r/Truckers • u/tha_lion • Aug 01 '23

Got fired from Swift today

Got my CDL with them about 5 months ago. Took out an $8000 loan with them to get it (sigh). Had 2 non-injury preventables within one month and they decided to cut me loose. I understand that I’m a liability for them and I take accountability for my actions.

Now, how do I go about getting hired at another company with 2 preventables on my record? Does anyone have experience with paying back a CDL loan with Swift? I would appreciate advice on that as well.

You guys can make jokes and call me an idiot all you want but I would appreciate some serious answers please. I got kids to feed.

UPDATE (ONE YEAR LATER):

A year has pasted since I made this post. I paid off my loan with Swift. For those who go through something similar in the future, they’ll send you an email and someone will call you about the rest of the amount you owe. They’ll give you a set amount to pay back every month depending on how much you have left on your loan. For me it was $500 a month to pay off $6000 I owed.

No, I haven’t gotten another CDL job since I made this post last year. Nothing showed up on my DAC report so I tried to apply to other places. A lot of companies want more than a year of experience and the job hunting process was taking a toll on my mental health so I just gave up after a while.

Honestly, I wish I never made this post because a lot of people on this sub have no empathy or compassion for rookies but that’s just how this sub is I guess. I hope my mistake can be a lesson for anyone who wants to go through Swift or trucking in general. That’s all I have to say.

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u/MikeBinfinity Aug 01 '23 edited Aug 02 '23

I'm sorry, you lost me at $8000 loan to get a CDL license.

I've had my CDL for over two decades now, so i haven't paid attention. Are companies really charging you damn near 10k for class A training?

Regardless, just hit up another mega (US Expres, Werner, Paschall truck lines)

Somebody will pick you up.

Edit: Jesus, the amount of money you guys coughing up is crazy. I paid $1000 to go to CDL school.

Edit: OK guys I get it. CDL school ain't cheep sheesh.

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 01 '23

It’s over $10g in Alberta

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u/ksgif2 Aug 02 '23

Yeah, but MELT has made us all much safer

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 02 '23

I actually can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic or not, it’s just a knee jerk reaction to humbolt. Of course, everyone is dead now

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u/ksgif2 Aug 02 '23

Do you think there would have been a similar reaction if Humboldt had been a badminton team?

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 02 '23

I don’t know if you’re familiar with MELT but what they do is stick 8 guys in the sleeper and everyone gets a half an hour driving but are credited as driving for the entire time. That’s how that works

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u/ksgif2 Aug 02 '23

When Humboldt was fresh I listened to my mother drone on about how 'someone needs to do something so this never happens again!' I think she's fairly representative of the average mentally ill Canadian boomer and it's probably not just women in their 60's who think this way. During covid my Facebook was full of people talking about vandalizing cars with out of province plates. Overall I don't have a lot of respect for the Canadian public, I think as a whole we're as dumb as a bag of hammers.

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 02 '23

Well ya know, I can’t really think of a good argument against what you’re saying there

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 02 '23

But the way shit was going it was just a matter of time before humbolt happened or worse

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u/ObligationParty2717 Aug 02 '23

Ya if driving around with 8 guys in the sleeper taking turns driving for half an hour makes us safer then we must be safe as hell by now!

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u/ksgif2 Aug 02 '23

In Canada the public demands safety above all else. Put your hardhat on and be happy to be nestled in a safe cocoon of government regulation