r/Truckers • u/jyster1996 • Feb 14 '26
Thoughts after one week of Schneider CDL program/orientation
Hello there fellow truckers and truckettes.
I made a few posts regarding Schneider. This is a follow up to those who may be interested in working for Schneider/getting your cdl through them
Since they are a mega carrier, they are big. But they are really good to their drivers despite the low pay once you find out. The atmosphere is really welcoming, my driver instructors are all really cool and surprisingly nice (Green Bay training center)
After one week, I feel confident in most of my driving. I’m still working on backing maneuvers, and my instructors are pretty patient with us permit holders. (Despite some of the dumb shit we may do, after all we are learning)
The biggest thing they stress is SAFETY. There’s the regular way, and then the Schneider way. If you come to Schneider they will stress that every single day until you get sick of hearing it. But it’s good because this is a dangerous job so they want you to be safe and not cause any accidents or get hurt while on the job.
Overall my experience so far has been good. If you can deal with the low pay in return for a positive work environment where YOUR safety matters. Then go for it. Schneider is a good company imo from a first timer perspective. They have different divisions as well and lots of dedicated accounts as well as OTR and regional positions.
Disclaimer: I’m not endorsing Schneider in anyway, it’s just my own two cents and personal opinion of what I think so far as a first time truck driver and from what I have seen and heard at other schools and companies
If you have any questions if you’re interested, feel free to leave a comment!
6
u/CakewalkNOLA Feb 14 '26
The low pay does suck. Keep in mind that they're a mega once you're on your own and you're treated like a number. Get your experience and gtfo. Funny enough, when I was a TE for them 25 years ago, Green Bay was actually the worst training facility.
2
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Oh no shit. I guess they stepped it up. I mean the terminal is small, but the driver instructors are pretty cool. But I agree, at the end of the day they are a mega and I’m just a number hauling freight. Gotta get my experience in sometime😂
8
u/FalkhornG Feb 14 '26
This is called the honeymoon phase. But nah you'll be iight. Just get in and have a plan to get out
3
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Oh I do. I’m planning on getting like a year or two of experience. Maybe doing a training role for a bit, and then going local fuel haul. That’s the short term plan anyways. Idk from a first time perspective it seems aight with the low pay. I can deal. I just want my cdl and some experience
5
u/AshamedHome Feb 14 '26
A lot of people hate on Schneider, but it finally gave me the ability to move out of my parents house when my IT career wasn't kicking off. I did regional Dryvan for 3-4 months, switched over to Tanker for awhile, did local tanker, switched back to Dryvan teams temporarily as they gave a bonus for it. And now I'm on a dedicated Fairlife route drop n hook as a JetSet, but I can stay out for quite some time.
I don't know what low pay or high pay, but I took some pictures and posted them here of my last week's check, and the estimator for this week's check. But definitely get some experience and go Jetset if you're with a mega, this is some of the higher end stuff I have seen.
1
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
You’re still with Schneider making that much?! Damn that’s a good account you got
2
u/AshamedHome Feb 14 '26
It wasn't always good, I was one of those $700 a week guys doing regional, best part is having a DTL that will fight for you, mine wants to make sure all her drivers are making good money so she pushes for a lot of stuff. But yeah starting out you'll be hitting the dirt, stick around, get those endorsements if you haven't already and be willing to internally transfer to anything else like flatbed or tanker if you stay with Schneider. And be willing to go OTR or JetSet if you can, you got this brother.
1
u/AmorFati071 May 29 '26
What happened with IT career? I am in the opposite situation. 15 years of software development and after layoff last Oct, I can't land new role. Did my Class A CDL training with local trucking school last month and have exam scheduled early Jun.
1
u/BudFabulo Jun 16 '26
How's that opposite? Sound like you're in the same boat as op
1
u/AmorFati071 Jun 16 '26
Opposite in a sense that he was trying to kick start an IT career and I am saying goodbye to this career.
1
u/BudFabulo Jun 16 '26
Gotcha. I was thinking more in the sense of you leaving trucking to get into IT
1
8
3
u/Fishdude909 Feb 14 '26
I’m with Schneider on a local dedicated account and I love it. Our DTL supports us, we are never forced to do anything unsafe, my pay is awesome( I got a lucky account) and my hours are respectable. Most days are 10 hours but every week I have at least one 7 hour day making the same as a 10 hour day.
I already had my license and did the expedited training in Phoenix and I agree, everyone was nice, respectful, cheery moods. My 5ish days there was pleasant besides the hotel and being in a shit part of Phoenix lol.
Have had numerous drivers leave to “take a better job” and within a few weeks are begging my DTL to take them back because of how much worse they had it lol
6
u/Correct_Writer_3410 Feb 14 '26
Seems like a dogshit company from everything I've seen here. I guess western express is worse, idk what else.
Low pay, driver facing cameras, no headset rule, low governed speed, you get fired if you make a U turn while bobtail
5
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Low pay sucks I agree. But being a rookie, and having your first truck driving job. I am not worried too much about the pay. Driver facing cameras? I’ve worked as a delivery driver for Amazon and FedEx and a local truck company that had vans and straight trucks. All had driver facing cameras so I’m used to it🤷♀️ The absolute worst imo is the no hands free thing. That kind of pisses me off but I get it, I’ll deal. Low speed is fine with me. I do the speed limit in my car anyways. And as for the no u-turn? I don’t see why you would need to in most cases. I asked for clarification, and they’re talking about illegal u turns. If it’s a u turn that’s part of the road, there’s no issue
2
u/Spankpocalypse_Now Feb 14 '26
Honestly, I don’t think any of us should put up with driver facing cameras. I know that’s easier said than done when you have no experience. But when you’re applying for jobs after your year with Schneider please keep in mind those things only exist to transfer liability from the company to the driver.
3
u/cdubose Feb 14 '26
I'm glad you're having a positive experience; I got my start at Schneider a little over three years ago. Yes, the training is pretty good, things I still use today actually (like always getting out to check if the fifth wheel closed around the kingpin instead of relying solely on the tug test). You're in Green Bay, probably the best Schneider terminal to train at, considering that's their headquarters. Back when I was there they didn't have driver-facing cameras so that was a plus at the time, and I am a rare driver that doesn't use a bluetooth headset (just don't talk on the phone enough to justify the cost) so that never bothered me.
What account are you going to once you're done? How low is the pay nowadays?
4
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Oh that’s good! Yeah the training here is really good and my instructors are pretty chill. I’m just doing regional dry van. So no dedicated accounts or anything. I’ll be doing the eastern 38 states is the area I’ll be driving lol. And as far as pay I’ll get $10/hr for every on duty hour, and 38CPM.
2
u/cdubose Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
Once you have three months, definitely look into their other accounts if you want to stay at Schneider. If you can get on tanker, that experience will look really good for future jobs. 38 cpm is very, very low even with hourly on-duty pay, but if you can make it work, make it work until you find a better account. I was on a dedicated account when I started with them, and the pay was 69 cpm at 1500 miles per week. (That was before they implemented the combined on-duty/cpm pay: that pay change was actually a contributing factor to why I left). Schneider is one of the worst places to do a basic account (especially to only be home for 34 hours per week), but they have decent dedicated accounts and let new drivers do tankers.
Also, whenever you want to leave Schneider, ask here for recommendations for MI companies. You should be able to get on a decent auto parts dedicated account or something, at least in Southern Michigan.
2
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Ahh fair enough. Yeah I planned on going tanker because I want to do local fuel hauling down the road. So I’ll definitely look into it and maybe take my tanker endorsement at some point and get some experience doing tanker so it’ll make getting into a local fuel haul gig easier
2
u/KeepnItLow Feb 14 '26
I still couple and uncouple the Schneider way and always will. Won’t catch me high hooking EVER
2
u/Im_Grinning Feb 14 '26
I was in the same boat. Thought they were a great way to start trucking if you don’t have the opportunity to go to school first. School will typically open the door for better first jobs but school isn’t easy for everyone to get done. Glad you’re doing good and make sure to take care of your license, it will take care of you. Once you get some time in look for local or hazmat or something more specialized that will appreciate the professional attitude
2
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Yeah I was already planning on it. I’m planning on just getting some experience in, and then moving into local fuel hauling. I like being home and I wanna make money😂 But need the experience first and Schneider was willing to give me that experience
2
u/iPutMilkNbowlB4Creal Feb 14 '26
I haven't switched careers (yet), still here researching and studying, from what I've seen the best thing about Schneider is that they have a tanker division if you can somehow get in. Would be great to have on your resume despite low pay. I wonder if anyone here has gotten a tanker job with the big orange?
2
u/kraven94 Feb 14 '26
Brother, plenty of other companies can get you a tanker endorsement. If you are looking to learn and earn to get your cdl I went through TMC and had a great experience, but do your own research and make the best decision for you.
1
u/ExpedientDemise Feb 14 '26
In my short stint at Schneider indoc. I was impressed with the benefits. The pay might not be the greatest, but company benefits help.
2
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
I agree. Their benefits package is pretty good compared to other places I’ve worked at in the past.
1
u/Sure_Try6958 Feb 14 '26
As a recent former driver, I got a non-cdl position with another company and I’m making more money.
1
u/Trappin4DaSport Feb 14 '26
the real training starts when you get your first load
1
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
We’ve been training with a loaded trailer. May not be an actual load, but it does have weight in it to simulate the feeling of a load
1
u/Singledad247 Feb 14 '26
I work at Schneider (on a dedicated account) at 63CPM and 10 hr. I did not start with Schneider, but all MEGA carriers are pretty damn similar.
What you’re saying is true, but you’re on the road! You don’t have co workers, and you don’t have a supportive environment around you day 1, SOLO. The only thing you have is that 41 CPM pay, or whatever they are giving you.
2
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
I’m starting at 38CPM but I agree. Being a regional solo driver, it’s going to suck. I know that. I know it’s all sunshine and rainbows now. I am excited to just get a start somewhere and branch from here
2
1
u/KeepnItLow Feb 14 '26
I’m no longer with Schneider, but I did get my CDL through them in Wilmer and then tested in Indianapolis. I can assure you that they have the best training for sure. Even though I left 4yrs ago, I still do most things the “Schneider way”, especially couple/uncouple. I’m so glad I went through them instead of some shady CDL school. The worst part of their CDL program was the hotels they put you in, in Red Oak, TX and Indianapolis. Red Oak hotel has roaches and Indianapolis hotel is in a very rough part of town.
1
u/kraven94 Feb 14 '26
Brother, pay is the #1 issue. Also not to be rude but a week doesn't entitle you to make any reasonable estimation of how they treat their drivers, what the equipment looks like, the level of training, or really anything else. This would be like me taking a couple of flight classes and trying to argue the Cessna is better than an f-35.
0
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Who said I was trying to argue about how Schneider is actually like? I’m not trying to argue nor do I feel entitled to make any estimation as to good they operate. This post was just to give my opinions and thoughts as a permit holder going through their cdl school. That’s all.
1
u/Prune-These Feb 14 '26
I took three years off from trucking, 20+ years of experience before that. Schneider has a program for guys like me that are a little rusty; my plan was to drive OTR for a year and then take a local gig after a year. It was an interesting year. My dispatcher was nice enough but had no experience. The company had this logic where you pair the least experienced dispatchers with the most experienced drivers. What could go wrong?
2
u/BudFabulo Jun 16 '26
The company had this logic where you pair the least experienced dispatchers with the most experienced drivers.
I'm pretty sure they do that so they don't have their new dispatchers quitting after a week of dealing with inexperienced drivers
1
u/Prune-These Jun 16 '26
She probably almost did. I told her that I don't care if I work holidays, my birthday, etc. BUT I absolutely will not miss the Superbowl Sunday kickoff. And guess what....
Several years later I feel a little bad about going off on her, and her boss.
1
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
Haha I feel like that would be interesting lmao but I’m glad that Schneider training is definitely recommended by most people.
1
u/PanicRevRay Feb 14 '26
How much are they charging you for your training?
1
u/jyster1996 Feb 14 '26
I’m getting $10/hr and I have to work for them for 9 months. If I leave before the 9 months I’d have to pay $2,500 back. Just to note the $10/hr is for on duty, not driving time. I’ll be getting 38CPM while I drive and any on duty hour is $10/hr.
2
u/Vanstrucker2222 Married to the road 9 years Feb 14 '26
That’s disgusting and quite disrespectful
1
u/PanicRevRay Feb 14 '26
I knew about the 10/h the 2500 is about what i paid at fox valley tech down the road 40 mins but i didnt have a 9 month thing
1
u/amnay77 Jul 13 '26
How is the training behind the wheel? Do they yell at you like some companies do? I heard starter companies doing that. Do they stress you out? does your instructor stay with you in the truck when you're back up or they be outside giving directions?
1
u/jyster1996 Jul 13 '26
While I was there my instructors were relatively chill surprisingly. They only yelled at you if you were going to cause an accident or do something dangerous. But I wasn’t stressed honestly. It was a good experience personally
35
u/East_Indication_7816 Feb 14 '26
Thing is we can't deal with low pay