CDL in hand... Now What ? Decision time, that's what...

Guess it's time to start my own thread here. The adventure continues...

 

I need to thank the folks on this forum who have spoken from their hearts and told their stories so that others that follow may learn and proceed. I have been reading the stories on this site during every spare moment for the last 2 weeks. I wish to say thank you for taking the time to document your experiences, and adding to the positive flow of information.

OpenRoadGuy
chralb
CAGEtrucker
sammycat
Wedge
TheTank
Markus
American-Trucker
chompi
seawheeler
JimTheHut
sewerman
gunnyt
sarge26044
notezbngrn71
Treefork

I am sure there are, and will be, more so thanks also to those whom I will meet here and on the road.

to all of you.

Perpetual

 

Thank you !! I appreciate your words of wisdom.

I do have a personal goal to have the decision made today.

 

I currently have 2 pre-hires: Schneider and Roehl. I also think I will get one from Maverick.

I will post the known facts for each.

 

Most of you probably know this, but just in case, Roehl is pronounced "rail." They have been the quickest to respond to... well... everything.

I had it in my head (for some unknown reason?) from the start of the CDL training that I want to be a flatbedder, so Roehl was definitely one to look at.

Called their recruiting line on Thursday, 09 Feb (day after getting my CDL - more on that later) at ~12:30pm EST, to discuss my situation. Spoke with Terry Jackson - very friendly, knowledgeable, helpful. By 14:00 the application had been submitted online and I got a call back saying I was pre-hired. Wow that was fast. My head was spinning. Some details:

- Eligible for flatbed, van or reefer (flatbed can pull van or reefer for the company if needed - that's cool).

- Can pick national solo or regional slip seat position.

-- National is minimum of 11 days out and then 3 home. Can stay out for a month if desired. 1 additional day home for every additional week out. Can bring the truck and trailer home, just need to find a place that gives permission to park. Will take loads all over USA. Sounds good.

-- Regional slip seat - leave rig in Philadelphia drop lot (2+ hours away). Probably not for me.

- The goal is to give each driver 2300 to 2600 miles/week. Some drivers who stay out longer may see 3000 miles.

- Starting pay rates (practical miles):

-- Van 30cpm
-- Refer 32cpm
-- Flatbed 33cpm, 35cpm @ 3mo, 36cpm @6mo, 39cpm @ 1 year.

- Paid for each stop / retarp.

- $10/hr breakdown pay after first 24 hrs.

- Bonuses available for fuel, safety, etc.

- Tuition reimbursement $100 every 9,000 miles.

- Flatbed loads are lumber, steel, pipe, coils, wire rolls, building fan units, boats, etc.

- Prepass provided; split cost: driver pays $1/week

- Flatbed tractors are mostly Freightliner ProStar 10-speed manual transmission. 50-50 chance I would get a new silver unit, since they are being brought in steadily to replace older tractors.

- Most trainers are non-smokers.

- Can put powered food cooler in truck.

- 2007 trucks have APU's; newer models have Opti-idle.

- Frequent Flyer cards for all major truck stops.

- Training can start either on 20 Feb or 27 Feb.

--Orientation 8 days. pay: $600. Airfare or rental car and hotel paid. Bkfst & lunch provided.

-- 13 days on the road with trainer. $90/day

- After the 21 day orientation/training period: assigned a truck and take a load toward home. Then 4-6 weeks in a hand-holding situation with special dispatcher/coach. The into the regular fleet.

So there it is. Definitely one of my top picks.

Thanks for reading,

Perpetual

 

They have received everything they need, including background check, except for one previous employer verification. That could come in today.

Once that last piece comes in, they will schedule me for a local medical exam. Makes sense. Do it here at home rather than traveling to the orientation only to fail it there. I am quite healthy, so it likely wouldn't happen to me, but clearly happens to a lot of folks.

If the med screen is completed this week, I can go to orientation on Monday, 20 Feb.

Things are happening quickly...

 

Schneider does things a little differently than some of the other companies. They ask you to apply for a specific job in your home area. I started applying with them over a month ago, during the early stages of the 6-week CDL training course.

They finally responded with a request to do a phone interview, which is basically a verification of the application submittal information. This interview occurred yesterday. My recruiter is super; really friendly and knowledgeable.

The job is a dedicated regional account out of Pennsylvania, only about 30 miles from me. I would leave the truck at the nearby Schneider yard while on home time. This is a dry van position hauling bulk mail to post offices across the eastern USA.

Particulars:

- Out for 10-12 days or more, home for 2 or more.

- 2300-2400 miles/week

- 33cpm to start, chance for increase after 6 months.

- 2cpm quarterly bonus program for safety & on-time delivery.

- Benefits kick in after 60 days.

- Training would be 5 days in Harrisburg, PA. 10 hrs/day, company, computers, e-logs, Qualcomm, etc. Paid hotel & 2 meals/day. On last day, given driver number. $460 paid wage for orientation.

- With Training Engineer (TE) for min 2 weeks in my truck doing my route for my dedicated customer. That is cool.

- Equipment: Freightline Century 10 speed manual transmission, not older than 3 years.

- Fuel network that includes all major truck stops.

- Toll passes provided

- Can bring a non-family 18+ y/o rider after 6 months.

- Tuition reimbursement up to $3500. Paid $150/mo.


Now here is something else unique about Schneider, the recruiter offered to put me in touch with the hiring manager (DBL: Driver Businsess Leader) so I could ask questions directly. I am playing phone tag with him now.


Next steps are to talk to DBL and make a decision. They are ready for me....


Thanks for reading,

Perpetual

 

By posting this information on here, it is helping me to get my thought straight. I hope it will help others as well in the future