Wannabe trucker concerned about entering prime

Prime Transport from Springfield, Missouri?

 

You're picking one of the toughest challenges in Trucking. Prime can make you wish you stayed away. Drivers with a lot of experience have a tough time making it there.

To be fair, if you're exceptionally business smart, really tough, single and determined to succeed at any cost, it CAN be done- but you should get the Medal of (Trucking) Honor for doing it. No kidding, it's gonna be a brutal fight to choose them as your first trucking job. Has anyone talked to you about leasing equipment yet, or driving someone else's truck?

 

I'm not sure but anything that happened as a minor should not be available information, if I understand correctly. I wouldn't worry about something that happened when you were 14. The medication could be a problem if they ask for your family doctor and then ask for your records. I don't know how you should handle it. You can be certain of the outcome for lying though.

Here's my standard copy and paste advice. It is aimed toward helping new drivers avoid common misconceptions, pitfalls and disappointments about the industry. I hope you find something of value in it.

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.

You don't want to wait around too long after training or you'll have trouble finding a job. If you get out before you have a year in, when you try to come back a few months later you will find they want you to start over. Most OTR companies don't put any value on local experience so it is better for your career to drive OTR first if you will ever want that option.

One more thing, if you have anything that makes you less desirable than your competing job applicants, a phone or in-person interview will often bring the best results. Even if I am the best candidate I will choose face-to-face if at all possible and phone if not. Sure you may have to fill out that online application but that isn't the best way to get a good job. You have to do something or be someone who stands out from the crowd. Do regular follow-ups by phone on the jobs you really want. Too many new drivers just settle for a job from the list the school has. There are many more options available. The school works in volume and looks the best when it says 90+% of our graduates find employment. So obviously they get better results from companies that hire in higher numbers.

Now I'll share some thoughts and opinions on common misconceptions. New OTR driver starting pay is usually about $35,000 - $40,000 annually. It will probably be less if you choose regional because you will drive fewer miles. You will most likely see all the sites you can from the truck windshield on the Interstate or parked at the truck stop. The company will not allow you to go out of route or bobtail around to sightsee.

Other helpful suggestions include attending school in early spring. This will give you several months to acclimate yourself to your new driving career before you have to tackle the chore of winter driving. It also will get you started in the busier time of year when more miles are available to make you more money.

 

If you have a decent job at home you should consider keeping it. I don't think trucking can be considered decent anymore. Not the way some of these guys tell it anyway. However if you're already used to being broke and disrespected by all means give it a go. Just be honest about everything. You don't want to be caught in a lie or made out to look like you were tryin to hide something.

 

Yes- you're getting accurate info from Zebcohobo and BigJohn54.

Make this decision as carefully as you would if you were joining the Military. The school you're about to attend does NOT care about you. (But they will convince you otherwise.) They are in business to make money. Lots of it. If you're going to work for Prime (or any other company) to pay that school off, you're going to be used and abused BADLY. They own you until your obligation is over, and will never let you forget it.

If you lease equipment from them, it will be expensive. You're going to find out that your truck is driving you.

If you quit or walk off before that school is paid, or before your equipment lease is up, they will sell your debt to a bill collector and forget you. (After they inflict maximum damage with an unfavorable DAC report.)

In the end, you might be where a lot of new drivers have ended up. In bankruptcy, wishing you had never seen a truck.

Now, having said that, if you're tough, determined and like to hurt yourself, it is possible to be successful your first time with them. But nobody would believe you did it.

Make a GOOD DECISION, don't rush- and remember that this career will always be here, waiting to bite you in the keyster anytime you want it.

Whatever you decide, keep us updated.- Best of Luck !