Truck Driving Jobs

k8cpa · #1 03-11-2013, 12:45 PM

To the newbies,

When you get to the end of driving school. Get with a big company and get with a trainer and go OTR for at least two years.

Wish I'd done that. Instead, I ended up with the fly by night company, I wanted to stay local. I ended up getting into an accident. I hit a freakin' light pole in Wyoming, Michigan. 2 points on license and nobody would touch me.

I sit here, 10 years later, after not being able to find any sort of work, due to my points and the economy and I think, "Boy, did I screw myself."

To all the newbies. Don't think that you can wing it, without a trainer. You can't, you will screw up. I did, and now, at 40 years old; I am going to have to go with Swift or someone else and get a refresher course and TRY to get a job driving.

Don't think you know it all, just because you went to driving school. I went for 8 weeks and I still messed up. Looking back, I wish I just did it right the first time.

Take it from a 40 year old man, do it right, the first time.

-Patrick

Sheepdancer · #2 03-12-2013, 06:43 AM

Good advice!

I tell newbies to think of their first year as an extension of school. You arent going to make squat your first year, but at least you are making something for learning your trade.
Those big companies that everyone loves to complain about and hate, look great on resumes. As a recruiter, my favorite phone call to get is a 1 year driver who has spent his last year at Swift, Werner or another training company. That driver is EXACTLY what most companies are looking for. I can pretty much put that driver in any of the 100 jobs I need to fill, and he will be verified, qualified and in orientation very quickly.
I get calls from drivers all the time who got out of school, went with some outlaw company, or small mom and pop company. They are paid under the table, or worse, that company goes out of business, and now the work cant be verified. Work that cant be verified might as well be unemployment....it just doesnt count. I cant do jack squat with those drivers.

k8cpa · #3 03-12-2013, 02:13 PM

Thanks sleep dancer. Yeah. I really blew it. Hopefully, I'll get hired somewhere. I want to avoid Warner. That simulater crap is not for me.

Mr. Ford95 · #4 03-12-2013, 10:56 PM

Question, why did you wait 10 years or am I reading that wrong? After 3 years of clean driving those points and that ding should have come off your record..............were you not willing to do a refresher course then?

k8cpa · #5 03-13-2013, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Ford95

Question, why did you wait 10 years or am I reading that wrong? After 3 years of clean driving those points and that ding should have come off your record..............were you not willing to do a refresher course then?

Well, I didn't think I could get hired anywhere. The economy here in Michigan sucks, I couldn't find work anywhere. in 2006, I started writing full-time. I started a blog. Which you can look at here. When that one was hacked, I started another one; which you can see here. I wasn't in any sort of debt; and I thought I could make a little on blogging. I didn't get rich, but I made a little. I soon got into web hosting too. I ran a hosting company. I didn't get rich, but I did make some good money. Well, in 2008, the economy with the rest of America, caught up with Michigan's and business really dropped off. Anyhow, in 2011, I started this blog here; and it has been slow, because politics has gotten incredibly stupid.

At the time, in 2003, when I had the accident, I tried applying with Falcon, and they turned me down, said I was a risk. I figured the rest would do the same. so, I kinda just gave up.

Anyhow, that's what I did. I just want to drive, and I am finding that things are getting more and more depressing, by the second.

Mr. Ford95 · #6 03-14-2013, 12:01 AM

Maybe someone like Sheep above has more detail as he worked(not sure if he still does) as a recruiter for one of the big companies. This long out of the truck, IF you want to drive again, you may not be eligible for a refresher. You may have to go thru the entire schooling all over again BUT, I'm just a driver and not a recruiter so don't hold that to me as gospel. You may even be able to do it where the company pays for it while you sign to drive for them in return for like 2 years.

k8cpa · #7 03-14-2013, 06:57 AM

I'd like to find me a local job, driving a tri-axle dump truck.

k8cpa · #8 03-14-2013, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by k8cpa

I'd like to find me a local job, driving a tri-axle dump truck.

But finding one of them kinda jobs in Michigan here is like pulling teef!

Mr. Ford95 · #9 03-15-2013, 09:52 PM

Not just Michigan, the whole Rust Belt area which Michigan is a part of is not too good still for jobs in any field. My area is starting to boom again in construction but there still isn't much in the way of dump truck jobs here. I'm seeing a lot of the single axle like I drive in my avatar and double axle over the triple's. I've found that with my single axle I can get into a ton of places the double axle's and up cannot so personally I'm seeing more work over the bigger trucks. A lot of the construction companies that run dumps are only running a few vs 10-15 like in 2005. They've become very adept at doing just as much with less, it's like that all over this country right now. Keep your head up, your bound to find something.

As far as looking back and thinking you f'ed up badly, don't buy into that. Say you did do it the other way, who's to say you'd be in a better position today? Glass half full!

Instigator · #10 03-24-2013, 04:29 PM

k8cpa, My advice is dont let your pride get in your way on these boards. They will eat you alive! That being said, I too had a similar problem, I was out of trucking for 13 years when the economy went south and i needed a job. I could not get a driving job because I had not driven in 13 years even though I had 16 years OTR experience. I alos had job brokers telling me I was stuck and I could only get a job with companies for rookies and I would only make 25 cents per mile. If I had listened to them I would still be unemployed! Most of the job brokers are major jerks and only care about getting paid to place you with a company.

Here is how I did it and its very simple. Go to an employment agency and try to get temp work as a driver. They are always looking for guys with cdl licenses to fill in for company drivers that are out sick or taking vacations. I did this for one company and they wound up hiring me to road test there drivers due to my back round. After 4 months of doing this I was employed full time with a refer company running a regional load every week and the rest is history. That was three years ago and I am still employed. I had a very hard time finding the right trucking company to work for, I think Ive been thru something like 15 companies in 2 years, they all suck, but if you hang in there the right one will come along as I have learned. My current job is a keeper, I get paid better then anyone out there, I drive an older Peterbilt in very good condition and I pretty much do what ever I want, come home when I want and get paid very well.

Hang in there and start looking at job agencys in your area and get local work for now, it takes a while but its better then not working. I think I averaged about $12.00 bucks per hour when I was working for a temp agancey but I did not care, it got me back in to the trucking industry! Good luck!