My wife and I are finally going to training for C. R. England

Well this thread has gotten, interesting to say the least. Heres our update sorry it's taken us so long but it is what it is. We sat for almost 2 weeks waiting on our phase 1 trainer right out of school. Finally we were given a trainers number and told to call and convince him to train both me and my wife. All the other dedicated teams were split up, that weren't married. Apparently England is having a shortage of trainers because they screwed them over.

So we call this trainer, and talk to him and he said he's fixing to go on home time, but since we've been waiting for almost two weeks he said he would take us. We were really excited to finally be getting out of the WVC yard. So we go and get on the truck there are introductions, and apparently we're already under a load. So we're headed from WVC to Portland, OR. Now me and my wife have been planning to move to Portland so we're excited to go see our future home.

The first words out of our trainer's mouth are "It's just like every other city." We kind of ignore that and I start driving, we have 5 days on the load, so first we get to Boise, ID and stop for an entire 24 hour period so he can go see his family. Then we go to Portland and sit another day and a half so he can go out to the movies. Then we go drop the load, and drive to Pasco, WA. Where we sit for another 12 hours. Then we head back to Boise. So he can take His 5 days of home time.

By the time we get back to Boise, my wife and I want off the truck NOW. He's gotten us a couple of log violations, had us drive against England Policy, broke DOT regulations, and all while sleeping in the top bunk. Any time me or my wife went to correct it he would yell at us to get back on the road, because it didn't matter. Which is true it didn't matter to him. Those violations wouldn't go on his DAC or CSA report.

So finally we get to Boise, and we start raising hell with the training department safety department and everything else to get off this truck. When they finally realized we were serious they slapped a team load to the truck, and told us if we get off it's load abandonment. Even though safety told us to get off the truck.

So at this point I wish someone else would have called us back, but since they didn't. We're going to run this new team load where it goes. Then we're going to see how good a company England really is. There are at least 4 people who should be fired out right over this little incident. And if none of them get it. I know where we really stand.

My wife and I will be trucker's this is the life for us. We already enjoy the driving, and every load we've been assigned under this trainer would arrive early. So they want to push us and see if we'll snap, we'll push back through company channels. Either way we're not going to let this company screw us out of the Profession we want.

As for new people trying to come into the company, I would recommend you avoid it. The up's and down's are to much, and it's like rolling the dice with your career. We're going to stick it out at this point because we have no choice now. But in the end I will scream from the mountain tops for newbies like us to avoid CRE. To all of you who made fun of us. We will be truck driver's we will be OTR. This is a tiny set back, and we're not the type of people that will let a ######### up company keep us from our goals. We got our CDL and we intend to put them to good use. However, I will keep you up to date as to what happens next!

- Karasu1982

 

Actually to correct you. Company driver's are no longer offered to the new hire trainee's so that's already not an option, we'll just finish our training and when they tell us we have to lease, we will have already finished our portion of the legal agreement, and they will have broken their's. Our dac report will be fine. It helps we have a corporate lawyer in the family to review and insure we will not be affected by their attempts to control our future.

Either way we will have a solid truck driving career in the end. Like I said before it's all what you make of it. If you do end up going with this company read your legalese agreement very very closely. Know what they are binding you to do. Legally the agreement is that after training you must stay for 90 days for the phase 1 and phase 2 training. You do not have to stay after that. They can't legally bind you for a year, and at the same time, have the right to fire you at any time. Which by the way in your contract they are an at will company and they can and will fire you at any time for anything.

We came prepared for the poo these monkey's intended to fling, in the end we will come out fine, and we'll have a career behind the wheel. We're sure of that at the very least.

-Karasu1982

 

Actually I use my G1 (my cell phone) to post here. As for what we use for Phase 1 and Phase 2, for most people it's what ever the trainer has, our current trainer just so happens to be company. During phase 2 we're not getting another trainer, we get issued the worst truck they can find and do 60 days in it. After that we're actually forced to lease or go else where to drive. Out of 50 or 60 some odd people in our class maybe 3 of them got put with a company driver for Phase 1, and almost all of Phase 2 are lease drivers.

So basically how it works at CRE is right now we are technically Company drivers. However at the end of our apprenticeship we will be lease driver's or unemployed, at least that's how CRE thinks and looks at it. For most people it's true. We've just had the luck of meeting people who own several trucks and who've offered to let us run for them.