Thinking about CR England

i am no trucker but i have a mentor whos been doing it for 21 years, he plus all of these horror stories, i wouldn't consider C.r. england. the reputation speaks for itself, but if you have veterans in the game, telling you not to do it, more than likely they are right.....be mindful.

 

england will be nice to you at first then. run you in the dirt while they make money and you stay broke.you will be fooled into thinking you can make it. but you wont. ask the drivers the only drivers that say anything good about england just started and dont know.the training you get you will probely hit something and get hurt and loose everything.you will make more money per hour at a locale store.you wont find not one long term drive with anything good to say beware you loose.

 

C.R England is a horrible company my uncle drove for them in the eighties and it was horrible then and has only gotten worse.

I am getting ready to go to school and start driving and have done well over a years research into company vs private school training. I have found four companies that I would consider for companies training.

Ranking them is up to you My ranking is Millis Transfer in WI. They have three schools one in GA, one in IL, And the last on in WI. They are a very hard company to get on with however they are a great company to work for.

Next I would go with Stevens Transport out of Dallas TX, They are a training company and are very good for folks that have never drove for a living and want to get through training. They will pay for your school and then you pay it back. for a full discourse on Stevens go to the Stevens Transport Aviary thread here and there is a two year thread all about going to their school.

The last two I would go with are Central and Prime. They are both fair training companies.

If you are unemployed contact your unemployment office and see if the can get you a grant to attend your local school. The grant is issued under the stimulus package and the economic recovery and displaced workers act.

I would suggest doing allot of research and taking your time to get into the industry. It is a great career choice however there are many pitfalls that one can make. Always remember that many of the bad posts about companies are because the folks posting did not do what they were supposed to and have brought the issues to them.

Be open minded and do your research and remember that the recruiters are not a good source of information as they get a commission for bring you to the company. One place to get a good feel for the companies you are looking to drive for is by going to the truck stop and talking to the drivers.

I hope this helps remember keep it between the lines and the shinny side up.

 

i just finished CRE school, witch my exp was good. The trainer I was put with for phase 1 is another story, but thats one guy out of hundreds. They do push leasing a truck on to you but not so much as the guy above a few post says.

 

what about FFE, there school is free

 

I will never drive for them again. nor would i recommend them to anyone.

 

I am at the tail end of CR Englands training course in Burns Harbor. I almost cancelled coming here from all the negetivity that I have read on this forum, but so far 90 percent of all the bad mouthing here has been false. I came here anyway out of desperation, lost my job denied unemployment I was in a pit with a lion and I had to move quickly. This was the only place that offered me CDL training and a job in less than 3 weeks and thats what I needed to survive.

I am in day 12 of 16, I CDL test in 4 days. the passing of this school is dependent on YOU.

You have to be a tough S.O.B to make it through here. IF you can follow step by step instructions, and that starts from the simple list of items you need to bring, items you need to study for to pass, don't drink do dope or go to the titty bar next door instead of studying HARD then you can pass this school.

My class has lost 40 percent, and every single one of them is out because they did not do what they needed to do. 4 thought they could do dope anyway, one thought he could go drinking. 3 more wanted to watch TV instead of studying late at night with the rest of us for the permit test.

Lets see, 3 didnt bring what was required as far as paperwork goes, 1 thought he was going to put the staff in their place (what part of don't piss of the chef don't people get?)

And I am sure that on test day we will lose a couple more, they just can't drive.

 

Donnie101, did you ever end up deciding? I too am in Southern California and am trying not to get screwed. Everyone just wants to get you in the office instead of giving you any informaiton. Any other input on who to look into?

 

Thanks Kevin,
I'm seriously considering starting soon with CRE, and yours is by far the most helpful post I"ve seen on them anywhere. I don't trust all the rampant "bad mouth" posts made by those who cannot even write in complete sentences. It was my feeling that more than anything else it is what you make it... and you confirmed that, thanks again. Scotty

 

I've talked to a few different companies also and the best one from what I've heard, FFE (Frozen Foods Express) has a training academy in Ft Worth, Texas. Its an 18 day course then you go out for 6 weeks with a trainer before going solo. They say they pay 455.00 a week for those six weeks then once you go solo, your starting pay is .29 cents a mile with a one cent raise every six months till you max out at .44. The recruiter I have talked to seemed to be straight forward and doesnt seem to make it sound to good. You will have to put some time in before you start earning a good living. You will need to bring money for your own food, they dont supply that, but they do supply housing. You dont pay the cost of the school back if you agree to work 12 mnths following the end of training. Con-Way truck load also seems good but you would need 2200.00 up front, but they pay for everything including 3 meals a day and your bus ticket.