It may be difficult with no experience to get home every weekend. There are a few who can, but if this is something you really want to do, then be prepared to pay some dues. Most companies seem to start inexperienced drivers out by keeping them out from 2-3 weeks at a time. If home time is important to you then I would find out about that first. At your age and without experience you are not in a strong bargaining position. If you are persistent you will find a company.

 

well i tried appling at a bunch of local companies (school gave me a hot list of hiring companys). couple of them called me back but the trucks i will be driving are straight trucks and won't give me the experience in the semi's. guess im gonna have to go with OTR. i wish my current employer would hurry up and terminate me so i can get out there and start my new career. i mean, i would just put in my 2 weeks notice but then i dont get severance pay (who would give that up, you know?). im gonna stop complaining now haha. i guess once i get in there im gonna have to go thru the whole driving school thing again. that would blow...

anyways, looking forward to seeing you guys out there...

 

Hoodlumcorp -- tough spot to be in. :?

What's your plan B if business picks up where you're currently employed?

Start applying at OTR companies and see how things develop.

Best to you!

 

It's a real tough spot to be in. i just got a place but my two roommates can watch over it while i am gone (i trust them with anything). i pretty stressed out about everything but i know if i stay positive i will make it thru.

To answer your question "Bigwheels"...whether business picks up or not, i have a cdl license and im gonna put it to use. they did give me a choice of taking part-time or taking manager position. i said screw it, i have a cdl license now and i will take the 4 months severance pay. theres no future for me at that place, see what im saying.

anyways...im applying at OTR companies right now. im kinda stoked about traveling the country and getting paid to do it. i'll get rid of my car (its financed) and car insurance and all i got to worry bout is rent at my house. i know there's good money doing this, i can't freaking wait ...