Just got my Class A now what ?
Posted by Significant-Panda-59@reddit | Truckers | View on Reddit | 13 comments
Got my Class A Manual in cali a couple days after I turned 21. So I couldn’t do my endorsement before, is what dmv told me. Am now in DFW Texas area looking for work. I have a wife and baby on the way. What are my best options for local work around here ? Applied for trash truck, dump, cement mixer & other locals. Most seem to want 2 years of experience. Keep hammering down on indeed, zip recruiter LinkedIn & calling local… or ? Any company recommendations that will take on someone fresh out of school ? THANKS In ADVANCE !
hotdog11inch@reddit
Had to get your license in California but you are in DFW looking for work sounds shady to me maybe because California will give a damn dog a CDL
Single_Impression546@reddit
You’re not from the United States either….
Mydogfartsconstantly@reddit
Look for fedex express if you’re looking for good work life balance. Youll also get paternity leave. Make sure your driving record and background check is crystal clear though. You will have to be retrained but if you went to a 3 week cdl mill you’ll actually learn how to drive and not just how to pass the test.
Significant-Panda-59@reddit (OP)
Will be on that tonight !! You’re the absolute man mydogfartsconstantly
Mydogfartsconstantly@reddit
Not gonna be fantastic pay but equipment is good, managers are probably slightly lower on the iq side of things, process is super slow. Training is reading a 350 page company cdl manual, doing lots of ride alongs, residential heavyweight deliveries in a box truck, starting the hazmat endorsement process, 1 week of pre 40, 3 weeks with a senior trainer (can be at your ramp location or you will be flown out across the country), week of post 40. Routes can be shuttles (station drop offs/pulls, and drop and swaps, PUD or Line haul).
unftp-0@reddit
Man I used to work as a warehouse worker worked with the planes at 18 years old I remember they had a program to become a truck driver, I knew a guy who was like 30 something he had been waiting like a year or so to become a driver, it’s been years now and pretty sure he became one. I should’ve signed up while i had the chance and just stayed as a warehouse worker till 21 and transfer to a trucker
Mydogfartsconstantly@reddit
Oh ya the guy in my class was 55 and had almost 35 years as a courier with the company. He’s gonna be an RTD for 5 years and then retire. Fully funded pension with million $ 401k already. I wouldn’t be surprised if the average age of RTD trainees is around 40-45.
cmecu_grogerian@reddit
Fed ex dont hire felons? Non Violent felonies? Wasnt sure if they are a second chance carrier. I start my trucking school this monday, its about 8 weeks , 8 am to 4 30 pm 5 days a week. I already have my CDP and took my tanker and double triples endorsement.
I dont have a family like the OP does, just me so I dont really care as its a decent company.
Mydogfartsconstantly@reddit
Im specifically speaking about Fedex Express. Express are actual employees and we’re airline employees. Ground are contractors and some of their ads require you not to have a fatal accident within the past 12 months. Freight is being spun into its own company.
J_money18769@reddit
Going to be hard to get any local job without experience. You're in DFW so my advice would be go to Midland/Odessa/Pecos and get a job in the oilfield to get you experience. Jobs like Frac/cement/wireline are usually 14 days on and 7 days off. You will be doing a lot more physical work besides driving, but that's what I did to get experience.
RandomMansThoughts@reddit
I dont live in Texas but my 1st job was working at a feed mill. They took me right out of school. Agriculture seems to give new drivers a shot more often than not.
Significant-Panda-59@reddit (OP)
What exactly does agriculture do in terms of trucking? Sorry for noob questions lol
RandomMansThoughts@reddit
It's all good. We all started at the bottom 🤠. I hauled liquid ingredients that made the animal feed. I delivered to Tyson (chicken people), Pilgram (chicken people), Smithfield (hogs), Butterball (turkey) and a lot of smaller farming operations. Tyson, Pilgram and Smithfield are America's largest animal feed consumers.
I also hauled animal fats. There's clean fat for food, make up, dog food, etc. Then there's dirty fats that are mainly used to make bio-diesel fuel.
You can do that or haul live animals, hauled hay, haul manure, haul wheat out of the fields, etc. Lots of things to do in Agriculture. Plus they run on different hours of service.
You can haul within a 250 mile air radius from your pick up location without logging a single hour of drive time. I can explain more if you need to or you can look up videos on YouTube that explain it far better than i can. The basics of it allows you to drive more than regular cdl drivers so in theory, you can make more money. Hope all this helps 🙌
Also CONGRATULATIONS on the up coming baby. Its scary and fun all at the same time. You're gonna do great especially if you have the drive to work for them (your girl amd kid). 🤠