I am about to give up!

That really makes no sense. Driving local is a hell of a lot more challenging than cruising down the freeway.

 

Don't give up yet... somebody will hire you.... I'm looking for a driving job myself. I have 2.5 years experience, but got a few strikes against me. I bounced from one company to the next, always thinking I could do better. My last job at Schneider was pretty good, actually was making a little bit of money.. but then I jacknifed the truck out of Laredo.... I was not charged with the accident. Had 2 Texas State Troopers investigating, both said that I did everything I could to keep from making it worse. Fortunately no other people were involved. Schneider did terminate me due to company policy...what I'd like to know is there any company, that's decent, who would hire me? I have 1 minor incident, which I reported, but it didn't amount to anything at all. I bumped another driver's passenger mirror, no damage,but the driver reported the incident, so I really did'nt have much choice. I believe in doing the right thing, and I can understand the reason why most companies won't hire due to an accident or termination, but I'd really like to get back out there and prove that I can drive......I'm just ready to settle down with a good company, drive safely, and just enjoy it..... Any suggestions???

 

Taxi driver. (jk!)

 

I thought about taxi driver job, but no money in Macon......lol..........

 

Agreed. You can't get a local gig without OTR experience. And you can't go back OTR if you have been driving local for a year or 2. I guess its all part of the trucking scam.

 

Dammed if ya do an dammed if ya don't...at least you can whack up a taxi and still have a job...

 

New here been doing alot of reading here and there on this forum. Anyways decided to join so I can post.



Anyways not directed toward you redking but thats BS. I went through a school got my CDL which only cost me $500 bucks and the whole time there telling me I have to fill out app's for companys you know swift, TMC, and on and on. I told them fly a kite basically I wasn't driving OTR that I couldn't for family reasons wife in nursing school, no one to watch our daughter while I'm away. Anyways they tell me the same thing you not going to find local unless you have OTR experiance. Well I ignored there advise anyway's.

It took me about 1 month after getting my CDL to find something local. It wasn't glamorus or anything we had nice trucks and it wasn't class A work all the time mostly class B but I did some A driving too. It was a nationwide company that sold roofing supplys and vinal sideing. Well I all my delevery's where local. Granted I had to sometimes load the shingles on to a conveyer that was mounted on the truck so I could get them to the roofers on the building but hey it was local work. Most of the time we ground dropped them using a PIG you know the forklift that ride's on the back of the truck.

When I was doing Class A work for them the furthest I had to go was Columbus ohio and I was home the same day. All I had to do then was go to another store and pick up stuff we needed or didn't have and bring it back. I went to Dayton ohio. Lexington Ky Louisville Ky, Cincinati, Oh and Columbus Oh. I live in northern Ky so all these trips where short. I was paid hourly at $13 and hr and was making good money.

I stayed there less than 5 months and moved on to another local company that made precast concreate products. I worked in the plant for few weeks and then started driving all local nothing over 50 miles. They then asked me if I would work in the yard because they needed someone else to run the forklift because the one guy couldn't keep up with all the work. I said yeah but I still want to drive too. Not a problem I then became a driver/yard guy. It was great just when I got tired of working in the yard they would have a hot load and the other drivers where out so I drove. Or if the regular drivers where sick on vaction I was driving. Filled in for one guy who was hurt for about a month. All class A AND B driving. A couple of the guys only had B's and 3 of us had A's so I did alot of A driving. When I started getting tired of driving it always seemed to balance out I would be back in the yard on the forklift which I thought was great gave me a break from both from time to time.


So one day my friend calls me hey I need a driver, you interested in it. Ok what do you have. I need someone to drive one of my dump trucks and haul equipment to job sites. All local work nothing over 30 miles from home. He did excavation work. I stayed busy all the time. Hell I even got payed to sit on a tractor and cut hay and then we would bail it up in round bails and haul it to customers around our area, yes using the dump truck and drag.


Now I'm on my next adventure. I'm a EMT I was before I got my CDL's and I work on a ambulance right now. I plan on going back to school to get some more education.


I love driving and I still plan on to keep on driving. I got my CDL's as backup for incase I do need a job down the road. I may not be a super trucker or full time but I have been around the block some too. I like what I do now and I'm going to look for part time driving on my days off around local.

Point of all this long ### post is this, If you want something bad enough you will find a way to make it happen. There is work out there you have to find it. I can think of 4 places right now that are hireing local drivers thats without putting much thought into it. It may not be the newest nicest most modern trucks out there, and it may require some actual physical work as well but it's out there. Never limit yourself to just one thing expand you will find it I promise.

RedKing this post isn't aimed at you it's geared toward those who are looking for work local or OTR. I don't want you think I'm attacking you and I don't want anyone else to think I'm attacking them Just giving my Opinoin. Just trying to help.

 

Understood. I appreciate your well thought-out post on that. I guess its more accurate to say that its not impossible, just not an easy thing to do.

 

When I got out of Truck Driving School I went to TMC orientation and came home the next day because the attitude there was not for me at all! Then I went and applied at a local company and drove a Chip Truck from a saw mill to the paper mill. Eventually i drove a dry van for them locally. I don't think its the norm to get a local job right out of school but I don't think its impossible either.

 

im in columbia ky where are these local jobs your talking about. you can e-mail me at shaw_transport at hotmail dot com. for some reason they made it to where you can't do anything until you get 50 post or something. kinda dumb but ok lmao