Questions For Recruiters

How come recruiters don't give a price or amount owed on how much company paid training and or refresher course, costs the student, when asked this question ? They don't give a straight answer ! Lets say the driver was fired sometime during the term of the contract. Of course every company is different. If i was buying a car, i would want to know how much it would cost me. Including interest and apr on the loan. Monthly payments too !

Thanks for writing. Not sure why. Maybe it would deter people. Seriously committed drivers don't care. I made a commitment and was going to get it done. Others have this attitude of "I just won't pay them or I'll sue". Companies want you to get a CDL to work for them .. not to take it elsewhere.

The amount changes over the years also. Some people want to talk to their recruiter over months even years. I have one guy who calls me and for the past 3 years has said "I put in my application I'm finally coming" then a family emergency pops up and he doesn't go. He must have put in 20 apps over the years and is not in a blocked this cause he is wasting recruiter time and money.

If a recruiter told him one amount then 6 months later that amount changed, the recruiter would be in hot water (or at least have to deal with aggravation) if he did attend.

Prime is at $4500ish with 12% interest. But completely free unless you leave before 12 months (9 months for veterans). There is no loan for a refresher course.

Roehl was at $7000 and forgiven at 150,000 miles (probably 14 months for a newbie).

I don't know what the others are

You aren't buying CDL schooling. These are training programs to work for that company and if you leave before the allotted time You are reimbursing them for the training you are taking elsewhere.

I was told by my recruiter in our initial conversation what the training was valued at as far as my responsibility to pay back if I didn’t fulfill my end. Two other companies I was also talking with also gave me this information during our first discussion. What company are you having this issue with?

I also had to sign a contract that explains the terms in details and again gives the monetary value of the training at the very beginning of the hiring process.

I think ot could be because it creates a perception that a driver is looking to cut out before completing the contract. Recruiters don't want people going in with that mindset. As Kearsey said, those who are the most serious are not terribly concerned about it.

The cost is not hidden entirely. It is written inyo the contract signed before beginning training. So, a prospective trainee has an opportunity to decide not to train with a company, if the cost terms are an issue.

Great answer…

Kearsey wrote:

Seriously committed drivers don't care. I made a commitment and was going to get it done. Others have this attitude of "I just won't pay them or I'll sue". Companies want you to get a CDL to work for them .. not to take it elsewhere

.

My attitude entering school? Failure was never an option. And I was totally committed to the company schooling/training which was Swift. I drove for them 8+ years.

Klutch, it was Covenant/Landair. They didn't give an answer in the amount it would cost.

So you talked to one recruiter? Many options:

Paid CDL Training Programs

After a LOT of research and irritating people on here with endless questions, I narrowed down to 5 companies I wanted to talk to. In each one the respective recruiter was very upfront with me in regards to the cost of the school and the length of the initial contract to repay that loan…..and it is essentially a loan. If you feel a particular recruiter wasn’t upfront with you, then there are 50 more out there to talk to. Many of these companies spell it out on their websites when it comes to requirements during and after training. Beyond that, things are constantly changing like Kearsey said. Required miles for TNT , pay while in training and on the road, length of time in class before you actually get on the road, hell the time it takes to even get a trainer to ride with changes. Just gotta stay vigilant and find the company that more close,unaligned with what it is you are looking for and what you want to get out of it. If all you want to do is drive then be prepared to get very limited information from a recruiter. These guys get hundreds of applications a week (info I recently learned) so they are pretty tuned in when it comes to first impressions when talking to an applicant. Write out what it is you want. Research these companies and write a pro/con list if need be. Ask your recruiter specific questions beyond how long do I have to drive? That just comes across as someone who plans on bolting before the ink on their CDL is dry.

Awsome, thanks for the advice everyone. Trucking Truth is a great site !!