10 Questions every driver should know the answers to before hiring on with a company

that's where research comes in. There are more reliable sources of information then a companies recruiter.

 

Exactly, I don't believe I said ask the company, you got to put in your own leg work and find independent info.

 

What do you mean? I can't Drive 2500 and be home every week. But my recruitor said I could.

 

Thats the problem, he was only giving you half the sentence.

Recruiter says: You can drive 2500 miles a week and be home every week
The end of the sentence he left off: if you call your truck home.

Recruiter: We have lots of new trucks with apu's
End of the sentence: for lease purchase.

Recruiter: Sure you'll be able to get a dedicated run
End of the sentence: in about 10 years.

Recruiter:We care about our drivers
End of the sentence: getting paid as little as possible so we get our bonuses.

 

Hey RizenPhoenix you could make a million $$$ if you put that on a t-shirt and sold them at truck stops! Funny as hell, but actually true!

 

Sad but true! Who is to blame, I don't know . All parties I think need to share the blame. The big starter companies/ recruitors for handing out promises they can't/ won't keep. But also all the nebes that go into trucking like a deer in headlights, and buying the bs the recruitors are preachin.

 

These are great questions to ask but as mentioned, asking the recruiter might not be the best source for the truth. I can't speak from experience because I'm one of those newbies going through the research phase. I start cdl school in a month.

I have been on here reading and trying to get all the info I can before I have to make a decision. A concise list of questions to research is quite helpful. It helps to get me on the right path with my thoughts.

Keep it coming!

 

Realistically.......

1. What is the average miles per power unit per week at that company? This leaves no wiggle room and I guarantee you that this is a number well known at any company. Don’t buy the snow job of, “Well, most drivers can get about 2500 miles if they run hard.” It’s ########, you aren’t going to be special, just another truck number. That average per power unit will let you compare companies better.

If you're going to be this picky, they'll just hang up on you and sucker the next desperate soul in dire need of employment. Then you are going to have to call back and apologize for being a wisenhymer and beg extra hard to get a job cause all of the other outfits hung up on you as well.....Might as well ask for the company stock quote while your at it.

1. How am I going to stay warm/cool while on the road at that company? If they have apu’s it’s an easy answer. If they have bunk heaters your covered on staying warm. If they have a no idle alternative heat/ac system you might be okay but there seems to be a lot of break downs with those units. If they have an anti-idle program that prevents your truck from idling between say 30-70 outside temp combined with a bunk heater you will not always comfortable but will be okay most the time. If they have an idle percentage limit and your driving as a solo, be prepared to hear about the fact you idle too much. If they say it’s not their problem and their trucks don’t idle tell them to go pound sand.

Suck it up, if you wanted an easy life with climate control. Waste four years in college get 100K in debt, and you can take that 100K degree to a $9/hr job with a climate controlled environment, like being a Secretary.

1. What is that company’s home time policy? Industry standard is 1 day off for every 7 days out but don’t ever assume that’s how it works everywhere. I worked for a company that said home every 7-10 days. You could stay out longer if you wanted but they expected you back in the truck ready to roll after a 34 no matter how long you stayed out.

If you want to be a truck driver, that's what we do. We drive trucks.....for a living. You can't have cake and ice cream, you either make money and run hard....Or go home every weekend and eventually lose your house....and then run hard and stay out on the road because you have no house to stay in. It's a nice circle of fail...

1. What is the complete compensation system at that company? Of course you want to know what the cpm pay is but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You need to know if that cpm is paid on HHMG, pc miler, practical route, or hub miles. You need to know if they have forced per deim and if they charge an admin fee per mile for that crap. You need to know if they pay detention , how much they pay, when it kicks in(i.e. after first 2 hours), and if they pay whether they get it from the customer or not. You need to know if you get paid for chasing down an empty or doing a local(no kidding if you drop a load in a yard a lot of companies will demand you do a local for free). You need to know if they pay for extra stops. You also need to know if they pay hourly for line 4. You need to know if they reimburse for tolls and scales and how difficult is it to get reimbursed consistently if they do.

Back to response #1, if you wont do it.....An Eastern European or Mexican will do it for even less.....

1. Will you force me to team with a stranger? Do I really need to explain why this would suck?

It builds character.....

1. Will they coerce me into leasing? I’m pretty sure most companies that have both company and L/P don’t “force” anyone to lease. Although they might as well with some of the tactics they use. Like, “We don’t have any company trucks right now so you can go home and play xbox till you figure out we aren’t going to seat you. Oh look we got lots of these shiny new lease trucks, want one?”

They wont get butthurt if you say no, they will continue to nag....but we've been dealing with nagging from women for centuries...Life goes on.

1. What sort of stuff are you going to charge me for? Some companies make drivers put up a deposit in case they damage a company truck. Other companies make you pay for all sorts of needed equipment like cargo straps, kingpin locks, trailer locks etc.

I've worked for some shady outfits....This is kinda far fetched.

1. What is a companies CSA scores? Pay close attention to the maintenance and fatigue driving scores. They will help you compare companies on two important things. How well they maintain the trucks and on how hard they push drivers to deliver whether they have the hours to or not. Plus a company with high scores will get a lot more attention for the DOT cops, trust me this is never a good thing.

Push drivers=running hard+miles=MONEY! Higher the score the better....And don't worry about DOT cops. They're lazy government employee's. Run at night, problem solved.

1. What lanes and length of hauls would you run if you worked at that company? If you don’t like snow don’t work for a company that runs to the northern states. If you don’t like short runs don’t work for a company that specializes in regional freight.

Once again, we are paid to drive. Snow happens, if this makes you sad...There is always college or a career change. Suck it up.

1. What do drivers say about that company? The larger your sample of opinions the more likely you’ll have an accurate opinion of how a company is perceived. Driver’s that have worked for that company can give you insight on what the work environment was like. Don’t discount experienced driver’s opinions that haven’t worked for that company. They will often have formed those opinions based on things like the skills or lack of skills exhibited by that company’s drivers as well as the condition of that company’s equipment over the years.

Is this for real?! Truck drivers are the whiniest, biggest bunch of cry babies around. You will never please a truck driver, they will ALWAYS find something to ##### and moan about. Do your OWN research!!!!!!!!!!

 

Who pissed in your cherrios this morning? FFS, there is nothing wrong with someone knowing what to expect at a new job. If they do there research they might even find the best fit for them and be happy.