Profile For Rafa C.

Given your background and situation I'd suggest look for a dock position at a local LTL company. The majors (OD, SAIA, ESTES, UPS, XPO) all have, "dock to driver" programs that let you start by working on the docks and in as little as 30 days you can start training to be a P&D driver. They train you to get your CDL while you get paid. The pay and benefits are excellent in LTL. Working P&D you'll be on the day shift so you'll still have afternoon/eveningsweekends with your family. The one downside is that you'll be a rookie driver with plenty of FBS (Funky Backing Situations). You'll be backing the truck up to docks several times a day. Look elsewhere on the forum - new drivers drive the truck for FREE they earn their pay backing the truck! Usually they start the rookies out with 28' trailers though.. After a few years when the kids are grown you can transfer to linehaul, drive nights and see the neighboring states.

Good evening, and thank you so much for the feedback. I will definitely look into the LTL companies offering the training programs. I appreciate your time.

Please check out my local rookie video

There are things to know....such as it could be 14 hour days plus the commute and you only get 10 hours off including the commute. Which means if you live an hour away...you only get 8 hours to sleep shower see family and eat. Plus much of it is back breaking work (im old and past that lol) plus these are high demand jobs so could be scarce....not to mention can be in really tight areas requiring great skills you wont have for awhile.

Considering Local Driving as a Rookie?

After reviewing the different posts on whether to start locally or over the road. i have been leaning more over the road because of the experienced gained, quality training, and more hands on experience. The only thing that was holding me back was family and being out several weeks at a time without seen my children. On the other hand I was just concern on the pay because of monthly payments i have due each month.

I got my start local. I was in the same position as you. I couldn't be gone for weeks at a time due to the structure of my home life and I didn't want to be.

I was trained by FedEx Freight. I was paid 20 an hour to work the dock and train. It was a pay cut from what I was making before I came here, but I was tired of warehouse work and I wanted more job security. If the warehouse were to fire me tomorrow I know I didn't gain any skills that would be valued anywhere else. If FedEx fires me tomorrow, I have a clean CDL with a little over a year experience. I'll be fine.

This pass month I net 3,560. On Friday I'll bring home a little over 900 and I worked 50 hours this week because I had 20 hours left on my 70. Starting out I was bringing home about 650 a week, but it wasn't hard to make a little extra in this gig era we're in. I made a few extra bucks doing grubhub and ubereats.

There have been weeks, primarily after everything reopened, where I work my entire 70 and I go home to take a shower, go to bed, wake up and go back to work.

The other part of working locally is the start time. I currently have a 2AM start time. Most local jobs bid start times based on seniority which means you'd get the shift nobody wants being new.

You can read about my training experiences Here

Like Kearsey said, you may get thrown to the wolves at some local companies, but that hasn't been my experience at FedEx Freight. I'm given the opportunity to hone my skills and I do so every chance I get. I blindside back even if I can sight side because I can already sight side back, but I struggle with blindside. I also back at angles even when I can straight back.

Hi Banks, Thanks for the feedback. I share the same feel currently with warehousing. As I'm aging I want to change career fields and be fully committed to being a successful truck driver. I will look into companies that offer training locally, but if not available I'll definitely look into going over the road and hopefully I can find a few companies that can provide me with more home time.

It's hard to know if that income is possible because we're unsure of any deductions you take. What is the GROSS (before taxes/benefits)?

What area of the country are you from? That will play a large role in what local jobs are available. We always recommend you start out OTR because you'll be slowly broken in. Many days OTR you may only back up a couple times but with local driving you're backing up possibly a dozen or more in congested urban areas per day. That's on top of managing heavy traffic and needing to stay on schedule. We've seen many drivers come through here thinking they landed the perfect job. They only lasted a couple months because of backing accidents that the company could no longer keep them. Now you're a driver with accidents AND terminated due to that and less than 1 year of experience. That's a deep hole to get yourself out of. Have you considered a company like TMC (and others) that can get you home nearly every weekend?

With that being said I started local and that's all I've done. My reasons were similar to yours but let me tell you it's very risky. I recently purchased a house that's a perfect fit for us but now it's a 45-50 minute commute one way in perfect weather. If I put in 14 hour days which isnt uncommon with my current job my schedule tends to look like this. Wake up at 10pm, clock in about 11pm. Get done between 11am and 1pm. Get home about 2ish. By the time I shower and unwind a bit it's close to 3. Play with my young children, eat dinner about 430 and crawl in bed 530 to 6pm. That means I'll only get 4 hours of sleep with that schedule. Thankfully I can nap while waiting in docks but its still rough. Some days I get home and I'm so tired I don't really spend any time with the family I just come home and sleep. With that being said I love this job and industry and the financial security it allows. Starting out pay will be lower but currently I make enough for 2 vehicle payments, house payment and my wife stays home with out 3 young kids. My wife has told me she thinks emotionally it'd be easier for me to go OTR because when I am home mentally I'm not. I'm trying to get ready for the following day.

If you enjoy diaries I wrote 2 of them with my experiences doing local work. Here is one doing Food Delivery to restaurants in Des Moines Iowa, and here is one Delivering to grocery stores

There are other types of local jobs but these are what I'm most familiar with. I'll check back in a couple hours to answer any other questions you may have about local work.

Hi Rob, Thank you for the feedback and advice. The amount I am currently making is net. While each pay period varies slightly I get paid every two weeks and net income is an average of 1667 net (month: 3200-3400 23/hr). I currently reside in Fontana, California. As you mentioned about recommending over the road due to the many daily challenges of becoming local. That is something that I have thought of as well to put in a year over the road especially because of the points you've highlighted when it comes to safety and being very risky. The only concern I had with the pay was because of the monthly commitments I have with payments, but if ti wasn't for that pay would be the last of my concerns. I am ready for a change and truck driving has been appealing to me for years now, and because of family and the fear of change I kept holding back. Now that I've reached a point were I am no longer happy with my line of work I'm ready to make the change. Thanks again for your time.

Please check out my local rookie video

There are things to know....such as it could be 14 hour days plus the commute and you only get 10 hours off including the commute. Which means if you live an hour away...you only get 8 hours to sleep shower see family and eat. Plus much of it is back breaking work (im old and past that lol) plus these are high demand jobs so could be scarce....not to mention can be in really tight areas requiring great skills you wont have for awhile.

Considering Local Driving as a Rookie?

Hi, Thank you for the advice and the youtube link.

Good evening everyone,

Over the years I found trucking truth that has helped me doing research; and gain a better understanding of the trucking industry along with its pros and cons.

I am currently 35 years old and have worked in warehouse's my whole life. Eventually I became a supervisor, then a manager and have now worked in a leadership role for 15 years. I have been interested in becoming a truck driver for the past ten years. My reasons have been: great career choice, challenging, better pay with experience, and that each day is different.

The number one reason I haven't applied to a school, or looked into begin driving with companies offering paid training has been that I am married and have three children: A 14 year old, 13 year old, and a 6 year old. My end goal is to become a local truck driver to see my family daily. While I totally understand that driving over the road is a lifestyle I need advice with the following questions?

1. Should I seek a private truck driving school or a company that pays for my training? I understand sponsored training would require a contract in most cases and that I would be out on the road up to six weeks at a time. I talked to my wife and have considered this option whether I get my training paid through a sponsored program, or I attend a private school. Primarily to gain proper experience. Ideally I'd love to find something local, but I am open to putting in the time to drive over the road if needed. 2. If I attend and pay for a trucking school to train me are there local jobs that would hire and train me? 3. I currently make 3400 net income monthly. Due to payments due each month I would need to seek making this amount or something close. is this feasible in my first year?

Please share with me thoughts and advice. It is very important and valuable to me.

Best regards,

Rafael Cuevas

Hi, I am currently working full time and have been considering becoming a truck driver. Being a father of three children i would ideally prefer a local job, or one that can get me home at least every week.

Have been looking into private schools, but was wondering if there are companies that pay for my program and that can offer me descent home time?