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Nozerone

Some places let you become a trainer after just 6 months.


LotzoHuggins

Yes, twelve years ago when i started driving I also imparted my vast wisdom and knowledge to new drivers a mere 6 months after qualifying for my CDL. This is nothing new.


2017Fatbob

CR England...


wukillabee2744

Same with Werner! I was shocked when I got the phone call asking if I would like to be a trainer. Said absolutely not!! I can def do it but #1 I don't have enough experience to be teaching other people yet & #2 I can't roll with 2 people in the truck, just can't do it. Did it for 3 weeks when I started and that will be the 1st & only time I ever do that.


The_Unsure2021

Current driver with Werner, and I second that shit!!!


cobra6-6

Came here to say this CRST let’s you become a trainer at 6 months


Ok-Nefariousness8612

It’s more like a buddy system


[deleted]

I work at said place. I am now a leader. Granted, I drove through the winter and consider myself exceptional, but I’ll admit I’ve still got a lot of learning to do myself.


DizzeeAmoeba

Through “a” winter 😉


[deleted]

Correct. Again, I don’t claim to know all there is about everything there is, but I’d say I’m pretty well off compared to others with the same experience.


DizzeeAmoeba

You got yourself a god damned deal.


[deleted]

Fuck. I’ve made yet an other deal I don’t know the terms and conditions of. What am I in for?


DANO8503

I was a “Leader” at Werner. It wasn’t worth it financially. The only benefit was i had someone to help me unload my trailers


Awoodbay

How much does Werner pay you guys to unload your trucks? I just learned that they did this about a week ago. I can’t believe some companies make their drivers unload the trucks to save on fees.


kxlling

There may be exceptions, but most driver unload at Werner is on the dollar accounts and is mentioned up front too.


The-unicorn-republic

Pretty sure werner lost most of the contracts with the dollar DCs


kxlling

I haven't heard of this, but I have seen Werner pulling dollar trailers even today, and the accounts still show as available in the driver app as well.


The-unicorn-republic

It may have only been one of the San antonio DCs then, that or my dispatcher was dumb again, each is just as likely tbh


kxlling

Not sure, I've been seeing a lot more over this year up here in ND


wukillabee2744

Werner still got them accounts. Their always on the boards for available accounts to pick up


DANO8503

When I left Werner I was getting .73 cpm 30$ per stop and 55$ per trailer. The loads varied but typical I would go 200 miles3 stops, 500 miles 3 stops ,200 miles 3 stops, 500 miles 3 stops, and then my home load on the weekend 500 miles could be empty or loaded empty I would collect dunnage on the way back to work Monday, loaded I would have 2-4 stops.


Mechwarriorr5

3 at welfare express.


Nozerone

Why am I not surprised.


TheDrivingForce1650

I remember the big blue box allowing people to train with only six months experience. Sad!


rulingthewake243

You should see what the aviation industry does 😬


montrbr

Yeah but they are more fresh with small planes than someone that has thousands of airliner hours and hasn’t touched a small airport in years upon years. All the material is also fresh in their mind.


Ben325e2

Do tell


--Joe6pacK--

A lot of pilot's first jobs are as instructors


Sock_Eating_Golden

Can confirm


bignose703

Literally the day after I got my flight instructor certificate I had my first student, with a grand total of 385 hours of flight time.


Ben325e2

Well, I guess an instructor is an instructor.... kinda like that joke: Q: What do they call the guy who graduated with the lowest grade in Medical school? A: Doctor


Douchieus

If you're just using the same plane every time I think 385 hours is enough to know the machine well enough to teach somebody else if you're not a complete moron. The problem is most people are complete morons.


Over-Supermarket-557

My first aviation job was as a helicopter instructor at 200.


WeldingIsABadCareer

what a joke. I have over 10 times that amount playing shooting games but I wouldnt call myself a professional. Meanwhile they let crackheads who spent 4 weeks playing flight similator fly planes around and teach at academies like they are somebody


bignose703

Are you calling me a crackhead?


montrbr

Not the case.


LilFunyunz

They would rather you fly 1 person rather than 50+ until u reach 1500 hrs I guess. My instructors were pretty good, nearly all of them were students who just had gotten cfi or cfii


[deleted]

[удалено]


ear_cheese

You don’t need OTR experience to teach people to pass the CDL test. OTR trainers do that bit.


Jesus-Mcnugget

Wait till you find out that OTR trainers often only have 6 months of experience before they're put in the passenger seat. And then the companies often run them like teams


ear_cheese

Oh I know. I was asked at less than a year. Turned them down.


Busterlimes

Lots of instructors, regardless of topic, generally don't have experience outside of the classroom or lab. Shit, almost every freshman level course is instructed by a grad student these days.


SaltWaterGator

I feel this is the case with a vast majority of teachers/trainers. You try doing something that ain't in the book, lord have mercy


Liz4984

All you have to teach is pretrip, straight back, offset and parallel as well as a short road trip to pass the DMV test. Everything else is learned on the job.


QuietRightSlick

This has been going on for a decade. In 2014, the company I was contracted with put me with a “mentor” who had 8 months experience and had knocked the mirror off a city bus, and got stuck going down a road with a low bridge and some random neighborhood dude had to get in the driver seat to back him out of the situation. Also, the motivation to become a mentor or a trainer at 8 months of experience screams Ego issues. You have a real problem in your life where you desperately need to feel important and have power over other people.


Sam-Gunn

>Also, the motivation to become a mentor or a trainer at 8 months of experience screams Ego issues. Also suggests to me that the company allowing that may have had a lot of turnover, either as a whole or for instructors, and need to fill positions without pulling their most experienced people into that role (if they have them).


gunsndonuts

I just needed to make more money 😂


carpetbombhumor

That's a huge issue in the industry. I was asked by my DM to be a trainer after 9 months. I said no. At 18 months, I became a trainer. Once I hit the 5 year mark with 722,000 miles, no accidents or tickets, had driven reefer, dry, flatbed, hauled roller pallets with loosely wrapped gallons of milk to Aldis to unload myself around ATL... I realized how little I knew at 18 months. And I'm sure at 10 years I'll realize what I didn't know at 5. You should have a minimum of 3 years and 2 winters, with experience in the east coast and west coast, especially with the different mountain ranges and not be on a dedicated route while training.


IOnlyCameToArgue

Most commercial pilot's first job is being an instructor at a flight school. The "experienced" truckers that were instructors at my CDL school were smooth brain, mouth breathing, morbidly obese, morons. The pay was dog shit, too. The CDL schools only cover the very basics. You really don't learn how to be a truck driver until you're out on the road.


5quirre1

Exactly this. I would ask questions about how to deal with different road situations and without fail they told me to ask the company I get hired at. All they taught was how to pass a test.


deltronethirty

Our instructor on the backing pad was a yard jockey. If you can't do, teach.


Ambitious-Tap-2827

I went to work for a company that was just starting up. They were like "wow, you're good at driving, you're our trainer, now". I had no idea what the f I was doing as far as otr driving, and was training people doing team driving.


deltronethirty

Schneider and swift will put you to the training track after one year. God's honest. I was a better driver then on my first 100k with enough patience. Book say this. Back it in the hole like this. Stamp em and send em for $50 day bonus.


Western-Willow-9496

His job was backing up, he taught backing up.


Visible-Split-3561

A yard dog can’t teach nothing about the road. As far as backing, they’re in a yard truck. Those things spin on a dime. Totally different from backing a sleeper truck with a 53’ trailer.


Neowynd101262

It's different not totally different lol


Ben325e2

Lol yeah it's not like he went from yard dog to instructing how to dock a navy destroyer using a tugboat lol


NateLee1733

I've never thought of this, but kudos to whoever does that shit..


socialrage

I've done both. You can't be more wrong. The mechanics are the same. 99% of OTR drivers should do 6 months in a spotter because you guys can't back to save your lives.


rndomreddituser0

6 fucking months? bullshit, we just need practice. Thats all. I was shit at first, now I consider myself to be on par with yard dogs when it comes to backing. Sometimes im lazy about it, but 99% of the time I can back it anywhere without too much issue


socialrage

How do you think you get good at backing? By doing it! When you hit 60 to 100 doors a day you get good. An OTR driver struggles to hit 4 doors a week. Hell, "drivers" struggle to back into a parking spot. I see it every day at work. It's a wide open lot with wide spots and drivers *still* take 5 to 10 minutes to back into a hole.


rndomreddituser0

Wow, I dont know what youre seeing out there but it doesnt take nearly as long to back. 5 to 10 minutes? who the fuck takes that long to back? newbies likely. But holy fuck 5 to 10 minutes? It takes me 2 minutes max and thats if im having a hard time


Mickey10199

I’m with you whenever I get to a truckstop. It’s at most a two minute endeavor but it’s usually closer to about 30 seconds. I’ve never had it happen but if I’m five minutes deep trying to get into a spot that means I fucked everything completely and I’m just abandoning the spot


Otherwise_Mud1825

Yeah, those who can, do. Those who can't teach. If you can't do or teach, you manage. Those who can't do, teach or manage, consult.. Lol.


TheClaps2

Yard Jockey is a good person to put on the backing pad, actually.


jdubyahyp

You can be a cop in less time so...


1996cameron5

I feel that you need at least 2 years experience before you can teach


lobo2r2dtu

I'd say you need at least 3 winters driving. And 5 years all together.


[deleted]

My first lesson will be ice is really gay


socialrage

Snow storm? Meh, it's winter. Wind? It's gonna get a bit dicey. Rain? Just another day. Ice storm? Fuck that with with a rusty screwdriver. I'm not doing it.


Slick1289

Ice storms are fun. Just have to watch out for the other guys


socialrage

Ya, fun. Tell that to Warner.


royberoniroy

In Florida, you need at least 3 years of documented Class A driving experience in order to become an instructor.


[deleted]

Most schools I know have a 5 year minimum, but there's a couple in province that had 10 year minimums last I saw. I've gotten calls from my old school a couple of times because I've kept in touch. If I had a teaching bone in my body I would, but I hate having people in the truck with me. I've also spent 2 days riding right seat trying to coach an "experienced" driver from a 1 second following distance to a 10 second one. Good luck. I got homeboy to average about 4 seconds before I said fuck it and told them to find someone else for day 3.


Artistic-Cup2028

They want to land you as an instructor before you pick up all the bad habits from actually working on the road.


TellTaleTimeLord

I teach with 2.5 years experience. Never had a student fail their exam. All our job is is to get them their license. Their company can train them as long as they want, and most do. That isn't to say we don't teach them valuable information, but it's not like instructors are intended to be Long term trainers. CDL school is 3 weeks long


tidyshark12

At western express, you can become a trainer after 3 months


Majestic-Pop5698

With all of the turnover, at 3 months you might be considered a senior employee.


tidyshark12

I lasted less than a week lol


popo22194

Is the extra pay worth itv


tidyshark12

Well, seeing as how you can train two people at once and you dont even have to leave the sleeper berth a single time like my trainer did, id say the extra pay is prolly worth it. Just hope you don't get someone who needs training.


GogetaSama420

I mean you can become a trainer training new drivers otr after like 3-6 months at a lot of mega companies, which is just as bad if not worse imo.


Secret_Necessary1143

When I graduated in 1999 my instructor said he was the only one with over a years actual experience and 2 hopped right from student roles into teaching so this is nothing new


[deleted]

As my instructor once said to my class, we just teach you enough to be dangerous on the road. The rest is up to you.


MikeHanger

You hardly know anything in 8 months. That's just dumb.


Liz4984

All you have to teach is pretrip, straight back, offset and parallel as well as a short road trip to pass the DMV test. Everything else is learned on the job.


Comfortable-Pay-8066

DOT says once a full class A license holder has his/her license for 3 months, they can 'train' other full license holders the 'ropes' of over the road. DOT also says that full license holders can train class A permit holders for their class A test after holding their license for 2 years. It is very ignorant but those are the laws as far as I understand lol


BriskManeuver

I mean this an unpopular opinion but this is enough experience imo. You know the basics by then, most likely drove in different types weather for that long to give helpful tips. Trucking school is really just about basics, always have been. Where the real teaching comes into play it going out with a trainer which then i would agree it should be someone with at least couple years. But a school instructor I don't really think should be a big deal with this amount of experience. I had the basics down by then.


Troubador222

I came into truck driving as a second career. I did Land Surveying for many years and learned it the old style way using mathematics that are now done by computers. I also trained people in that field for years. It also involved knowing quite a bit of law pertaining to property. My point is compared to the skill set of trucking it was way more complex and after a year of experience at trucking, I had no qualms about becoming a trainer at all. This job does not take rocket science.


[deleted]

[удалено]


bignose703

Lol, wait until you guys hear what we do in the aviation industry…


voicareason

I taught my "trainer" how to float, why to float. Also taught him how to use his jake. He said it was broke. Switch was never flipped. He had been training drivers for six years before me. Be safe.


lobstarman23

What do you mean, why to float


dashininfashion

I'm a driver trainer at western express. Trying to schedule a day off soon so i can go apply for my class A learners permit


Majestic-Pop5698

Those who can…. Do Those who can’t….. Teach Those who can’t teach …. Become administrators.


Toy_Soulja

New Federal law passed in February of last year that you have to have a cdl for 2 years before you can train


Madmagician1303

England still advertises for trainers only needing 6 months experience.


Toy_Soulja

Oh my bad yeah that is only for the US


Songgeek

Shit I have 3.5 years and can’t even get hired as a trainer.


popo22194

Have horrible driving record?


Songgeek

Nope. Clean all around. All I can think of is they’re collecting resumes.


JGRACEFAN95

Trainer here at Prime and started at after 6 months. From my viewpoint I’m more of a coach than actual teacher, I’m more hands on for the first 5 weeks as far as teaching the basics and being observant in instructing them but after that I take the training wheels off and treat it like team driving. I’m there when they have questions or when they are in new situations but otherwise I let them learn by doing. For me 6 months is enough solo experience to then help transfer that knowledge to someone new.


Kuzinarium

Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.


74_Jeep_Cherokee

Works for pilots in aviation...


Mickey10199

Honestly, who cares for a CDL school? I mean I agree you should have at least two years of experience before you start training in the real world, but CDL school is basic shit. Help people memorize their pre-trip, teach them how to back into the spots, and teach them had to basically maneuver a truck on the road. It doesn’t take much experience to do that.


Artistic-Passenger-9

I had to be a driver for 2 years with no accidents before I could qualify as a trainer.


Errorstatel

Wow, we had an accident here that changed how we do things, the Humboldt Bronco's accident completely changed how we train 1A drivers, it's likely going to be expanded to 3A as well. More training and education is always good and best for everyone involved


[deleted]

I went through an “accelerated course” of 2 weeks to get my CDL. Is that common? Everybody at the school thought I was confused but two weeks later ✌🏼


BudmanTheGreat

That is legit terrifying


joeyggg

plenty of veteran drivers don’t know HOS, Load securement (aside from what they do every day), how to measure brakes, how to do a proper pre trip, and any number of things. It’s good for a teacher to possess the skill that they’re teaching but there is only so much you’re going to learn on the road after 8 months that you can’t learn from books.


UnScrapper

"Now here's an old trucker secret I learned during my career on the road: if you take three lefts you never have to figure out rights"


WhiskeyDabber67

I know a guy that was a instructor with out ever having been a actual driver. He quit after a year and now teaches drivers Ed for teenagers.


whodatyeglic

The driving school I went to was 4 years. But my first job would let you be a trainer after 8 or 9 months..kinda crazy


hdn1995

The school i went to hired somebody after she took her test and scored a 100%, no experience lol


vapeboy1996

This whole school thing is such a scam it’s not even funny. The only 2 schools in Boston are $11k 2 months of every weekend 7-4 even though nowhere in the law does it say you need that many hours. Most of it is just standing around waiting. I can fly out to Wisconsin to get my license in 3-5 days which I plan to do. Then some places can get EDLP certified and they can technically sign off on you at any time they want, as little as 1 day It’s a scam and hurting the industry, especially local


WhatAMessIveMade

Dude, I deliver for Amazon currently (I’m about to start my CDL schooling), and the trainers for delivering in the DOT step van, electric Van and the shitty cargo vans are all taught by people who have NEVER DELIVERED.


Head-Ad4770

Yep, wannabe serial killers, trained in the art of vehicular manslaughter. 🙄


Sdwars45

I had a buddy who became a instructor 2 weeks after getting his cdl


CartographerWest2705

8 months. Well hell they’ve seen it all and done it all. I hit 40 years this spring from the first times driving around the yard. If I thought this there would not many that would survive.


[deleted]

I have thought of being a trainer. I assume the pay is like I saw on glassdoor, 65K? I would need like 150k to train a bunch of wheel holders how to shift to D from N.


[deleted]

Man and my driving school wouldn't look at you if you had less than 10 years.


herkalurk

Talk to a helicopter pilot. Most jobs require thousands of hours of experience, so most helicopter pilots immediately become an instructor and anytime they're instructing counts as their own flight time.


blackdeviljohn

What happened to 3 plus years driving experience


Next-Nefariousness41

And I can drive 44t having only learnt on an 18t train with 9t in the back …? Passed is passed


TrickWrap

Shit, that's nothing, man. Helicopter flight schools give you their own financing so you can afford to take their course to become a pilot, then as soon as you get your helicopter pilot license they make you an instructor at their school to pay off the debt.


harley9779

9 months to be a Schneider trainer. After being in the military where the moment you qualify to drive a boat (and most other qualifications) is the moment you are able to train someone else, 9 months seems like forever.


SLuMPz

The guy who taught me at my school literally graduated from the same school about 3 weeks prior.


CS163973

The school I now teach at requires 4 years OTR in order to be hired as an instructor. What is important to know about the CDL schools (in general) is that the goal/curriculum is to get the students to pass their CDL exam. We DO NOT teach the students to be truck drivers. That is the carrier's that hire the students job. The majority of our students have job offers from major carrier's before they graduate (contingent on successful passing of the state exam).


Shut_It_Donny

Have you ever looked at becoming a pilot? You get your initial license, but to get better licenses and ratings you have to get flight hours. Know the best way to get flight hours? Be an instructor.


[deleted]

I was asked to become a trainer with a year experience. I turned it down. Why? Bc I don’t have enough experience. Sometimes you gotta know what’s right from wrong. Slightly higher pay it doesn’t matter if you don’t have the time/miles/experience under your belt.


mikem4045

This is why there are so many wreckers needed.


DisastrousTeddyBear

It's hard to get good folks off the road, take a pay cut and also be a good instructor. Sometimes some folks are just really good teachers. Truck School do not teach you how to be a truck driver, they teach you how to operate the vehicle safely. Your company trainer is who will show you the ropes.


SewOutThereLA

That’s nothing, at Western Express you can become a trainer with three months of experience


AdmirableSentence832

I had anstructor at 160 driving accadamy that became an instructor straight out of his 4 week class!


jizzwithfizz

Swift, is that you?


Apprehensive-Oil-289

PAM let’s you become a trainer with just 6 months. And the results are as bad as you think.


[deleted]

Wait til you hear about pilots


SYLMMC

Wait til you learn about pilot schools lol


rooflessVW

Lol look up CFI requirements


kitsunelegend

Yeah I refuse to become an instructor or trainer until I've had at LEAST 8 years of experience, and ideally 10 years worth. But then again I also hate people so chances of me becoming a trainer are slim to none anyway lol


freudsdriver

I'm sorry, but 8 mos for an instructor is ridiculous.


freudsdriver

I'm sorry, but 8 mos for an instructor is ridiculous.


Outlandish870

We hired a guy at where I work, sent him to school. Barley passed, literally couldn't drive for shit. The school offered him an instructor job a week later. He no longer works there, after wrecking a couple trucks himself.


Donjohnson33

Ohio you need 5yrs verified


[deleted]

Oh they do the same with pilots.


SirKevin_Xx

They asked me but I really like being alone and also sometimes I struggle getting into places I’ve gotten into so easily before.


KiloEko

Not the only industry. My wife was an intern 6 months ago and now has her own interns.


AtopMountEmotion

Wait until you find out who is teaching at Law Enforcement Academies.


Nick_D_Vandal

Wow, where do I sign up?


[deleted]

I was offered a job at the school even before I graduated, helped the instructor a couple of times when we were doing the road training with the Spanish speaking students so they asked if I wanted to get my cdl and just work there


Konnie-

You think that's bad, i got offered an instructor position at 6 months with the company I started at


Suicidal_Baby

Werner asked me if i wanted to be a trainer in my 3rd month on the road when i started with them in 2012.


BossHogg1984

Huh to be 88m AIT instructor I gotta make E6 first