Can't Get Hired Due To Government Shutdown.

DOT foods? Ick. Yeah they pay well, but you'll be loading and unloading your own truck and doing some heavy city driving and very tight docks. I wouldn't lose any sleep over them or any food service carrier for that matter.

DOT hauls food for supermarkets, etc I believe. They have local and OTR positions I believe

DOT Foods

I liquidated my business, and paid $5,500 out of pocket for trucking school. I chose to go full-time and put 100% of my energy into getting licensed and employed as soon as possible. I finished the 150 hour program in 3 weeks, and got my CDL 12/26. I had a phone interview 12/27 with my top choice of companies. I had a second video conference interview 12/31. They called Jan 2nd to let me know they'd checked my references, employment history, and want me on their team. But due to the government shutdown, they can't run the necessary background checks to move forward. So here I sit, flat broke with 2 kids and no income waiting until government reopens. Is this an industry-wide problem? Anyone else in a similar situation? Is any carrier able to hire new drivers right now?

Did you just graduate from Sage in Rome?

They do indeed haul to grocery stores. Most of what they do is local is what I've been told.

Reading their site it does say there is a 4 days out 4 days off with No Touch freight. "Not all.positioms offered in all areas" However, anyone reading this needs to remember, if you are getting paid by the mile and you work half the time and are off half the time...you only get half the pay. One of our members a couple years ago went to Roehl with 7 out 7 home. Then was mad he only made $35,000 his first year. Well, yeah had he worked the whole year he would have made $70,000!

They advertise "Avg pay $80,000 per year". we just had this discussion with someone else that assumed this was minimum pay. Be wary of ads like this and ask what they mean. They run teams too...so does that average include solos only or team drivers who might stay out longer? They have a 6 and 3...so that driver would be out more and make.more than the 4/4.

Reminds me of a company ad I heard on the XM Radio late last year. The bit stated, "for a limited time, our new hires will be getting $1 per mile". I called the number, as I was highly skeptical. In fact it was $1 per mile, SPLIT between the team. Be cautious about what you hear and read out there.

Excuse me for adding something here. Really this is advice for others who will read this later on. This is yet another prime example of why we teach you guys to take advantage of the Paid CDL Training Programs.

Had Aaron followed this method he'd not only already be working and getting paid, but he'd also have 5,500 dollars in the bank. Now he's sounding destitute, and nobody wants or needs that added stress while starting a really challenging career like trucking. There is little or no advantage that I can see from laying out your hard earned cash when starting this career.

Busting The Free Agent Myth

I've been lurking on the forums for some time, and read all of the advice to go with company sponsored training. After a lot of careful thinking and researching dozens of companies, weighing the pros and cons, I decided to pay out of pocket. (I'm also saving for a down payment on a truck, but that's a whole other discussion 😊). As far as no advantages to paying out of pocket, I have to disagree. Dot drivers average $70k in year one, with $60k guaranteed in writing. They average $80k by year 3. They have a 22% turnover rate, compared with the industry average of over 90%. Sure, signing a contract with a mega carrier costs nothing up front. But most of the better companies (including Dot) offer tuition reimbursement in monthly installments, so they're still paying for my training eventually. With hindsight being 20/20, you're right. I'd be in a better situation today if I had called up Swift and hopped on a Greyhound. But I couldn't possibly have seen this shutdown and background check problem coming. I'd do things exactly the same if I had to do it over.

What age are you Aaron? That is a really physically demanding job. Food service is definitely not something we recommend for new drivers.

39. It's a regional no-touch position.

DOT foods? Ick. Yeah they pay well, but you'll be loading and unloading your own truck and doing some heavy city driving and very tight docks. I wouldn't lose any sleep over them or any food service carrier for that matter.

It's a no-touch position between distribution centers. They do have those local delivery jobs you described also, but I'm not interested in that. I just want to back into the door and take a nap 😁.

Reminds me of a company ad I heard on the XM Radio late last year. The bit stated, "for a limited time, our new hires will be getting $1 per mile". I called the number, as I was highly skeptical. In fact it was $1 per mile, SPLIT between the team. Be cautious about what you hear and read out there.

Yes, many companies will lie through their teeth to get you in a truck. But this $60k guarantee is in writing, not just words. At the end of year one (after training), if you're under $60k, they write you a check for the difference. I don't know if that's company wide, or just my area.