CDL A, No Experience, What Are My Options?

-ENTRY LEVEL -I have had my CDL A for about 1 yr, 3 mo. -Graduated Sept 2022. -No on road experience driving a Class A vehicle. -Wanting to drive, but also open to Class B/C driving.

One recruiter told me, to get a position within 30 days or jobs wouldn't hire me.

A rep from my driving school told me that as long as I used my CDL within 3 years of graduating, that I'd be fine.

A driver from Fedex claimed that as long as I kept my DOT medical card and paperwork up to date, I'm fine. As in, once you have your CDL, you have your CDL. He also claimed that since I was delivering for Fedex and driving, that that technically was "commercial driving."

Who is BSing, telling me some of the truth, or being legit??

Backstory: I graduated school in Florida but then moved to OK. For personal reasons at that time, I picked a different job field so I could have plenty of home time. I worked at Fedex Express delivering packages (DOT driver). Originally, I was interested in doing a lateral move there to drive their semi tractors and haul for them, but the rule was you had to stay in your hired position for at least a YEAR before you could move into another role.

However, we are moving again, this time to Seattle, WA and I have resigned from Fedex.

Questions:

As far as the DMV/DOT is concerned, would I lose my CDL classification if I didn't drive commercial for an even further extended period of time?

Would most companies not hire me unless I went thru driving school all over again?

I've read that some companies will simply test you and put you thru their driver training, such as a 3 week refresher course. Now THAT, I'd be all for. I will gladly go through any company's REFRESHER course :)

Is it a bad thing to have a CDL A, but then drive only Class B or C vehicles for work? And again, would I eventually "lose" my class A certification on my license if I never drove class A and only did B or C?

Granted,I went through school and got a Class A. But I am wanting to consider ALL options that are available to me.

I would appreciate any respectful, honest input.

I am fully aware that it will be a bit more challenging for me to find some work. I am also fully aware that most companies would possibly put me through a refresher course, which is honestly what I would like.

My driving school was great, but it gave everyone the BARE MINIMUM. Classes were very full of 17 or 18 people, and so we all only got the minimum amount of turns to drive.

I would appreciate any input or advice :)

Thank you! Megan

First of all you have a CDl A so as long as your med card is up to date the dmv is fine with it.

However- You have zero experience after over a year. Companies all have their own policy regarding this situation. A vast majority right now probably won’t take you on. Alot of companies have suspended or drastically cutback on hiring. Freight is low with too much capacity right now.

Driving a class B won’t effect your A status, however a vast majority of companies will not count it as experience.

Your best bet is put out alot of app’s and see who if anyone is interested. Currently experienced drivers with spotless records are having difficulty getting jobs.

All you can fo is try, and do what you need to while your trying.

Here's my experience:

I got started driving OTR for Swift. After three years driving, I got into Swift's Academy as an instructor. I saw an ad for Walmart offering a big bonus for experienced drivers. I called them for more information.

Since I was off the riad for more than six months (even after teaching CDL!), Wally wasn't interested in me.

You need that recent experience to get into the Big Leagues.

One recruiter told me, to get a position within 30 days or jobs wouldn't hire me.

That's generally true. Companies typically want 1 year in the last 3 years, 3 years in the last 5 years, 5 years in the last 10 years.

A rep from my driving school told me that as long as I used my CDL within 3 years of graduating, that I'd be fine.

Driving schools will say stuff like that, but it's not true.

A driver from Fedex claimed that as long as I kept my DOT medical card and paperwork up to date, I'm fine. As in, once you have your CDL, you have your CDL. He also claimed that since I was delivering for Fedex and driving, that that technically was "commercial driving."

It doesn't count.

However, we are moving again, this time to Seattle, WA and I have resigned from Fedex.

That was a mistake. You could have put in an inter company transfer to be a driver apprentice at FedEx freight. You have 30 days from that day you quit. They're hiring city driver apprentices in Kent. Put in the app ASAP. If you quit less than 30 days ago, it's possible to keep your company seniority.

I am also fully aware that most companies would possibly put me through a refresher course, which is honestly what I would like.

The driver apprentice program is sort of a refresher class. It's one on one training for people with CDL permits or that have a CDL but no experience. The program typically lasts 4-6 weeks.

I forgot to say, if you do decide to apply to FedEx freight, you'll need your hazmat , tanker and doubles endorsements.