Hello Various People That Know Better Than I:
I have figured out in my recent months of underemployment that I would like to attempt to become a professional truck driver. From everything that I have read on this and other websites, the company a potential driver chooses is an insanely huge choice which tends to make or break any persons sucess, failure, prosperity or poverty in this field.
I dont see the big disadvantage of signing on to a company-sponsored CDL training program. If a company requires that you stay for a year in order to clear the expenses of school that may seem like a degree of indentured servitude and it well may be, but in ANY sucessful job, especially as a complete newcomer, anyone in their right mind is going to stay for at least a year anyway. Maybe now that Ive reached the ripe old age of 30, a year just doesnt seem that long to me anymore <hardy>.
So that brings that big choices of who to go for? I have spoken to people with Schnieder, Swift and Millis, and have actually been pre-hired by Millis. Schnieder and Swift both seem like over-bearing, multi-national corporations that are out there to screw the little guy and promote general-unhappiness whereever they go and all that. Lots of horror stories about low mileage, recruiter lies,big hyped up websites that detail (supposedly) EVERY last thing a new driver would want to know and all this. Millis on the other hand, seems like a smaller company with less frills on their website and less intricacies about the rules of the financials in their training program. Besides that, the ONLY complaint Ive ever read in one of these boards about Millis was some guy that said he "didnt like pulling hills in 5th gear" or something like that. They also seem to have the best starting pay and incentive packages for new drivers.
The BIG ace in the hole though....And I really wonder if this makes THAT much of a difference: Schnieder and Swift both have terminals very close to Detroit. Downriver Detroit is about 45 minutes from where I live and that seems reliatvely convenient, though Ive heard many of both companies facilities are nasty. Millis' nearest location/dropyard/school is in Trenton, OH...about 180/200 miles from where I live. How important is it to live a county away from the terminal?
Thanks for reading my rambles and if anyone could give me some proper advice, it would be greatly appreciated....