After reading this thread I thought I would ask. How long should a trainee be with a trainer before they can be left alone?
I'm a new driver, only been solo for about 8 months now. After getting my licence I was hired by the company I am now driving for. My training consisted of two weeks with an 'evauluator'. During those two weeks I drove 95% of the time and my evaluator was in the passenger seat at all times while I was in control of the vehicle.
This is standard for this company when taking on a driver with no experience. If after two weeks they aren't confident in your abilities you will likely be let go. They may go one more week if they think your driving is fine but you're having troubles picking up the qualcomm, paper work or the like but that's it.
Personally I think this is a great way of doing it. A couple of weeks is more than enough time to judge if a person will able to handle a truck and make the proper decision when unsure of a situation. They cut a lot of people loose after the first week and only stick with ones they are confident in. The company has a very good safety record.
In my short time out here I have had no incidents or tickets. I have made a couple of wrong turns and could have benefitted from more time with a mentor/trainer/evaulator or whatever you call them but I was more than ready to get rid of the evaluator after two weeks.
I figure the only way to truly learn a lot of things is by doing but I know many would disagree. I have read many times on this site and others that training needs to be longer and more thorough. My thought is that is just needs to be more selective. If you're not confident in a persons abilities after a couple of weeks on the road then they probably shouldn't be in control of a big truck. You can't teach common sense, ability to focus, dealing with stress calmly etc.
Thoughts/Opinions?