For newbies wanting home time

No idea what the OP meant with "dues" either. My carrier is also none-union. I pay my taxes, 401k contribution, and my health benefits deduction. No other "dues" on my end. I do have two suggestions for the OP: 1. Finish school first. 2. Before you start poisoning the water for everyone else, do some research or limit yourself to topics that you are familiar with.[/QUOTE]

I think what he meant by dues is not paying a fee, but a loose way of saying doing your "time" or "share" of OTR driving. I am not defending the OP, but getting into a local driving position for a lot of people is not always the case; sure it happens, but it is not the NORM by no means. If it was that easy to get the perfect truck driving position, they would all (for the most part) be taken up already. Again, not defending, just expressing my opinion. I am in a smaller area with far less driving opportunities than going with a larger trucking company, because the smaller ones in my area are desiring experienced drivers and I have UPS/FEDEX/COCA-COLA/PEPSI here and they all want OTR experience. I am not saying it is NOT possible, because that is obviously not the case, just stating that it is not as available for some as it could be for others.

 

The question about home time does not show up nearly as much as the question of where should I work. And that question just like most others all depends on that individual. Some may say never work for X company and that new driver may have a great start there. So it's our job for the drivers in the know to give answers that can help.

 

Come on guys.... Sure it is possible and I am sure some of you have, but the likelihood of getting a local gig right out of school is very remote! It is very wrong of you to encourage anyone with this concept in their mind preparing to spend $6000 on trucking school thinking they are going to get a local job and live happily ever after! Truth is most of them won't! Now they are out a lot of money and also valuable time they could have spent chasing some other dream. Now their only option is to drive over the road for a year putting themselves away from their family and spouses!

Sure you can land a local gig straight out of school, you can also win the lotto!

 

It just grinds my gear when people without any experience come on here trying to discourage people or give out information that is flat out wrong. I never said it was easy for me to get the local job... Just saying it is possible. I was in school and applied to OTR carriers, and they either turned me down, or their terminal was too far away. So I said: screw it, if I can't go OTR, why not give local a shot? Two phone calls later, I was doing an interview. The vast majority of our drivers have always been local. As a matter of fact, we got a dock worker that is using OUR equipment so he can get his CDL. Will he ever spend a day OTR? Prolly not... Why should he if he can pick up a local route with the company he already works for.

 

The whole point is to inform new drivers that nothing is impossible and to let them know there's an exception to anything they do. What is good for one driver may not be good for another. The pay amount might sound great for one and hardly any for another. I believe it's our duty to convey our experience, good or bad, so they can make their own decisions. What I do not like is when some people just pass along what they have heard or what is told to them with no proof. Sometimes that kind of information can result to an end of ones career. As you can see some drivers have had success finding local jobs right from the start. Most of us know it's extremely hard to do and again we do not know the whole story. So the advice to say it's impossible is not true but also to say it's there ready to go is not true either. If the new driver is taking this career seriously he or she will take all the information and analyze all of it to see if it fits their needs.

 

Or pick the right company is a better option than sucking it up. Millis has no problem getting me home when I want, and I don't have to be gone for weeks upon weeks at a time. Waste Management,Coke,Pepsi,most ltl, some small outfits will hire you with no exp and some will teach you to drive if you don't have a cdl. Don't think because The large companies treat drivers worst than dogs all companies are like this. Some of us like to get home and see family/friends/have a life. I started with Millis by choice not because I had to. I drive OTR because I want not because I have to. I can stop at any point and go to an ltl or the local companies near me and drive and be home every night/weekend/several nights a week.

 

I strongly disagree. What is wrong is to mislead people with lies. And the only misleading posts in this thread are the ones that say getting local work with no experience is impossible. Its not impossible. Unlikely? Sure and you won't find anyone suggesting any different. But its not impossible and its wrong to tell anyone that it is.

 

Of course it is. And its also very offensive to anyone who went right into local work. It suggests that my experience doesn't count the same because I never went and did something I didn't really want to do.

 

Personally I don't want a local job. I want something that allows me to get out and experience the road for all its worth. Sure, OTR will get old and I will want something more concrete to provide home time as well, but I am a realist that knows that I will NoT exactly what I want, so I will stick with the best I can get.

 

I have recently been offered a dedicated regional route that would get me home two nights a week and every Sunday off... I turned it down. I LIKE OTR... I like traveling, I like running an irregular route, I like my next dispatch being a mystery... One day I may tire of it and when that day comes there will be local and regional and dedicated work to be had... I am just not ready for it.

Some people stick with local because it is a job, some stick to OTR because it is a lifestyle... to each their own and to all who want local and find it right off the bat... kudo's and congratulations. To those wanting the adventure of OTR... go for it! And finally for those caught in between, best of luck in finding your way to what you really want.