Self employed seems to hurt you when applying for a job

Drive and ingenuity will hurt you if you're applying to a mega TL carrier - they want more sheep and would not consider someone who can clearly think for themselves since that would hurt their chances of pimping them.

My advice - try the big national LTL and parcel companies. The companies always love those who can think a step or two ahead as do the drivers you'll be working with. The wages are top notch as most of your co-workers will be.. Try UPS first IMO - Parcel and Freight are the two best jobs on the road right now..

 

UPS will be one of the easier companies to confirm self employment.

I was self employed for three years and have been through three pre-hire background checks in the past nine months.

Current job that I am leaving this week did nothing that I am aware of to confirm my time working for myself. Think I could have been a crack dealing felon on the run from the law, and they still would have taken me just to have a warm body behind the wheel.

Went through the process with Ryder, and it was a nightmare. Three weeks of sending them documents over and over. Kept asking for paperwork that I never had, because my business was small enough that it was not required, then couldn't understand why I didn't have it despite explaining it a dozen times. I think they finally just gave up and confirmed me.

UPS was as simple as a two minute phone call. They called me to verify employment for my employee, which was me. Once I explained to them that I was both the employee and the employer, and could provide them with documentation of they wanted it, it was done. Never had to send them a thing.

 

previous to 2008, i also was self employed. my starter company requested the past 3 years of returns for proof of stable employment, all that was requested.

 

I have a string of companies in my driving history that no longer exist.

Trucking companies seem to take any opportunity available to keep themselves from allowing an empty truck to haul a load. So if the four companies you drove for in the last 10 years do not exist anymore, neither do you. They call the number you provided to document employment and when the phone doesn't work then you are a liar.

Welcome back to trucking where the parents eat their failed children and you have to document every fart you left in the seat of any truck you drove in the last 10 years....And the hiring company is willing to spend $10,000 to buy a fart test sniffer to make sure you are telling the truth while no freight gets hauled.

So you, like so many ex drivers who left to do something else for awhile will be required to endure a CDL mill, watch a 28 year old instructor swill free coffee for 6 hours of a 10 hour day and tell stories about the "Good Old Days" back when a 45 foot trailer was considered long.

You may have to start over again. And how dare you be self employed! (Sarcasm) You're not supposed to have a will of your own. You will be assimilated.

 

Until there was a glut of available drivers.

 

Still do not have a problem.

Landstar only one that was difficult. Just had to fax them the schedule c from the tax return.

Clean MVR usually is the key for me.

 

Emphasis mine.

I believe that MVR is the saving grace for many of us.

Now we get to add that CSA score. Making my record worth it's weight in gold.

 

Der Leader is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Der leader's brother, Oscar, is the one living at 1400.

 

bbqguy; you beat me to it. I was reading my way to the last post so I could address the address