Need to interview drivers

Thank you @WesternPlains !!

 

lol, it's the government. It's a government grant, from a program designed to help ppl get re-educated to start a new, hopefully better career. It's available in every state, and personally, I think many more ppl should know about it, especially if you're stuck in a min wage job or a dying industry with no means of moving upwards. They also work with people to help them write resumes, and get clothes to interview in if needed, and eyeglasses and dental work, and health insurance, and lots of other things that I didn't utilize. There were also personality evaluations if needed and assistance of many kinds in just finding a job. It's a good program.

If you look at the questions you can see that they are designed to help someone who is considering ANY career change to look at the job they intend to do, and research it to get a real feel for it, rather than "oh I think I'd like to be a nurse and help ppl" without realizing that it's a lot more about changing diapers and bedpans and cleaning up puke, and being a glorified maid.

I've seen on this forum many times where ppl have suggested going to talk to truckers who actually work for a company before they go to work for the company, and not take a recruiters word for it. This program suggests three. This is a list of questions that should be asked by the student, which I've researched myself, before I had a list. They're not even close to doctorate level questions. They are all really good questions.. - Are there actually jobs if you go to the trouble of getting this new degree or trade skill? What kind of salary can you expect? What skills and training will you need, and are you capable of learning that, and surviving while you gain those skills? What pitfalls might there be? What benefits might overrule those pitfalls. An education can cost thousands of dollars. Do you go into it without doing any research? Or do they help you by helping you think it through before they pay for your education? It took me all of 20 mins to ask each driver this set of questions, and on top of it I learned a bunch I hadn't figured out yet, and got to ask a few questions that weren't part of the survey. I believe I benefited a lot by asking the questions, even if I thought I knew all the answers already.

This particular truck stop is on the highway, about an hour away from Nogales, actually. It's been there a long time. I drive by it every day, since it is near my home. It's on the I-10 on the way to Texas from San Diego or LA... Potentially a place that many of you would stop at on your way through, considering the dearth of truck stops between Tucson and El Paso. Yeah, if you live within 100 miles of ANY border, you get to live with Border Patrol... That's half of California, the entire city of Tucson, all of Florida, a huge chunk of Texas, etc. Not a problem if you aren't toting undocumented immigrants, guns or drugs... And if I was, I sure don't need to be in the trucking business.

I had no intention of taking a voice recorder... Paranoid much? I am taking notes on the actual paper that they gave me to fill in. I agree, they seem over the top, however, if you are in the business of helping ppl evaluate the legitimacy of a new career, these are all valid questions. Will they use this data to help others find jobs? Quite possibly... Is that a bad thing? But seriously, it's the government.. do you really think they're gathering this data to actually USE to get job listings? Nah... They let employers call in and post jobs, to save them time and trouble. This stuff gets stuck in a file somewhere to prove I could do their stupid monkey tricks. And I said "dinner", not "coffee". I may have even paid for a trucker's coffee or dinner in return for their 20 mins of time.

I am not technically a student yet. I am in the process of jumping through the hoops to get the grant money to become a student. Sure, they (the government) could go ask all these questions themselves, but then I, the potential student, would be robbed of the chance to hear for myself the pros and cons of my chosen profession, and the wisdom I could glean from talking to ppl in this profession. Being told how it is by a third party isn't nearly as valuable as hearing it from the trucker's mouth, even if it involves a few trucker stories (Like I'm not going to have to ever sit through those as a "real" trucker? Ha... You wouldn't be complaining about them if you hadn't sat through a few yourself. ) When I am an actual student, I'll be going into it with my eyes much more open, with plenty of time to learn what I need to know to get my cdl, possibly gleaning additional wisdom from the experience of the trainer. Then I expect to learn even more from a company trainer, which I will also listen to with an open mind. How many trainers have complained on this forum about supertrucker noobs who think they know it all?

I have spent many weeks reading this forum and others like it to find all these answers for myself. I came here to "follow the rules" and actually ASK real truckers, as I was tasked to do, rather than just fill in a fake name and the answers I thought I already knew. Truckers are here, off duty, looking for interaction, talking, answering questions, and trying to help each other. I'm not bothering some tired, cranky trucker who just wants to eat in peace and get his butt into the bunk. Being open to answers I may not have already figured out on my own is a good thing, and could teach me a thing or two. Thinking I know it all before I have even started would be arrogant, and stupid, so I see the point of the exercise and will complete it as asked.

If you read any of the thread, a couple of the responses verified that others have had to go through this same process to get their own grants to make it into this profession. I'm not a "poor" anything... I'll be getting paid $4500 for jumping through a couple hoops for a couple days. Not bad pay, if you ask me. If it's taxable, so be it... So would earning the $4500 any other way. Free is never free... There's always a price to pay, but at least it's a price that gives back in wisdom.

So sheesh, heavy, help a girl out or be nice, lol. You seem a tad bit cranky there.

 

If you look at them through the lens of "one size fits all professions" yeah, they can be kinda "dumb". Of course a driver can't answer the question about which school someone would hire from, so I don't ask that of drivers.

So, you don't hire out of a school? I heard that the main reason to go to school is that most insurance companies require 140 hours or more of training before they'll insure a new driver. Does your insurance not have that requirement? Do you even hire new drivers who just got their cdl? And if they don't go to school, how do you suggest that they get their cdl without owning a truck? Do you lend a truck for that? Because there were a couple posts yesterday from others that sure could use a bit of help with the driving portion of their cdl.

Not all drivers are "Just" drivers for life. Do you think that there is no upward mobility in this field? I never intend to become an O/O, but there is that option. And if you can buy one truck, then you might be able to buy two. Megas grow from one or a few trucks to many. That's advancement in a career. But this question isn't JUST for those seeking a cdl... It's a question for a person seeking ANY new career. That makes it a good question for an agency who is giving away money for a career change to make someone think about.

Yes, commercial vehicle operation is a dangerous job. But that's not the only disadvantage or challenge in this career. I appreciate that you may love the life so much that you see NO other disadvantages or challenges in it. I'd think being an O/O had a LOT of challenges... finding loads, repairs on equipment, other drivers damaging your equipment through carelessness, costs of insurance and fuel, etc... Not to mention the challenges we all face - lack of exercise and good food options, nasty traffic, idiot drivers, breakdowns, shippers and receivers delaying us, being away from home so much, among others.

I stand by the thought that these are good questions for anyone changing careers to think about before they get themselves in a bind with school loans and spending years of time on a degree, only to find out they hate the job or can't find a job... Like the political science major from a post yesterday. If he'd have asked these questions, maybe he woulnd't be complaining about no jobs in the field he has an expensive degree in.

 

Heavy, I am so sorry to hear about all the pain you and your wife are in. I get it too about just wanting to be angry on a forum. You don't even wanna see my facebook feed, lol. I wish you the best. Sadly, unless the mods kill my account, you guys get to hear from me from now on, as long as I can help other ppl with my posts (or tell idiots that they are idiots) Thanks for reading my "book".