Why I Quit Prime's TNT Program
Topic 17399 | Page 5
Santoy,
Think about what you are saying. You are going to ask for a new trainer because, in your opinion, 6 months isn’t enough experience to train people. Who do you think decided that your trainer was qualified to train people? Prime! Do you think they didn’t realize he completed his own TNT 6 months ago?
My flatbed TNT trainer had a little more experience than yours: a whopping year before he started training. And I was his first student.
Also, as I mentioned in my prior post, I didn’t go out with anyone to train for tanker.
You didn’t answer my question about your tanker division. If you are in the inedible division, I offered to help you. That offer still stands. Of course, you can refuse my offer and make your own decisions.
However, I can tell you something very definite about Prime. You’re not going to convince them that their policies and procedures are wrong. You’ll only become frustrated and most likely alienate many people in the process. Your move.
I’m in the refer division out of Salt Lake City Utah. If I saw that he had skills like your trainer probably had, then it would be no problem. If other drivers have to get in his truck and back for him. (On two occasions in 2 weeks) how can he teach me backing? Did you trainer make you drive only at night? Because he said he doesn’t drive at night. If you show me you have skills, no problem, but if you ALWAYS have issues when it comes to backing up. Then I would like someone who can show me properly. When I’m solo, I won’t have people to back my truck up for me. And I hate being rushed with everything even using the bathroom.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Hey Chief, the original poster was training as a "unicorn".
Santoy, I would follow Karsey's advice:
You can talk to your fleet manager or Chris Martin who is in charge of TNT training.
Hit me up at truckingalongfun@gmail.com
The driving only at night part is not relevant. But the fact that you are not allowed to back or do a thorough pre trip are major issues. Prime does not want an undertrained, potentially dangerous driver on the road in one there trucks. Once you explain the situation (focusing on the safety issues) Prime should be willing to pair you with a more competent trainer.
If you are concerned about being used by your trainer to make money, try asking to train with a company driver if that is an option.
Fleet Manager:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Realdiehl says:
Hey Chief, the original poster was training as a "unicorn".
I realize that.
Based on Santoy's comment below I thought he might be in TNT in the tanker division.
As for learning this job in 5k miles, that's a scary statement! Especially in tankers. There's no way to even scratch the surface in that amount of miles, or even 40k miles.
I agree he should ask for a new trainer. I was just offering my help if he was in the inedible tanker division.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Ok. I see he was completely quoting another post. It was hard to tell what was a quote and what was his comment as he mixed his comments into the quotes.
I've never worked for Prime so I can't comment on the company specifics. It sounds like you have some valid concerns and some that are just growing pains.
We all wanted more training, no rational person feels prepared to go solo. It's just the way it is. There's also a common sentiment among many new drivers, especially younger ones to want to be spoon fed information. They're not used to uncontrolled environments where they have to find out what they don't even know how to find out what they don't know.
If it seems like the system of training is broken, it is, but it functions in its disfunctionality. It's basically natural selection. If training went as new drivers want it, we'd end up with a surplus of drivers not fit to drive even more so than now.
But, it's important to back, can you manipulate the situation into backing? Honest question. I'm going to get what I need one way or another. I'm going to find the solution. The solution in your case may be getting another trainer. No matter what you choose to do, there will be repercussions, both positive and negative.
I was fortunate in that I had a trainer that really helped me, but I also only trained for two weeks and in those 2 weeks, probably about 11 days. Interesting enough though, his next trainee left after 3 days and cried that he was the worst trainer ever. Two opposing views of the same trainer.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
If u email.me.i will give u my phone number and give you an easy understanding of how to back. I used it on over 100 students. Both PSD and TNT.
I even have a Prime packet that discusses the macros, prime procedures, weights, tandems , policies. I have a discord group for Prime newbies so they can all help.each other 24/7. I have google maps of truck parking and hotels with truck parking.
Do you want help or do you just want to vent and complain? I can "train" you over the phone.
But YOU have to make a first step.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
PSD:
Prime Student Driver
Prime Inc has a CDL training program and the first phase is referred to as PSD. You'll get your permit and then 10,000 miles of on the road instruction.
The following is from Prime's website:
Prime’s PSD begins with you obtaining your CDL permit. Then you’ll go on the road with a certified CDL instructor for no less than 75 hours of one-on-one behind the wheel training. After training, you’ll return to Prime’s corporate headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, for final CDL state testing and your CDL license.
Obtain CDL Permit / 4 Days
- Enter program, study and test for Missouri CDL permit.
- Start driving/training at Prime Training Center in Springfield, Missouri.
- Work toward 40,000 training dispatched miles (minimum) with food allowance while without CDL (Food allowance is paid back with future earnings).
On-the-Road Instruction / 10,000 Miles
- Train with experienced certified CDL instructor for 3-4 weeks in a real world environment.
- Get 75 hours of behind-the-wheel time with one-on-one student/instructor ratio.
- Earn 10,000 miles toward total 40,000 miles needed.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Rainey you made my day with that post.
I did just that with my now wife when she started. She was my sisters best friend for many years and my sister was concerned about her training and safety.
I literally trained her by phone for a year. She was a shinning star at the company, and even had her DM ask her how she was that good with her experience level.
And yes I stole that big company’s great driver to my little ole company, lol.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Yes I would love your help. I really wanna be the best driver I can be. What’s your email?
If u email.me.i will give u my phone number and give you an easy understanding of how to back. I used it on over 100 students. Both PSD and TNT.
I even have a Prime packet that discusses the macros, prime procedures, weights, tandems , policies. I have a discord group for Prime newbies so they can all help.each other 24/7. I have google maps of truck parking and hotels with truck parking.
Do you want help or do you just want to vent and complain? I can "train" you over the phone.
But YOU have to make a first step.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
PSD:
Prime Student Driver
Prime Inc has a CDL training program and the first phase is referred to as PSD. You'll get your permit and then 10,000 miles of on the road instruction.
The following is from Prime's website:
Prime’s PSD begins with you obtaining your CDL permit. Then you’ll go on the road with a certified CDL instructor for no less than 75 hours of one-on-one behind the wheel training. After training, you’ll return to Prime’s corporate headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, for final CDL state testing and your CDL license.
Obtain CDL Permit / 4 Days
- Enter program, study and test for Missouri CDL permit.
- Start driving/training at Prime Training Center in Springfield, Missouri.
- Work toward 40,000 training dispatched miles (minimum) with food allowance while without CDL (Food allowance is paid back with future earnings).
On-the-Road Instruction / 10,000 Miles
- Train with experienced certified CDL instructor for 3-4 weeks in a real world environment.
- Get 75 hours of behind-the-wheel time with one-on-one student/instructor ratio.
- Earn 10,000 miles toward total 40,000 miles needed.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Ok. I see he was completely quoting another post. It was hard to tell what was a quote and what was his comment as he mixed his comments into the quotes.
Yep. Hard to read between the quotes sometimes.
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Santoy,
Think about what you are saying. You are going to ask for a new trainer because, in your opinion, 6 months isn’t enough experience to train people. Who do you think decided that your trainer was qualified to train people? Prime! Do you think they didn’t realize he completed his own TNT 6 months ago?
My flatbed TNT trainer had a little more experience than yours: a whopping year before he started training. And I was his first student.
Also, as I mentioned in my prior post, I didn’t go out with anyone to train for tanker.
You didn’t answer my question about your tanker division. If you are in the inedible division, I offered to help you. That offer still stands. Of course, you can refuse my offer and make your own decisions.
However, I can tell you something very definite about Prime. You’re not going to convince them that their policies and procedures are wrong. You’ll only become frustrated and most likely alienate many people in the process. Your move.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.