:confused:wanna drive trucks but criminal history holds me back,looking for companies that will hire this broken man or maybe a driving school that will finance me and train me

Depending how far out your actual conviction was (at least 5+ years) and your regular driving record (no moving violations please) you can hook up with an OTR company that will train you and then hire you to work for them on a contract of at least a year so they can recoup some of their training money. Regular trucking school costs at least $5K and sometimes you can get Pell Grant money for the schooling BUT depending on which state you are in the grant money is only obtainable by jumping through a LOT of hoops. You could Google online and see which OTR companies will hire you and put you through their own CDL school. There are still a few companies out there that will do this. Also, it depends on what your conviction was for. The trucking companies have to be very careful just what type of felons they hire due to their insurance carrier's policies. Call the Recruiter at the OTR companies and speak to them. Drivers are hard to come by and most don't stay at one company for very long as they are habitual job hoppers as a rule. Some drivers like to get with a company and work for them for years if they are treated well by the company. Trucking companies are always looking for good drivers. You must be sure you can pass the DOT physical as well. Look into that prior to calling any trucking companies so you can tell the recruiter you could pass the DOT physical with flying colors.

Hi, irnwrkr!

twinkiedooter has much background and experience in this kind of thing to provide an excellent answer to anyone asking about what you're asking. As such, her advice is as "good as gold" in this concern.

Thanks!

Clough - Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate that.

I worked for a trucking company that moved brand new trucks as the freight. They are called piggyback haulers hauling up to 3 new trucks at a time specially hooked together. I started as a dispatcher and was shortly promoted to payroll manager and shared my office with the Safety Director/Recruiter for a year. I learned everything I could from that man who had 20 years' experience in trucking. He taught me a lot. After he left I was the person doing the company orientations to the new drivers for 6 months and then it became a permanent part of my job when the new Safety Director they hired didn't know what she was doing (eye candy for the boss).

I would also answer the phone taking recruiting calls (as well as doing my other job as payroll manager) and properly screening the candidates using well known questions.

A lot has to do with the actual insurance carrier the trucking company has. It's basically their rules that must be followed to a T. The company I worked for had good legal representation and had all their forms up to date for the new drivers to sign.

They had company drivers and independent drivers so I definitely know the difference there (big difference).

Prior to that I lived in a big truck for a year with a trainer who also taught me everything about living on the road and OTR driving tips. I had wanted to be a driver myself but got ill and missed out on the opportunity. Life on the road as an OTR driver is extremely lonely and it's not for everyone - that's why I always try to answer these type of questions.

I also worked at another trucking company recently where the freight was propane, butane, asphalt and chemicals and understand that phase of the business as well spending many hours with the Safety Director and the dispatchers. The flammable/hazardous materials can prove dangerous but if safety regulations are strictly met, the products are not dangerous even in rollovers or accidents.