Best Companies For New Drivers

I don’t like waiting until the last minute so I have started to do my research on which are the best truck companies for new drivers even though I’m retiring from my current job next summer. I can go either way paid Cdl training or tuition reimbursement. I would like to be home once a week and for important dates like daughters graduations exc... I researched the internet but there’s only so much info. You get back and the truck companies are like military recruiters, they tell you what you want to hear to get you to sign up with them and I know there are good and bad where ever one may go so I figured if I want to get some of the “inside scoop” if you will, I should talk to the men and women that make it happen and that’s the drivers. I live in the Northern Panhandle of Wv. and safety and doing things right the first time is important to me. I came up with a list of trucking companies that hire new drivers: Roehl, Schneider, US. Express, Cr England, and Transport America and out of those I cut it down to two: Roehl and Schneider. Which one would or is the better? I would appreciate as much insight as possible to help in which one I may go with. Thanks in advance and thanks to all the drivers out there already .

You can’t go wrong with Schneider or Roehl. Both are great companies. I drive for Roehl so I can attest to Roehl being a great company. If you live in WV you have two options for them being flatbed or van. Your first year should be focused on becoming a top driver as others on this site would say. Just to let you know you’re probably going to start out at around 39 cpm for your first 6 months, so you won’t be making much money. And for your first 6 months or maybe 4 you won’t be coming home every week. The best Roehl offers for brand new drivers is out 11 and home 3 pretty much home every other weekend and after that they do have home weekend jobs. However if you come home every weekend your paychecks will show. I just want to make you aware of that cause I’ve seen quite a few van drivers come in and quit cause they didn’t make much right away. However I can vouch that Roehl is a great company and you can’t go wrong with choosing them but the rest is up to you.

James, people get all hung up on this question about "which company is best to get started with?" It's understandable since the internet is rife with people complaining about how this or that trucking company treated them. The big problem with all that misleading garbage is that the people writing those horror stories usually aren't even truck drivers. They are wannabes that couldn't handle the job. They are failures who think they have knowledge worth sharing. Any professional driver sees right through their tales of woe and spite, and recognizes the shortcomings that kept them from success.

You needn't concern yourself so heavily with the name on your truck's doors. Every newbie thinks that's the key to success, but it really has little to do with a successful venture into the trucking career. We teach people to be Top Tier Drivers. This career is all performance based. That means you've got to measure up and prove yourself. The company can't do that part for you.

We have very successful professionals here in our forum driving for most of the major trucking companies. That fact alone validates our firm conviction that you will determine your success at this, not the company you choose to drive for. Every trucking company represented here by these professionals has all kind of bad reviews online. How does that make any sense?

I started my career at Western Express. I had a great run there and would encourage anyone to start there. I challenge you to try and find any positive reviews on them - you'll be hard pressed. That's the mysterious conundrum about researching into the trucking career. Most everything you read is negative and unrealistically slanted against the company.

Here's my take on it... If a company will train you for free, promise you a job after you complete the training, and help you get established in a rewarding career - well, that's a great company to get started with!

I am still new to the industry but threw my research. I found most new drivers and drivers in general go home about once every 3 to 4 weeks on the road. With that said you need to really look at what you are getting into.after some time you maybe able to get on a dedicated route with more home time. This is a commitment to you and your family. With guys try to claw there way to be a top fleet go to guy. That’s how you get the great routes and runs. I would go threw a in house training program and sign the contract. So you and the the company have skin in the game and you get your experience in. I went to Prime and so far loving it. They are very good at what they do. You will get great training there but must be very open and truthful with them one lie and you will go home. Talk to your wife and kids and make sure you guys are all on board for the long haul at least one year then maybe you can find a good local job. But going to a local school and trying to find a job that is a perfect fit maybe a rough road to go down. Hope you the have the best of luck in your new adventure. Where ever and how ever you my go .

In a nutshell your first year is a lot of work and a lot of time way. The plus side is you will learn how to trip plan, deal with all kinds of people, budget your time and money and depending on first hire offerings see the country or a region. Check where you live to see if either adult education or local colleges or city colleges offer training. Company sponsored typically requires you to sign a contract and pay off the cost. This puts you in their control and generally you work some tough hours to pay it back. I’d you can start with CDL in hand research company job boards and look for Regional or Dedicated jobs. The dedicated ones generally ask For more experience but it’s worth a try. Keep an open mind and don’t settle. Check Indeed and other job boards also there’s a lot of jobs out there.

Hey Johnylite, thanks for contributing to the conversation. You made some good comments, and maybe some that we need to talk about a little. Here's one of the good things you said...

In a nutshell your first year is a lot of work and a lot of time way. The plus side is you will learn how to trip plan, deal with all kinds of people, budget your time and money and depending on first hire offerings see the country or a region.

That is a fairly good assessment of a rookie driver's first year. It is tough, but it is also a really steep learning curve. We all need that first year's experience to get us on track and lay a good foundation for a successful career. Without that foundation under us we are pretty much going to fail.

Now, this is where you kind of start making me concerned. You make this statement, but provide no supporting evidence of how you came to your conclusion.

Company sponsored typically requires you to sign a contract and pay off the cost. This puts you in their control and generally you work some tough hours to pay it back.

That seems to contradict your prior statement. Let's start off with the idea that you are "in their control." How is that so? You make it sound like a person who signs a contract has been sold into slavery. That's certainly not true. Your original statement speaks of the difficulties of a rookie drivers first year. Then you go on to make it sound as if the company is responsible for making it so difficult because you are "in their control." You can't have it both ways. First year rookies always have it tough, and they always feel like they are working "some tough hours" simply because they aren't accustomed to this new lifestyle. Nobody works 40 hour weeks in trucking, and it's not the company who controls how much we can work. It is clearly controlled by regulations. We can work as long a day as is necessary, but we are limited to 11 hours of driving in a 14 hour window. After that we must take a 10 hour break. There's not a company out here who can force you to work any more difficult hours than that. So, how do you explain your idea that they can control you and make you work some really tough hours?

Everybody gets all hung up on this idea of a work contract. I think it is actually a great concept for new drivers. We stress this all the time about needing to commit yourself to one full year of driving before you make your decision about whether you want to stay in this career or not. It takes that long to even feel you've begun to get the basics down for success at this. That contract can only help a person resolve to hang in there and make a go of it. I've always said that you are going to make a commitment one way or the other. You can commit your money and spend it on schooling, or you can commit your time and get paid for it while learning how to succeed at this. It seems a clear choice to me. You simply make your choice of company before you get started on schooling as opposed to making your choice of company after you've done your schooling.

Look, I am clearly an advocate for Paid CDL Training Programs. I realize people look at that with skepticism. I attended a private school. I spent my hard earned cash and had my free choice of companies. It didn't give me any advantages - zero!

Why I Prefer Paid CDL Training

Hello to everyone, it’s been a long time since I posted last. I really do appreciate the comments/advice in response to my entry a year and a half ago on which company was good for a new driver to start out with although I didn’t say thank you back then. I have been retired now for a little over 4 months now and am nervous but excited about the new lifestyle change that will soon be coming my way. There was two good Cdl schools within 10 minutes of where I live but only one accepted student loans so I had to go with that one. A Cdl A class was starting the last week of August 2020 and my retirement was the first of September, the next available class didn’t start for another five-6 weeks so I used some vacation time as I really wanted to get into the August class because the school had to limit the number of students to each class because of COVID restrictions. My local Dmv was by appointment only with a back back log and in order to receive my test cards for my permit and endorsements I would have to wait two weeks to receive them through the mail after sending in all my required documents so I jumped into my pickup and drove three and a half hours to my state’s capital and the main Dmv and walked out with everything I needed after twenty five minutes for the return trip home. I had to drive another two and a half hours on a different day to another city ,to submit my fingerprints after I registered and did what I had to do online so that I could take my hazmat endorsement test;It all worked out and I was able to take my Cdl A permit which I passed the first try as well as all my endorsements ( did a lot of pre studying) and was able to get into the August class and graduated in October. I have spent the last four months researching local companies but in no success because of no experience although I knew that it was going to be a miracle if I did find something local. The closest was a dock to driver position for twelve months before getting on as a full time driver so I continued looking but expanded to the big companies. First I would like to pass on to anyone considering driving as a career ; I did research many of local companies and can verify that unless one has some experience, one’s chances of getting hired are pretty slim if non existent. With that said my wife and I sat down and discussed this fact and agreed that one of the big companies was where I would have to start with , and earn the experience and prove myself, which I have no problems in doing. So I went back and updated my research and again for my particulars that pertained to my specific circumstances, I submitted everything with Schneider because they were the only one that had something close to the homestead. I was able to get onto the Cabela’s dedicated account which covers twelve states , 2400 weekly miles , .37 /mi. Until I believe the six month mark , then @ .41/mi.., one - two drop offs per load, home once a week, tuition reimbursement, this covers the highlights. This was ok with me , I wasn’t expecting to start out on the top of the pay scale and I have a pension check coming in already so I’m focusing on learning from a good safety oriented company to build a good solid foundation in a new career , sort of like building a house, the house is only solid if the foundation is. I head out the first of February to start company orientation/training in Carlisle Pennsylvania which is a three and a hal hour drive but the drive doesn’t bother me. I have already started to study Schneider’s Pre-Trip and research locations of some of the Cabela’s to get an idea of how to get in and out . I don’t like surprises but I am aware that one has to be adaptable. I love to learn and train new things. I’m also prepared for the ruff first year after spending ten and a half years in the military and twenty in law enforcement. I really look forward to reading any and all tips and advice from everyone. Thanks.

I don’t like waiting until the last minute so I have started to do my research on which are the best truck companies for new drivers even though I’m retiring from my current job next summer. I can go either way paid Cdl training or tuition reimbursement. I would like to be home once a week and for important dates like daughters graduations exc... I researched the internet but there’s only so much info. You get back and the truck companies are like military recruiters, they tell you what you want to hear to get you to sign up with them and I know there are good and bad where ever one may go so I figured if I want to get some of the “inside scoop” if you will, I should talk to the men and women that make it happen and that’s the drivers. I live in the Northern Panhandle of Wv. and safety and doing things right the first time is important to me. I came up with a list of trucking companies that hire new drivers: Roehl, Schneider, US. Express, Cr England, and Transport America and out of those I cut it down to two: Roehl and Schneider. Which one would or is the better? I would appreciate as much insight as possible to help in which one I may go with. Thanks in advance and thanks to all the drivers out there already .

I don’t like surprises but I am aware that one has to be adaptable. I love to learn and train new things. I’m also prepared for the ruff first year after spending ten and a half years in the military and twenty in law enforcement. I really look forward to reading any and all tips and advice from everyone. Thanks.

Thanks for stopping back in and updating us.

Keep us updated on your progress.

And thanks for your service...

Rick