what is the best company for veterans to start with?

First of all, Welcome and thank you for your service...

Next,,,slow your roll.... Why are YOU paying for your CDL when the good ole GI-Bill will?????? Look under "apprenticeship"...

Good Luck

 

You went to the wrong school then. There are several that do give college credit.

 

Welcome to the TTR Forum and the industry. What does veterans mean? Military or trucking? IMHO, veteran drivers have about 7 years or so. Certainly two or three to open many doors. One year to get into places I don't want to work. And I don't know that a veteran as far as military will make much difference in your company choice.

If you want real suggestions you may have to air your accident and ticket record. These can be real killers. It may get you a little banged up on the forum though. You can research on your own as most company websites say what they will accept.

I hope you don't have plans for going owner/operator for a year or two. The failure rate is very high and the economy is not so good. It will take that long to master the duties of a driver. Those duties are only a small part of being an owner/operator and the easy part. I hope you aren't considering a lease/purchase!

At any rate I think I'll give you my copy and paste advice for new drivers. Take it for what it's worth.

You need to research and find out what the important questions are. You can make an above average living but you will make sacrifices that other jobs don't require. Read the "good companies" and "bad companies" section on this forum and get an idea of what company you want to work for and what kind of trailer you want to pull. Don't just go to school and then try to figure out where to go.

I don't know your financial situation. Don't take training from a company if you can afford it or get it with financial aid. You will be their slave for up to year. If you leave they will trash you DAC and credit record. Check out your local community colleges and employment office.

Just know that most training and trucking company recruiters will do nothing but lie to you. They will let you talk about what you want and then tell you what you want to hear. Trucking is about moving freight to make money for the company. Your home time, family, paycheck and everything else comes second.

It is not like any other job. Local is usually backbreaking delivery work 10+ hours a day, 6 days a week. Often you unload dozens of times a day or you are a salesman. In my area most dump truck jobs pay less than a good factory job. Regional is lots of loading and unloading time, fewer miles than OTR and not as hard as local but will wear on you and push your HOS limits. OTR is out 3 - 5 weeks with 3 - 4 days home, less manual labor and more miles.

You'll probably have to pay your dues before you get the gravy job. Weekends off, if you are lucky enough to get something like that starting out, may be home Thursday afternoon and leave Saturday night or home Friday night and leave Sunday afternoon. Loads deliver on Monday early and you leave in time to get them there. Often your home time will be in the middle of the week.

Regardless of your driving choice, after school you will go through company training. For OTR this can be six weeks to three months with little or no home time. The first phase is usually $400 a week and the second phase is $500-550 a week. Some pay less. One company pays 12 CPM for training.

 

I just retired from the USAF, and Tuition Assistance (Post 9/11 GI Bill) paid for half of the course I took at Sage here in Cheyenne.

Graduated Sage on the 13th of June and started driving for a local Oilfield company on the 23 of June hauling a water tanker. Dirty work and long hours, but the pay is good. Can be monotonous hauling water from a rural well to location over and over again, but it can be interesting at times. Like when you get a rain shower for a few minutes and all the roads turn to goop after a few trucks have rolled over them. Then it gets dirty, and slippery, when you get on location where they prepped the area for the frac process. But getting paid a decent wage by the hour (long hours) and time and a half over 40, and getting to sleep in my own bed every night make up for it.

 

Welcome home if you went to the sand box and thanks for your service! BUT Before you decide to do any schooling was there no option of moving from the Army to another branch and keep serving?

Now:: Please oh please do NOT waste your GI Bill on a freaking driving mill, but check with a local community college or trade school for a lot less money! These mills are so over priced it's stupid! Trade schools are usually less than $1000 for the course and I've seen many posts in TTR stating # $500!

Think long and hard about taking the "training" from any company unless you are single and have no bills, even a car payment as most of them think you are only worth dirt pay and will use you as a team driver then throw you under the bus when you're done or try and try to get you to fleece er lease a truck!

IMHO I would really look into a different field of work and stay away from this cess pool called driving until they get this "recession/depression" fixed as many of these companies are still trying to BS the world that freight rates are still dirt cheap and driver pay is reflecting that lie!

But whatever you decide good luck!

BTW what was your MOS that The Army riffed you out like it did to me in '75 just after letting me reenlist!

 

First of all,,"Rollover", thanks for your service....

2nd; a little harsh on the transportation industry,,no? LOL I guess since you have 32 years as a Truck Driver, you have the RIGHT to say how you see it.

Above I thanked you for your service. At that time I was refering to your time in the Armed Forces but, now I am thinking of your time in the Armed Forces and your time as a Truck Driver,,thank you for both of your services to this great country.