LaBatt Foodservice right there in Austin has OJT to get your cdl. They hire with a cdl permit then you run with an experienced driver until you get your cdl. Don't know if they have any openings or not. They run Texas and New mexico.
Found this on Google: FFE has terminals located throughout the United States in Texas, Georgia, Illinois, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, California, Utah, Colorado, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania. FFE Transportation Services, Inc. is the primary operating subsidiary of Frozen Food Express Services, Inc. The company is a Dallas, Texas based over-the-road transport company founded in 1946. It provides temperature controlled transportation services for over-the-road transportation. FFE also happens to be the only temperature controlled transportation services company in the United States that offers LTL services throughout the continental United States.
Those bonus's are with Contract Freighters (www.cfidrive.com) and they also have their own cdl school. You might go to the school in Joplin,MO or even in Texas at a private school which they would pay for. This is a coast to coast dry van company.
If you want to lump freight.become a mover plenty o stairs log driveways.will keep you in shape and no money
FFE runs into everywhere. We were not only USA coast to coast but Canada and parts of Mexico too. It's really intense as a team, 65 hours between LA and Avenel NJ and drop hook back to LA in about 6 days or less. That was one of the things we did. Among many other tasks there. One thing though. The People in our time during 1998 to 2001 with FFE may not still be there. I hope they are lucky to be. What a crew.
Yeah I lumped many a load in my younger yrs. Extra cash $$$$ was nice and I learned the old "phoney submitted receipt" for payroll dept to get lumpers pay, not co. pay. Anyway, my most memorable unload was 100# bags of potatoes (in gunny sacks) on the floor in Knoxville in July. I literally crawled off the trailer when I was done. But that six pack of beer sure hit the spot after a nice cool shower !
Go work LTL, tell the lumpers to shove it. We deliver to ONE place that tries to charge me a fee every time. And every time I tell them NO. I don't pay lumper fees. If they don't like it, refuse the load, and Ill be on my way. Thankfully, I only get to them about 2-3 times a year, and one those is coming up soon. With candy for the holidays.
Who is going to drive your truck if you get injured unloading someone's freight? I'm sure the forklift driver will volunteer to drive you to your next stop, for free.
I suggest DOT foods. I drove for them, they take rookies. It's less labor intensive as regular food service. You or the wharehouse will unload the pallets off your trailer and then you will break down the pallets to the tie hi the receivers want. Sometimes you touch a lot of cases other times you literally touch one or two but you still get paid for unloading everything.
