Question: Employability Prospects With Physical Lifting Limitations?
Topic 22794 | Page 2
I was never tested for a horizontal pull test.
Unless you are flatbedding, tanker or running a Dollar retail account, it's rare you'll touch any freight at all.
I don't think you understand. Maybe I'm wrong. By going through Paid CDL Training Programs, when your accepted into the program, you are practically hired. This is the best foot in the door. All companies own their trailers, and lumpers are rare and paid for by your company. We are paid detention when companies take to long to load or unload. We don't have to touch freight. Getting your CDL through the DOR program does not guarantee a good job. Don't be fooled. Even getting your CDL, as a new driver you will still be considered in training. When the company invests in you, they are more interested in your success.
Here is how CFI does it. You get your CDL permit and DOT medical before they admit you for training. (Use the High Road CDL Training Program to study for your written permit test.) Once accepted by CFI, they will get you a bus ticket to Joplin, Missouri on a Thursday, so you can report on Friday to go over your contract and take your drug test. Then it's off to school for 4 weeks to get your CDL. After that your back to Joplin for 4 days of orientation. After orientation, you have a choice of going right out with a trainer or go home for up to 7 days to wait for a trainer. You go out with your trainer for at least 7500 miles. This takes about 3 weeks. Then it's back to Joplin to upgrade and be issued a truck.
CFI pays for all transportation, hotels and food while in school and at orientation. You said you live in California, CFI pays California drivers by the hour. While with your trainer it's $15.00/hr. Upon upgrade to solo you would be paid $18.50/hr. During your first year you would go to $22.00/hr.
I hope this helps you understand how things are done out here. At CFI we pull dry van , we're governed at 65 mph, and have plenty of miles. Good luck.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
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.Dry Van:
A trailer or truck that that requires no special attention, such as refrigeration, that hauls regular palletted, boxed, or floor-loaded freight. The most common type of trailer in trucking.
Soulin I agree with Big Scott...take a little time to read this link:
Why I Prefer Company Sponsored Training
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Company Sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.
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Thanks Old School.
RE:
Yes, I am aware of 'paid' company training.
My situation is somewhat unique. I don't want to get into the fine details about why here on this forum. I have been investigating my options for about a year and came to the conclusion that my only reasonable chance to successfully get a Class A CDL and a good shot at being hired is me utilizing DOR sponsorship and a private school who has years long experience working with DOR that also has a good success record of their graduates from the DOR sponsorship land actual god Class A and other CDL driving jobs through their recommendations to companies who give consideration to new Class A CDL licensees directly out of that particular school to drivers who the same companies would never consider investing in for their companies' Class A CDL training in the first place.
It is a foot-in-the-door for me.
Albeit I may be mistaken with this line of thinking, but it seems to me that In the companies' eyes, someone else already made the CDL schooling investment so they did not have to make that investment. The 'graduate' already has Class A CDL in-hand and the 'graduate' has been recommended by the already known school.
There is no reason the company could not have the new driver sign a minimal time working contract anyway so the company could justify it's investment in the company specific training. I would be good with something like that; a 1 year contract with a well established company would be really good.
I am sure I will land a good Class A CDL driver job. I won't stop trying until I land that Class A CDL OTR position.
Soulin H.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.