Swift and uncertainty

Think of Orientation as like getting invited to training camp in sports , you are not yet on the team and any DUMB or STUPID thing you do while there can get you sent home.

 

You'll get in. I had year long gaps in employment, and didn't really put everything down. Got hired no questions asked. Went through a local community college for my CDL.

 

Remember the TV show, "Smile, you're on candid camera", well that's Swift. You have lots of other good choices so shop around carefully for that first job.

 

It's better to just go with a company you want instead of one just because you feel obligated. Swift doesn't really care and will bill you later.

 

I love all the 'sound' advice.

If you are going through the Swift CDL school you will be on the hook to pay the bill, one way or another.

If you have employment gaps you will be required to provide some kind of proof as to why you were unemployed during those periods. It is no different with any company that follows federal laws.
That proof might just be a letter from a friend or family member stating that you were unemployed for a certain time for a certain reason.
I went through the same thing before I was hired at Swift, and it was a letter from my sister explaining the situation.
But, they WILL require ALL time in the past 10 years to be accounted for.

It has been said that Swift will hire anyone, but that is not the case.
They are a training company, so hiring standards are naturally lower in certain areas. But don't get the wrong idea.
They will still hold to certain standards, which include employment history.

They can't do otherwise, since everyone is gunning to burn Swift for whatever reason.
And lately, that includes the Fed's.
Our scores are way down because of a small percentage of bad drivers, so the heat is on to get those scores back up.

Swift can't afford to make too many mistakes right now, and that would include in the hiring process.

 

That is one of the nice things about Swift and some other "Starter" companies. They will work with you and give you a chance if you don't have a 100% perfect employment record.

Legislation has been proposed by several democratic members of congress to make it illegal to discriminate against people who are unemployed or have employment gaps, but it hasn't passed into law as of yet.

I think it's crazy that a person with a perfect driving record, no criminal history, and no drug use - but if you don't have a perfect no gap 10 year employment history you can't get a job driving a dang old dang gum truck down the road. It's not brain surgery, it's driving a truck for god's sake - which the United States dept. of Labor classifies as "Unskilled Labor" just to let you know.

 

and if I'm not mistaken unless things have changed... Coming into the industry as a student driver you're only required to provide the previous three years of employment history, experienced drivers are required to provide 10 years of work history if any CDL driving was done