Category: CDL

Finding and Accepting the Right Trucking Job

Posted on October 20, 2017 by - CDL, heavy loads, otr trucking, Rate Per Mile, regional trucking, specialized loads, Trucker, trucking, trucking industry, Trucking Job

So, you have your CDL and now you need a trucking job. It’s time to look online, in the newspaper, and everywhere else! Load boards post new loads every day and companies are desperate for more drivers, providing you with a lot of job options, but make sure you find the right job.
It can be easy to jump at the first opportunity that offers money, but you may be neglecting a better opportunity. You may also accept a load for a company that doesn’t have your best interests in mind. Learn what questions to ask and what to look for when considering your trucking job options.

What To Look For In Trucking Jobs

Solid Pay & Benefits

You need to make sure that you make a profit per load, or that the rate per mile is high enough to cover your bills and provide you with the ability to build some savings. Sometimes when business is slow you may accept loads to break even, but on a salary, you will want to profit. Also, after gaining some reputable experience you may be offered hourly pay.

Before signing on with a company be sure to research the pay scale and ask about scheduled pay increases, accessorial pay, layover pay, and bonuses. It’s perfectly fine to ask about future opportunities before investing your time with a new company.

While you’re at it see what type of benefits the company has to offer. Will they offer you insurance coverage? Do they have a retirement plan? Will you be offered paid time off for vacations or holiday pay? These are all important things to consider for your personal needs and the needs of your family.

Look Past Face Value

Most trucking companies will have a professional looking website with images of happy truckers, but don’t let that sway your opinion. Read the text to learn about the company’s goals and how they work to achieve them.

Also, Google reviews of the company to see what the general public and previous workers think of them. This will give you a good idea about their reputation.

ExpressTruckTax shares how to find the right trucking job

Look at how the company values safety. Trucking is a dangerous job, so if they have safety regulations put in place and offer safety training, that’s a good sign that they actually care about their drivers.

Do The Policies Match Your Lifestyle?

Are the lanes in the routes that you like to travel? Will your loads be limited to a flatbed, tankers, and dry vans or will you get to gain experience with more specialized loads? Can you get your foot in the door by hauling dry vans and eventually work your way up to heavy loads?

Do you have a family that you would like to see as much as you can? Then look at the time off the company has to offer and try to find a terminal nearby. Some companies do offer drivers the ability to go home for weekends or every two weeks. You could also consider regional trucking instead of OTR.

Do you have pet you can’t imagine leaving behind? Then look at the company’s pet policy to see if they allow pets on trips. Some places may only allow smaller animals and others may only allow dogs. The rules and regulations for cats and dogs in the rig also vary between different carriers.

The Right Trucking Job Is Waiting For You

When looking for a trucking job it’s not important to find the perfect company or the perfect load. Instead, it’s important to find the right job for you that fits your needs and lifestyle. You may have to get out of your comfort zone a little in the beginning but as your reputation builds you will have access to bigger and better opportunities.

Please share your tips about finding the right trucking job in the comment section below and visit ExpressTruckTax.com for more trucking blogs.

5 Ways to Survive Truck Driving School

Posted on November 14, 2016 by - CDL, CDL training, healthy living, school, sleep deprivation, tips and tricks, truck drivers, trucker fitness

Every year, tons of hopeful truckers enroll in schools and programs to get their CDL’s. As with any training program, the work is tough, and you get out of it what you put in. But how can you make sure you survive the whole process? Let’s run through this!

Start Early

So once you’ve been accepted and enrolled into a program, you need to hit the ground running. Find out what books and training materials you need as soon as possible, and start reviewing.

Review everything. It’ll be tough, but you will understand more of what you’re learning later. Learn the definitions of words, or at least familiarize yourself with them.

Also, look into some online communities and learn what you can from there. Whether that’s lingo, or survival tips, you can find plenty in forums, social media, and blogs!

Study Hard

Oh, nobody wants to hear it. You need to study hard. Yeah, you’re going to spend a lot of time learning all this in your classes, but you’re gonna have to put in a ton of time and study hard.

Think about it, not everybody passes their CDL right away. You want to become a trucker, so you’re going to need to get through your training and learn as much as possible.

You don’t want to be a rookie trucker forever, do you? Or worse, a CDL dropout?

Start Sleeping Well

This is a tough one. You might not know this, but sleep is crucial for success, health, and happiness. While you might imagine a gruff, short-tempered trucker as the standard cut of the cloth, that isn’t actually the case.

But plenty of truckers out there have sleep problems from the lifestyle. Of course, this leads to risks. Without sleep, you can find yourself with a grumpy disposition, impaired immunity system, and unable to concentrate.

That’s why you need at least eight hours of sleep, which is even more important once you’re a truck driver. So start doing everything you can to improve your sleep schedule!

Start Being Healthy

When you’re learning the ins and outs of your CDL, you should also spend some of your time off implementing healthy habits that will stick with you in the cab.

Start with your fitness by creating a good workout routine that will stick with you. Learn how to use your environment and your own body, or find mobile fitness tools and routines you can take with you.

We’ve given you fitness advice before, but we’re also big proponents of healthy eating. Ask any trucker about food on the road, and you’ll find out that truck stops are full of convenience foods — not health food.

Now, we’re not saying you need to eat kale chips every day (they’re good, I swear!), but you should do what you can to eat plenty of fresh veggies, whole grains, and lean proteins. Your diet will affect your disposition as much as sleep and fitness, so start eating right!

Of course, there are other problem areas for truckers — like perpetual back injuries from sitting all day, for example. You will need to watch your health as a trucker, bottom line.

Plan Ahead

Our first bit of advice is to start setting personal goals beyond getting your CDL. All things considered, you will put in the hard work and it’ll pay off with a CDL, and hopefully a trucking job!

But then you will have to decide what kind of job you want to have, where you want to be based out of, and all sorts of other considerations.

While you’re still in school, figure out what you like about driving a truck, learn about company drivers as compared to owner operators, and connect with other students.

No matter what you do, getting your CDL is hard work. With all the hard work you put in, you’ll be a truck driver before you know it. Once you’re a trucker, we’ll be ready to help you e-file Form 2290 right here at ExpressTruckTax!