Greetings, Fighting for a New Direction

Hello guys my name is Ready Road and I am here because I've been looking for quite a while now, since May of this year, looking to get into the trucking industry. I have come from homelessness since last year September and I am working retail and have been working retail even since the incident and the income is not enough to pull me out completely. I'm currently relying on the help of some some of my co-workers either by giving a little bit of money for food, sometimes transportation to a location, with another co-worker providing me with a place to stay. Everyone, the co-workers, have all been wonderful and you know supporting me and helping me get from this point. But the company itself, the way it is run, the politics are starting to show and the environment, upper Management wise, is getting really really toxic. Hours are getting cut, we're being understaffed and people are being shifted and there's just no communication, nothing. Ive tried to do things about it. I've tried to communicate, and yesterday was my last straw. It was only two of us. One co-worker got sick and had to go home. They did what they were able to do before they left and then I was left to do pretty much the rest of it all by myself. And as you all know yesterday was Black Friday things were a mess but management did what they could do to clean up, but after that it was just the rest is on me. I just felt I feel gridlocked in the role im in trying to get some assistance, I don't feel that you know hanging around any longer is going to be healthy for me. I understand solidarity but I'm not doing myself or anyone any favors by continually putting up with something knowing what my true situation is and knowing just how close alot of people could come to what I'm dealing with I would rather be an example of you know just saying enough is enough and and I'm moving on then continuing to endure the abuse from from from upper management from customers and in and showing myself some respect and saying I've done all I can do and I need to go.

I back around May and June started going towards Suburban Trucking I don't have a car so I had to take bus and I was doing this through driver Solutions at that time and I had to travel from Royal Oak all the way to Romulus by bus and that was after work at that time I was working day shift I not work nights I got there they got me accommodation in the the hotel and I met my roommate okay and I got in the class the next morning I was ready it reminded me of driver's training when I was at Sears and you know just watching the cheesy videos and I was just ready to hunker down and then as I sat there and you know they called us for a break and we go to the secretary's office and I find that time my social security card I thought it was stolen and about three or four months later I finally found it wedged in my backpack and a very strange corner so I basically mom saying is I've had so many setbacks trying to get started s and it's getting to the point now where my head feels like it's going to explode if I stay in this job any longer and I'm going to give it one more hard effort. All the documents that are necessary and the only thing I'm concerned about is the DOT physical I am handicapped I am personally amputee in my left hand I have a vice or a pincer grip and I always wear gloves with good grip. this is important especially when I'm driving as the palm of my left hand I will get very smooth from constant rubbing and it'll lose grip so gloves are beneficial there and also protecting it from cuts and and scrapes which I still get unfortunately cuz I'm clumsy. But I have no trouble and I'm driving just a regular car I do not drive manual but I have no problem getting in that truck and learning how I take a little longer to learn things I have been studying the CDL apps you know the testing isn't it just constantly learning learning learning but for me it's easier if I'm physically doing it touching it practicing even if I'm failing because my mind cannot retain it if I'm not actually doing it I can read as many books as I want to but certain things I have to get in and start doing it or I will not retain it at all. I'm currently trying to find a school or something that has paid training that I can get employment right after.

I live in Michigan if it was an obvious when I mentioned Romulus and Royal Oak and there are plenty plenty of jobs you know trucking jobs here I prefer to stay up north of the 9 Mile area I've had very very terrible experiences being in 8 Mile semi you just further the further towards downtown I get the it's just not safe I can survive fine but I'd rather not be in a position where I have to survive again. the closest I'm near is the Warren and Sterling Heights area I'm really close to you as trucking schoolI tried to go through the employment agency and I was not able to get assistance into getting into school I just my income is still too high but it's still not enough for me to actually get out of homelessness. Irony. So I want to ask all of you what am I able to do? What school is willing to take a chance on me? What trucking company is willing to take a chance on me? I want to succeed I want to work hard I want to get more money than I'm making now cuz it's not much. I'll still be going to work in the meantime but it'll be drudgery right now. What I really need right now is some new glasses and some contact lenses I've have been working with the same broken glasses since last year and the other side of my glasses has just broken a few days ago and if it keeps getting any worse I'm going to lose a lens I just cannot afford glasses right now. I'm starting to become unwell and just fighting to get to work 5 days a week by bus by Lyft it's getting too much. I want to change.

Any resources help you guys can provide would be great my needs are: higher wage, easy to get to by bus or Lyft, I no longer care about being over the road although eventually I would like to be Intermodal or you know working the ports family is very important to me in the future though I have no one right now.

I have no moving violations no felonies I do not drink I do not smoke do not do any drugs. I was a caregiver until 2007 until 2017. That caused Pam transit to reject me because of the huge employment Kappa had between the last year and now and I was very disappointed. I did a lot of calling of companies and some of them sound a bit Shady some of them were giving me the runaround and some of them seem strangely too eager.

For schooling I need: accommodation, paid training and job placement. My final thing is since early this year all I've been doing is riding down as many trucking companies as i see riding down the street and the last one I got yesterday was called TQT LLC and I have yet to you know research all of them but if you know of some around here that are decent and reliable I don't care how good they are I just need the year experience and I'll move on but I just I just want to get my foot in the door.

I thank you all for your time I apologize for any spelling errors I I'm using speech to text and then I'm going to go and get a burger.

 

Hello Chintatown. I havent heard of it and ill check into this program immediately. Thank you!

 

Want to follow up. I got in contact with my career advisor and asked if I would qualify for assistance even though my income is "too high" and they mentioned that yes they can help. I have an appointment next week with them and breathing a sigh of relief in that direction

I also want to thank you for the lead on Steven's. I'll look their website over. I happen to have their pamphlet from when I visted US trucking school still.

 

Im popping back in a updating on what's happening since I was last here.

My career counselor is waiting for her boss to give approval for the education plan we've worked on.

A. Have school paid for a go local( 1 mile from where I live)

B. If for some reason I fail DOT, we go through the process to get the waiver, and try again.

C. If that fails, I go to community college and study something else.

In the mean time while waiting on her, Ive been proactive on my own in getting contact with companies for their cdl program.

- Stevens started out ok, and now they are very quiet.

- Prime Inc, Im studying for and trying balance that with the Missouri CDL book

- Wil-Trans has been silent, not returning messages or phone call

- Roehl, I have to get my permit on my own and I honestly cannot afford that

- XPO Logistics, Im having a very hard time getting in contact with them at all. Im not sure what's going on by I am trying again.

- Pam wont get back in touch

- Celdaon, I have yet to try.

So Ive basically been studying every night, almost the whole day, checking back and just trying be patient. At the very least, if I go through training via State, I can atleast contact the companies local to me. I already have a list of 120 or so.

Alright that's it on that.

Now about the bills, Im currently in a co-workers apartment, so I plan to pay for that until the lease ends and I move into my own place. So some money will be going to rent, my phone bill and lease and my mailbox. Thats all I have.

 

So unfortunately it seems that things are stopped dead. I'm not discouraged, just going to keep trying some other companies.

I was able to get touch with Wil-trans and unfortunately I didn't qualify. Trying to get in touch with Prime and Stevens. The other companies need you to be near there hiring area.

The only other option Ive considered is going with CR England, Swift or CRST, as a paying my dues at the very bottom and moving up from there.

Thats it for now.

 

Final update.

I finally made lots of headway this January. I collected a number of companies that will hire new grads. Last week I was given the greenlight for funding for trucking school and started Tuesday this week.

All the studying from Dec - now has been paying off as I participated in the first day of class. I was able to answer questions, recognise some of the things I learned in a visual form via videos, slides and truck models.

We all went to take the DOT physical the school needed and I passed all but the one portion pertaining to my left hand. I have to have a Skills performance evaluation. I made that call today and they will be mailing a packet to me. This process has been exhausting as I seem to get closer and farther away from trucking. According to the packet I found on the Fmcsa website, I need a certified physiast or orthopaedic surgeon to sign off on certain section. I currently dont have insurance or enough money to pay for someone like that , so I've hit a deadend.

Suffice to say, the fight since june 2018 has been a tough one, but im completely exhausted and hanging in the towel.

Thank you for following, and information, China, it was greatly appreciated.