First year plan cut short

I've been 3x already and I am in regular contact with one rep. He keeps sending me leads. He got me to the guy I am interviewing with tomorrow. They can set me up but they can't get me past company hiring policy's like 1 year experience or get them to hire me over more experienced drivers. But they are definitely working with me and helping me as much as possible.

 

Persistence. Keep trying.

 

Pay will probably be decent there.Pre trip your truck,check engine fluids,tires,brakes,lights,paperwork,ect.But talk to the examiner before starting,see what's normally checked.
If you will be dumping on a stockpile area where other trucks are dumping,don't back all the way into the pile,leave a few feet of space.If you back into the pile you'll probably rip your mud flaps off on the first load.

 

Follow up: I have been driving a water truck for a local vineyard for about a month or so. It's a dead end job with a decent hourly wage, no OT, no benefits and is most likely seasonal.
However, I am in the hiring process for 2 jobs:
One is a Teamsters Union job driving a cement truck for Shamrock/ Vulcan materials. It's $33.40 an hour (minus $3 for the first 90 days and minus $1.50 for another 90 days) Full benefits, 401k and $14.33 an hour, for every hour worked, into a pension. Next year is also a contract negotiation year so I am told that should come with a healthy increase hourly. Very good time off, sick and vacation pay over time.
The other is SMART Train with the Operating Engineers union. They are a very small high speed rail that currently goes from Santa Rosa to Larkspur (basically where you transfer to bus or ferry to go to San Francisco). The job is as an Assistant Conductor. The benefits are similar to Shamrock but the pay is much higher. I'd start at $37.90. Once I am a Conductor it's like $45 ish. I can also work towards becoming an assistant engineer and eventually an engineer, which they said is achievable in about 5 years, and pays about $58 per hour. I know nothing about the train business or the Operating Engineers Union so I am having a tough time deciding which way to go. It seems like a good gig with potential where as the Shamrock gig is basically maxed out after 6 moths besides future raises in contracts. But the Teamsters have been top notch in trying to find me new work and I don't know if I'll find that kind of representation anywhere else.
Luxury problems...

 

SMART Train with the Operating Engineers union looks like a winner.

 

CR England are a large company yes you will get some bad raps, but you will also find some good ones as well what you'll have to do is weigh up the good with the bad and decide, that is if you don't really have many options, its kind of like getting married in some ways you've got to ask yourself can I put up with my partners faults in other words can I accept them for who they are? Or will I try to change them? This is the same with the trucking company are you willing to tolerate whatever it is that someone has said is wrong with them? As there's no way your going to be able to change the company.

 

That railway job sounds like you'd be on the right track -- just hope it doesn't make a downhill train wreck out of your marriage.

Still....if you conduct yourself well -- you shouldn't have to brake hard again -- & switch over to another line of work.

-- L

 

If needed in the future,who's say's you only worked 4 months at Yellow. I'm pretty sure there is no one answering the phones at Yellow in Hr these days. Just maybe you worked there for 18 months before they shut down. If things dont work out and times get tough it just might help

 

I agree... I am in the background check process right now which shouldn't be an issue. If that goes well then I will get a job offer and if I do I'll probably take it. Long process though. I applied like 2 months ago and it could take another month or 2 to get started. Unfortunately I'll probably have to start with Shamrock in the meantime because if Smart falls through I don't want to be stuck with nothing. I hate to play these games but it is what it is.

 

Yea but I've only had my class a since December and they can see through FMCSA when Yellow drug tested me so that wouldn't work. I'd rather just be up front about it anyways.