Advice for Getting back in The "Seat"

Because it has been over 3 years since you have driven a big truck, most companies will want you to go to a trucking school and/or go out with a trainer just like a rookie driver before they hand you the keys to your own truck. Once you have selected a couple of companies that you would like to work for, contact their recruiters about school and expeirence requirements.

You should also look up previous trucking companies to see if they are still around. If you can verify your previous expeirience you maybe able to start off making more $$.

I would also check to see if you have a DAC report.

 

I had 22 years OTR and took early retirement in 1992. I am wanting to get back also. I went to the local Community College and took thier Truck Driving course,as a refresher. I am glad I did. Although a lot of the times I felt like I was an instuctor for some of the younger classmates, it was a great experience. The biggest thing I picked up was the new HOS rules. They had a pretty comprehensive training curriculum. The cost was resonable. $588.00 for 384 hours of training. I went to the night class, 5 hours a night for 16 weeks. My wife is now going there, in the day class, 8 hours a day for 10 weeks.
I now have my CDL-A with hazmzt and doubles. I have found out, that for me to get back in, I have to start at the bottum, and have to ride with a trainer for a couple of weeks. I am going to work for Inman Trucking out of Leland NC, and when my wife graduates from school, we will team together. I will be her trainer for the first 4 to 6 weeks. We will be running the left coast and back east.

 

They just have a terminal in Leland NC, which is a suburb of Wilmington NC. Thier web site is down at this time. If you google inman trucking it will come up with the address and phone number. If you call, ask to speak with Al Gover. He is the Saftey Manager and does the hiring

 

If I were getting back in (I quit about 4 1/2 years ago and dumped my CDL), I'd take a refresher at a community college. It'll take a little longer, but if you go this route, you'll be better off in the long run. Going to a private school means you'll be handing over a big wad of cash, as the price for training at private schools has been shoved through the roof thanks to so many government grants jacking up that price. This applies to refresher courses, too. You'll pay too much, WAY too much, if you go to a private school to get any kind of training.

The cost of truck-driver training can be compared to medical costs. Medical care costs so much in the USA now because insurance companies have indirectly caused those costs to head for the stratosphere. Insurance companies are willing to pay whatever a health-care provider asks for. No, they don't question it--they just pay it. No, they don't question paying 3 dollars for an aspirin or 100 dollars for a shot. They just fork it over. Is it any surprise medical care costs so much?

Ditto for driver training. The government hands out grants to help wean people off of welfare (Clinton's welfare to work program) and pays whatever the schools ask for. Tuition at many private schools is now over 6,000 bones for a month or less. Believe it. And what a rip it is. You can thank Uncle Sam for that high price. Just be sure to get a grant to pay it. Going to a private school will be fine if you, too, get one of those government grants. Check to see if you qualify for such a grant at your local employment office. I'd definitely get a grant of some kind. No way would I pay for training out of my own pocket again, even if it is just for a refresher course. I wouldn't pay five pennies for any kind of training today. I know the industry too well to pay for any training using my own funds, and this sly dog's wallet would stay right where it is.

As desperate as companies say they are for drivers, they should be subsidizing training costs like nurses' training is at least partly subsidized. Some hospitals will give a new nurse 10,000 bones bonus to come and work for them--that's how desperate they are. Too bad truck drivers don't get such treatment, although (supposedly) there is a great driver shortage (there isn't--the claim that there's a driver shortage is a lie). Yeah, we who know the industry also know that subsidized training is rare, as companies actually make money on the turnover grinding machine these days. This means turnover is in their interest. Yeap, they WANT turnover. They LOVE turnover. The more the better, at least from the companies' standpoint. There is a post here from a JB JobHunt insider (JB-Buddy) who boasts about how much money he makes on turnover. Read it and multiply that one person by about 50,000 times. Those are the people who benefit from the turnover grinding machine. These guy love fresh meat. Just don't be their latest meal, brother.

Do not pay for any training, refresher course, or anything else out of your own pocket. Pull your wallet out ONLY at the DMV. That's it. Do not play the money-sucking training game.

 

If the truck bends in the middle it's good experience. Lack of OTR experience would then be your only hurdle, but, it's one that can more easily be overcome (unlike lack of recent experience). Good luck, I'm in the same boat as you are).