And so my new Stevens adventure begins!

Sorry about that....

Here is an updated. I am still out with my Trainee/Trainee Team partner. Things were moving along smoothly for the most part as we had mad a couple runs from the midwest to cali and back racking up our miles. We have had a engine light on for a few days in the truck and then another came on so we called in on Sat asking to have it looked like. We were scheduled for a delivery Walmart DC in Cheyenne Sat night/Sun morn so we were advised to make delivery and to report to the Kenworth Dealer on Sun morning as they were open on weekends. The plan sounded smooth enough and at 0700 Sunday morning we were patiently waiting outside the gates. Upon making contact with the staff we were told they couldn't see us until atleast Monday afternoon. Wow...that wasn't expected. So we spent the entire day Sunday at a little Sapp Bros next door. The wifi was strong and free so I was able to watch plenty of Korean movies on Netflix and the playoffs. Reported back to the dealership Mon morn and sat there all day again until around 1800 when they said they weren't sure when they could get us in. Called in and got authorized for a hotel where we stayed at last night. We called in today and were told our truck should be ready this afternoon so we will be headed back over there shortly.

Things I have learned from this experience:

1) Never assume that just because it can probably be fixed in an hour that it will be
2) Always ask where the driver lounge is because I didn't see one and assumed they didn't have one and spent all day Monday sitting in the truck only to find out that they did in fact have one with nice couches and tv....whoops
3) Continue to roll with the punches and keep everything in perspective. Breakdowns are a part of this business and stressing out about them serves no purpose as it doesn't make anything or anyone move any quicker
4) They say "patience is a virtue" but if you want to survive this whole training program you better put "tolerance" right up there with it

So far we have logged about 4500 of our 7000 miles and still have until the 31st so I am not really worried about the couple days down. I do miss being in the truck though (when its moving that is).

Finally, do your best to come in prepared financially because the closer to the end you get the more you feel the impact of the training pay. $350 turns into $190 quick after taxes and various "payroll deductions" that people seem to be fond of (especially medical).

The end is in sight now and I don't see anything that will prevent me from crossing that finish line soon.

J

 

Well this seems like an appropriate time for a long overdue update as things have progressed.

JIMO I will try to also roll up your answer in this post.

I completed my Trainee/Trainee team requirements last week. As was stated before the first phase of training with the "trainer" my required checkpoints were 8500 (personally driven) miles, 35 days, 3 Major Mountains (2 w/o Jake and 1 w/jake...I think), and all 5 regions of the US. The checkpoints during the "trainee teams" were simpler as we were required 7500 miles (to the truck) and 21 days. Once these thresholds are met you are qualified to move onto grad class. It is important to remember that while these requirements are "minimums" they are certainly not maximums. In the end I ended up on my trainee/trainee truck for 4 weeks, not 3, and did closer to 11,000 miles, not 7500. It was really just a matter of being in the right place at the right time to catch a load back to Dallas. Not a big deal really but just remember to remain flexible like I said before. They are not going to deadhead you 800 miles to Dallas just to get you back on day 21.

Upon returning to the yard we turned the truck in without incident and attended "Grad Class" on Friday. Unlike OR1 and OR2 it was only a single day. The day consisted of briefs from basically each of the departments that briefed in OR2 with much of the same information but with some more experience under your belt to be able to reference real situations or questions that you may have from your time out. Class was relatively quick and smooth. Each of the instructors signs off on your clearance sheet as they teach their portion. Around mid afternoon we were assigned trucks by truck manager, told to find them to determine if they were occupied or not, and instructed to report the next morning to sign for them and get keys. Additionally, the second to last class was from the Alliance team. While everyone, who is not in the know, claims it is shoved down your throat from day 1 it is not. This class was really the first substantial push I had been exposed to with the exception of the option to request an Alliance Trainer originally. The basic intent of the Alliance crew during Grad Class is to again explain the program and provide the opportunity to enroll into "Pre-Alliance" during your Grad Fleet time.

Grad Fleet is where you will spend your first 90 days solo. It is broken down into G1, G2, and G3. The only significant difference is with regards to Trip Planning. In G1 your DM provides you with a verbal trip plan that you then resubmit via QC. In G2 you provide the DM with your trip plan verbally for review and then submit. G3 you simply submit it via QC and roll if there is no issues. The requirements for graduating from Grad Fleet are 90 days and 25,000 miles. If you chose to enroll into Pre-Alliance, or should I say not opt out, then you will be assigned an Alliance DM who will oversee your time and assist in evaluating you to see if Alliance could be a fit. If you do chose to opt out you will be assigned a company side DM. While in Pre-Alliance you are still a company driver and expected to abide by all the standard policies and procedures while they are simply evaluating your driving, fuel economy, thoroughness with the Circle of Service, etc...

Policy wise the most significant change is the available hours to drive. While in trainee team the 12am cutoff was enforced vigorously, which did cause a few moments of frustration. From this point forward you are available to drive 24/7 but must still remember that you have to call in for a mandatory briefing if driving after midnight and the "Danger Zone 0300-0600" still exists and must be properly recognized.

In regards to time off for most of us we were eligible to now receive the $500 bonus if we had completed our training up to this point without home time. It is my understanding that you are eligible for the first half after leaving the yard with your first dispatch and the remainder after 30 days. I do not know how long that offer was for or if it is still valid as there are some changes currently being implemented in the training program. Additionally, if you have not yet taken home time you are now eligible for 7 days as opposed to the normal 5 day max. You have some flexibility to request to be dispatched home in the first couple loads or to delay for a few weeks and earn some much needed money after 9 weeks of trainee pay first.

Once class is completed the only real things you need to take care of are completing the grad survey online, meeting your DM, finishing up anything on your clearance sheet that needs to be done and getting your truck ready to roll. I won't expand on that to much as everyone's truck will need something different so my experience may not be the same as yours and, well, I have tried hard to to complain throughout this post.

If I have overlooked, misspoke, or forgotten anything else please feel free to chime in anyone.

My goal at the beginning was to provide insight to new drivers such as myself that may give them the best possible chance to make a smooth transition. I hope that I have been able to do that. It is important to understand that this job and this company like anything else is fluid. There are parts of this training program that I have described that are already dated and are currently being done differently but the core information and goals are still pretty much on point. Please feel free to throw in any updates to things that may have changed so as to keep the information as current as possible because honestly just like bootcamp I survived and am glad I did it but I won't be looking to do it again anytime soon!

 

Yes your training pay is $350/wk (gross) from you hire date until you head out solo in grad fleet where you convert to cpm. Remember you don't get paid in school. Your pay doesn't start until you are "officially" hired which is usually around day 3 of OR1 when the drug screens come back.