Changing Companies How To Handle

Looking at a drop and hook mon-friday to and from the same place home daily. Also looking at a food service company. I don't have any pto left at current company, however probably could take a leave. Would that be a bad idea to take a leave and see how the food service goes for a couple weeks?

Go somewhere for a couple weeks? How many companies have you driven for?

Which food service company? I’m a shuttle driver at PFG which is similar to linehaul and our runs are mostly the same daily. Home daily, every weekend off… love it. I wouldn’t recommend a leave/trial to anyone in any industry. Would you be running doubles? Most of the big food service companies do.

I suppose if taking a LOA is allowed that's the best way to do it since you don't need to quit first.

It helps if we can understand what your mindset is right now, Larry. Why are you considering other options at this point? What prompted this decision? Are you having any problems with your Fleet Manager at your current company? Are you not getting enough miles? Are you dealing with multiple breakdowns? Does the lifestyle not suit you? Etc.

Also companies normally contact prior employers to verify experience. If your goal is to avoid the current employer finding out, that probably won’t work.

Would that be a bad idea to take a leave and see how the food service goes for a couple weeks?

I think it's a terrible idea.

Where is your sense of obligation or commitment? What is it you want to do? Why are you considering leaving your current position?

I'm asking questions to try and force you to think through this. There's no way you could do food service for two weeks and then decide if you like it. You'll barely even understand the job at that point. Look at what you are considering...

Looking at a drop and hook mon-friday to and from the same place home daily. Also looking at a food service company.

Those are two opposites. There's nothing similar between the two. How did you come up with two opposite job functions when considering a move?

Maybe you just want home daily and just consider trucking as a job and nothing more. If that's the case you should be looking for any type job. Why trucking? You seem to like trucking which is great, but you don't really seem committed to me.

Why stop there? Demand a secretary and a limo while we're in fantasy land.

Ok, that's uncalled for. I am guilty of dishing out snark, but there is no need to be nasty.

OP, unfortunately, the learning curve for this job is steep, and to learn correctly and safely, it's pretty rapid fire. It is one of those things where you need to be all in, or all out.

Could you find a local gig? Possibly. Could you eventually be successful at it? Possibly. Would you have enough meaningful hands on experience in two weeks to make an educated decision? Absolutely not. This is an industry where you really don't know what you don't know, until you need to know it and don't. It's not really a career that you can just dip your toes into.. this is a plunge into a shockingly cold lake head first where your breath is shocked out of your body. It's brutal, rough, and has taken many men and women out of the industry, before they really even get their start.

My suggestion is to either jump in with a more realistic expectation, or explore options outside of trucking.

Why stop there? Demand a secretary and a limo while we're in fantasy land.

Am I missing something? Op has almost 2 years of driving experience and is looking to start local work and is being accused of not being committed??? Why because he doesn't want to live in a truck 24/7/365?? Told to get out of trucking because he wants to try something else??

A couple weeks may or may not be enough time to decide if he likes it.

Hey Bobcat, that's a good and legitimate response. I probably was not clear in my meaning.

My concerns are that there seems a lack of commitment to what it is he wants to switch into. He seems to want to go try something new for two weeks and then decide whether to stay or jump ship. That doesn't seem a good approach to me.

Local work is great and takes as big a commitment as any OTR driver has. When I see someone who doesn't seem to make much distinction between a drop & hook job versus a food service job, I start to wonder what it is they really want out of trucking. I always think it best to know what you want and then go for it. That involves commitment.