Does training count as experience?

OK, I'd say that right there, you are doing yourself a disservice. If you are dependent on going back to a former employer if you fail at your new one, then you shouldn't leave at all.
Yes, some folks, (including me,) have gone back to former employers for some reason or other. And it is always a good idea to leave on good terms if possible. Because you just never know.
But to go to a new job with the attitude that "if it doesn't work out, I can go back," seems to me like you are already telling yourself you don't think it will work out.

Now, that being said, it is always good to have a Plan B. And C and D etc. If you can. I dunno, there is just something about the way you put that, bothers me. Probably just my problem, but then. . .I dunno.

 

well then you weren't exactly in training... you were a team driver.
How much oversight and training did you receive while your "trainer" was in the sleeper?
Another fabulous "training" carrier that's out to milk the noobie driver in a team operation.

 

You just said you get paid by the day and the trainer gets paid the by mile the truck moves so yes it's in the company's and "trainer's" best interest to milk the most out of you.

If it was a real training operation your trainer would always be sitting next to you while driving.
But the company paying you $70 and having the trainer at a higher rate for only your miles isn't very profitable to them.

 

Not the better ones. Sounds like just another #### bottom feeder to me.

The company I trained with team training was absolutely forbidden. The trainer was awake and in the jump seat the whole time I drove and I drove the whole 6 weeks. Our logs had to match and they were checked each week. That's the only way you can really be trained.

Later when I was a trainer it was the same deal.

They were making plenty of money off that situation. They wouldn't have set it up that way if they weren't.

That said......you need to get at least a year in before you jump ship. You may think you see better opportunities but for a 6 month noob almost any company ( with the rare exception ) that will hire you at that level will just be more of the same. Longevity is one of the few things in this industry that still carries a little weight when looking for a better gig. The better jobs open up to you at a year and the really good ones come online once you have 2 years in

 

I jumped from my training company cre at exactly six months.

Went from averaging $400-$500 a week to $1,000-$1,200 a week at jb hunt.

Been there almost two years now and still love the job.

 

my feeling about any job
is if you left once there was a reason

 

Very true, however sometimes things change, or there are extenuating circumstances.