18?

My son is 19 and is taking his road test Monday, and my family use to own the largest beer distributing company in the state so I had my CDL at 18 but didn't o OTR until I left the Marines so I understand what you are saying.

Well you can not drive a CMV outside your home state or haul HAZ-Mat until your 21, with few exceptions.
1) There is a disaster and you are transporting emergency supplies
2) You are transporting your personal items
3) You are a farmer, worker of a farm, or a family member of either and you transports commodities and/or supplies need for such operation.
4) You are in the military on duty conducting military duties.
and there are some for oil field operation and working in Alaska which don't really apply, cause their are not hiring you unless your like owners kids under 21 cause their afraid of how it might look if you were hurt or killed.

Now that's not to say that you can't work in the industry it just means you have to be creative.

Places like the USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, Yellow, Old Dominion, Saia, R & L, Averitt Express, etc.. Will hire you to work the docks, some might allow you to jockey trailers on the yard, some might even allow to drive locally when there is an influx in work. All of these companies are excellent to work for and normal pay pretty well and often much better than any OTR company and some are even union shops.

Then there are local companies in you area which you find in the local phone book that you might want to apply with who might be willing to hire you. Some mom & pop companies are the best in the world to work for, I worked for one until the owner died and it was the best job I ever had.

Or you could do what my son is thinking of doing and that's joining the National guard. He is out of state right now receiving his CDL training, but he was hire by an LTL carrier as a Combo Driver. If he passes his road test Monday which I know he will, then he will start at the LTL carrier the Tuesday after Memorial Day. They told him he will be doing mostly dock work, jockeying trailers around when ever needed, and might ever have to run so P & D if they are busy. Starting pay is $16.79 per hour and will increase after 90 days which is when he will be in the union. My son leaves on the Delayed Entry Program (DEP) October 25th and he will be on active duty for basic training and then M88 (heavy truck driver) training until May of next year. When he is done, by law the LTL carrier has to hire him back. Then he will also have vet status.

 

I agree, if you can find a job working the dock and from time to time moving trailers in and out of doors this will really pay off for you when your ready to get on the road. I started on a tire dock and later moved trailers, when I got my first driving job I was already able to back with the best of them and knew my way around a shipper/receiver operation.

 

This may not be the best time, but I enlisted in the Army at 17 and drove a tractor trailer around Europe for 5 years.

 

Big john I am 20 and have had mine since 2 weeks after my 18th birthday, im from deep west ky a lot of farms and logging, got my start in the farm shops delivering equipment. Started off with small tractors and by the time I was 19 was pulling a 55 ton detach and running heavy equipment to farms. Got lucky enough to pick up my own truck and a 55 ton detach and got some hookups through a friend of my dads who owns a excavating company making short local runs from 50-400 miles. MY BEST ADVICE start small and run logs or get you a small dumper and run coal or grain. But stay with it and itll pay off so far im doing good.

 

Trucking jobs at 18-21 can be found but you have to think more in terms of "local and smaller". Larger companies with restrictive insurance carriers don't have a lot of flexibility in who they can hire age-wise. Some insurance carriers don't care if you're local or intrastate, they don't want a relatively inexperienced driver out there on the busy public roads at high speeds, carrying 25 tons from point a to point b, but some smaller carriers don't impose such a restriction so long as the hired drivers are operating within the bounds of CMV operator laws of that state..

 

Too many young people aren't interested in this option . They'd rather look for a free government grant for training .
Many states will accept military experience and exchange a military transport license for a CDL A and some carriers will accept military experience in place of
otr experience .

 

I've been thinking about young people getting into trucking, and I think it is great that so many have the "dream to be a trucker". Recently I read an article listing the 10 worst jobs for paying back student loans. Some jobs, like being a veterinarian, will take over 30 years to pay back student loans. By comparison, going through driver training school you can pay off the school within a year (and most starter companies will pay that school for you) and you are making money and not beholden to the bank.

It's true that until you are 21 you can't haul interstate. My recommendation for those under 21 is to seek local jobs and get experience. That way by the time you are 21 the doors are much wider open for almost any trucking job you want to apply for, and you will be miles ahead of those who wait to get a CDL. Insurance companies drive the decisions regarding new hires. Keep your record clean and your CDL will be your most valuable possession.

Be sure to get as many endorsements as you can. I have a friend that has his TWIC card, doesn't work for any company, but makes at least $1000 per week by simply going to the local port and picking up freight in the port for drivers that don't have their TWIC card. He charges $200 per container to pull freight out of the port.