If you had no other choices, which of these 5 companies would you choose to work for?

Werner's the only one out of the five that I know of that allows pets in the truck.

 

well, JB and Werner are out cuz....they are JB and Werner. Their reputation precedes them.
Swift is out B/c I work for their younger, punk-### cousin a.k.a. Knight. Anything Swift does, Knight is sure to follow, or so I've been told.
That leaves Prime or Roehl.
Seeing as how Prime doesnt seem to really want company drivers but would rather have fleece operators, I dont believe I would want to drive for them. Not to mention at 6' 4" and 350lbs, my BMI is probably too high for them anyway!
Which leaves me with Roehl., and with all that I've read about them on here...I'd have to say..."Do you want to SUPER-SIZE your Big Mac value meal today?"

 

I can't pick, I haven't worked for any of them. Roehl passed on me. I applied after their recruiter came to my school.

I have applied to Swift, before I applied they told me things were slow. Probably not hiring until after January.

I have talked to Werner, applied and they called me to get some more info.

JB does not hire newbies. My trucking friend who I have known for 20+ years told me he made his best money working for JB. He has been at Landspan, Watkins, Montgomery tank, Aldworth, H.L. Stansell, and now O/O.

One company that hire newbies that I have heard from two former students from my school........Crete! They are very happy. Getting plenty of miles, good equipment. Treated decent. I am finishing up my application with them and faxing it off today.

I have applied with eight companies so far. Everyone is in the last few days except for Roehl.

Stevens is on my list. Prime and CR England aren't. I don't want to fleece a truck.

 

Since you have made this apparent, I would have to say avoid Swift at all costs. From my experience out on the road they do not spend enough time preparing their drivers for the real world. Even though you will graduate a driving school it only gives you the basics and enough testable knowledge to pass the CDL exam and road test, nothing more. Swift puts a little more time behind that in teaching you to do their paperwork and procedures but turns the students loose with no real seat time in all conditions. I would have to objectively say that Prime offers a decent training program and as long as you use them for that alone, I would recommend them. I worked with them as a subcontractor and would also advise to avoid all lease offers from them or any of the other above mentioned carriers. Get your 2 years in as a company driver, without it you will be fighting an uphill battle. After you get your 2 years OTR experience then I would look into companies like John Christner etc. (the companies that will not hire without 2 years) and get away from the driver mill companies. Hope this gives you some direction but the single biggest piece of advise I can give you is to keep your head in check and remember even though you may posess a license, you are only qualified enough to be dangerous. It takes time to become a good driver and that is miles upon miles in all weather conditions. I have seen too many driver mill companies with rigs on their side in a light snow or rain because no-one trained the driver in those types of conditions. I have been driving off and on for 11 years and now own my own company, one example for me is I have never been in a rig with chains slung, I have chains but will not use them. Not that I don't think I can handle it but simply I have never been exposed to it with someone who has experience and honestly I would rather be safe then sorry, if I have to chain up then I park it. I have never had a load late do to it as of yet but I will #### sure never have a load late due to my stupidity.

 

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I hear ya Truckerdave. I myself measure out at 6'4 290 and its tough. Knight wont leave me alone with their "sale" pitches. Example: "You really do need to consider us(I did that BEFORE they sent it...negatively speaking)we offer so much BETTER benefits and live up to those unlike other trucking Companies"...end quote. "So much better"...HUH? now "NotsoSwift", Ive heard flatbedders "seem" more happier. Theyre website is fun(thats all). That little man that appears on the homepage YA CANT OUT RUN him no matter HOW fast you roll your mouse from "Mr. Paul Pogo Stick", he KNOWS where your at. Then when you click the "SERVICES TAB", a guy that can pass for his Father does the same "Pogo Hop" if ya try to escape him. Poor soul has to read a prompt that appears to have fallen....dont ever trust ANYONE that cant look ya in the eye, Id be embarrassed to.

Jaybees' site asks "Whats your next move"?.....I dunno, but I fear corns involved. "What kind of truck will I drive and how fast will I go"? .....tractors are governed at speeds of 63 or 65mph......Which MEANS 63 EMPTY on level ground....with tailwind....or 65 going DOWNHILL ....heavy loaded....and please it is against our Company policy to race going downhill side-by side because states have laws against "Special Olympic" running. Lastly......and NEW drivers watch for this in your inquiries. At the bottom of of the Application in the fineprint it quotes......All the information is TRUE and CORRECT.....amazing how they just HAPPEN to leave out ....."to the BEST of my knowledge".....Now you know why you got fired cause they refer BACK to that phrase(warning)...cagey.

Maybe if Oldnew has further Polls, he can have ONE final poll with the 10 best overall runners and then choose the winner of that poll and get schooled and hire on with them. Lengthy research, but like he quoted, he has plenty of time.

 

Schneider. Slow orange trucks that are hot in the summer, and cold in the winter. You can't idle, and they have no APUs. They are always bragging on the radio about how they can move freight cheaper because of their low overhead. Guess who takes the hit to get that low overhead.