The Industry still needs new drivers....but beware

Retirement??? AAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!

 

Red Fox has a very good point your retirement is in your hands. My Pops has been driving for 40 years and has nothing for retirement. Yeah that may not be an option unless you plan it on your own.

 

I read an interesting article in a Canadian trucking magazine this week that explains why it is NOT more economical to haul freight with new drivers . The lower the pay the higher the turnover rate and higher training expenses . Experienced drivers get better fuel mileage and have less downtime and expense from damage repairs .
I'm not down on the industry . Yes , we need valuable drivers . We don't need a surplus of temporary steering wheel holders . Yes , part of the problem is that some people sign up not knowing what they are getting into . That's what I try to help prevent .
But about that driver turnover . That confirms what I said about the main reason carriers are hiring is because many drivers are quitting .You know most of them are leaving the industry without beginning to get a return on their investment in schooling .

 

You forget about the gov't stipend for putting drivers through the schools. These companies are businesses, and not in the habit of cutting their own throats directly, unless you consider the fastbuck angle and eventual insurance rates from noob accidents.

 

Thanks to the OP for the thread!
Not to be critical, but it would be good to put the health, retirement, and politics in the right threads and keep this on the subject of trucking schools, compare and contrast private 160 hour schools, community college schools, 40 hour CDL mills, or company run, tuition reimbursement plans, etc.. As it is, not much here to learn anything from beyond the original post. No offense intended to the OP or other posters, but it would be good to keep it on subject and make it a cogent thread about schools, not the reasons people wash out, the politics of trucking, blood pressure, etc.. Those subjects are covered ad nauseum elsewhere. Somebody had to be THAT guy. mizewell be me. LOL

Redfox: true about that govt. payback being a motivation for training companies. That's why so many have reopened long closed schools, or expanded training. It's intended to get people into new careers, not necessarily to line the pockets of the companies, even though it DOES.

 

That said. I know of one company that puts you through 2 weeks of CDL training to get you your license, and puts you on a truck for 4 weeks with a trainer (training quality TBD) My original experience was with a 160 hour school, fairly high dollar school, then to a training company where I spent (I think) about 8 weeks total with 2 trainers, first 4 weeks with a flatbed, then 4 weeks a dry van. When I went solo, I was nervous, but fairly confident in my ability, and still made my share of rookie mistakes. I can NOT imagine a rank novice doing the 6 week training being really ready to go on his/her own. I think I would almost WANT about 60% of those guys to wash out early. (tough for them, but) It's clear that coming out of that short a training period, they would likely have very little idea whether trucking was what they want to do, let alone be ready to do it alone. And then sign a LEASE/OPERATOR contract after 3 months solo? Man, them dudes got more guts than sense, especially right now. Good luck! Be Careful!

I was still training myself after 6 months of being solo, and it was clear I still had a lot to learn. Then I trained my wife and went team. After a year, I was STILL learning. Things like: my wife would NEVER learn to back very well except when she passed her CDL test, and that I would ALWAYS do all the in-city driving. LOL
PS: I'm likely to be going to that 6 week training, but I know what I'm getting into.

 

I have to disagree with you . A comparison of schools is of little value when there are no worthwhile jobs available when graduating . The high rejection rate of graduates by carriers and the high percentage of newbies that quit is very relevant . Note the original poster didn't stick around long after members starting asking questions that revealed the true lack of chance for success for graduates . Freight is dropping . Carriers are parking more trucks . Pays are being cut and benefits are being taken away . There is no indication of the situation improving . The school with the best training in the country can't overcome those circumstances .

 

Fair enough, the issue of why peole fail is relevant, but blood pressure? retirement? how is that relevant in any important way to schools? ANYWAY.....

Truth to be told, there really have never been many great jobs available to new school graduates. MOST, (if not all) new grads have had to go to one of the training companies for their first 6 months to a year in order to move into a better job. Just the way it's been for a long time. It's the same now, only moreso, and some LARGE percentage of new grads who go to one of these companies will (or should) wash out before completing the "externship" program at Warner, Swift, England, etc...Those that don't wash out have a chance to struggle along with the rest, and compete with more experienced drivers for the better jobs.

People need to know that the job is not for everyone, it is hard work, has a higher degree of responsibility, accountability, frustration, and frankly, danger, than the pay would indicate. Not enough people tell candidates these things...which is why you read so many threads on "BAD" trucking companies where people who never should have gone into the business go vent that it is somehow the company's fault that they abandoned their truck, quit in mid training, bumped into stuff, got lost, broke HOS rules, beat up their trucks, whined on the phone to their wives and girlfriends every night, refused loads until the FM gave up on them, etc etc...One thing they don't usually teach you in school is who should, and how a person should actually approach the job. Having the right attitude, expectations, and identifying your own mismatched personality traits and life circumstances, the likely conflicts, difficulties, etc., in trucking, and how to resolve them for yourself, and with your training company, for example.

I know that kind of counsel is handholding to some degree, but there are lot of dumb young ########## with their head in the clouds about what truck driving actually is, heading to these schools thinking they're gonna be a rich trucker soon.

 

You post negatives about trucking a lot, throughout this forum. So why not quit and be done with it?

This may be a bit out of line and I apologize, but you sound like workers in my industry (software) complaining about outsourcing overseas or bringing in foreign H1B workers that work cheaper. It effects me, people working cheaper.

Is this what you think? Or are you seriously trying to help people? I just don't understand the message. Please tell me why you dwell on this.

 

This is why Large Companies are still hiring...when you have 1000+ Trucks and disgruntled drivers that don't get paid jack, your turnover rate is enormous. I would imagine they bring in 30 - 40 new hires a week, half make the cut, and half of those sit until a truck is available...which is probably when the next guy quits. Nobody has it good right now, if you have bills to pay trucking may not be the best job. You may sit for a month after orientation waiting for a truck to come available, means no paycheck for a month. At least if you worked at McDonald's for minimum wage you are bringing home some bread. At most trucking companies your pay is based solely on your miles, not the amount of time you sat on the side of the road waiting for a load, and on top of that you are not home 95% of the time. The stress of financial woes and separation from your family for extended periods kills morale, marriages, and even drivers themselves. Moral of the story, if you have anything keeping you home, stay there and make the $8/hour, at least for now.

I myself don't really have much going on, I don't have much in the way of bills, and I could use time away from my family. My obligations and such aren't going to interfere with a life on the road. For me, it will probably be better for my health in the long run.