CR England's not all bad

Now, granted, I have not been with England for very long; but my experience has not been all bad.

I entered their Premier driving school in Burns Harbor, IN, in March of this year. Within two weeks I had my CDL-A and a job. It must not go without saying that that was one of the roughest two weeks of my life. Tons of studying, and not a ton of time to sleep. I have a feeling that this is the first step in weeding out the people that can't handle the stresses of the job. Once I had my license, it was out over the road with a trainer for 27,000 miles in just over three weeks. This, basically, turned me into a first class steering wheel holder. I only backed the truck one time in this entire period. After this time, I went out for another couple of weeks (at a reduced pace-2nd guy was nowhere near as motivated) to hone my skills as an interstate highway driving expert. At least, this time I had more chances to back the truck-still not enough to confidently get out on my own. Some will complain about the compensation for this time-Phase 1 is $63 and change a day, Phase 2 is $.12/mile. Definitely not a bunch of money; but, understand, that there is no cost for the school aside from a nine month commitment to the company.

Upon completion of my Phase 2 training, I was invited to join England's dedicated fleet for the Walmart distribution center in Sterling, IL. When I arrived, I was assigned to another driver for five days of training and orientation. During this period, I was instructed on what is expected of me in regards to paperwork and safe driving. I also received significantly more real-world practice in backing into docks. The pay is reasonably decent, as well as the miles. I even get home for my 34 every week.

Of course, there have been some down sides to the experience; but a simple search will turn up the complaints about the hotels and the like. I am not trying to be a cheerleader for CR England. I just wanted to share some of my personal experience. I am sure it will not be all roses forever; but, in my 23+ years of being a tax paying, working American, I have never worked for a company that was perfect all the time.

I will try to update this thread as time goes on, and relate more of the good and bad. I, honestly, don't expect there to be a lot of bad. Most of my fellow drivers on this fleet have been with the company for several years. I guess time will tell.

 

I'll do my best to keep it up. And, no payroll issues... yet.