Pros
They take the inexperienced. If you get a good Driver Manager, you'll do well. They do their best to match you with a good mentor and if you don't like them you can switch. If you don't like you Driver manager, you can switch. The longer you are with them the better the pay and miles. The Equipment is generally well kept up with little problem getting things repaired at the numerous stops. We had one of their best Driver managers and I joined my husband as a Team after he was with them for over a year. They trained me for free and he was my mentor. The starting pay for us Teaming was not too bad and the driver manager gave us all the miles we wanted while allowing us more together time while on the road (normal teams only get maybe 2 hours of awake time together which can strain a husband wife team without more together time). Our Driver manager was proactive on setting up good loads before he left for the weekends and always went to bat for us with any problems, including finding good trailers for us close by, watching the boards closely for the good runs to come out for us and getting us home when we wanted quickly. It mostly depends on getting a good manager so ask around. Also, we did not have to have a driver manager out of our home town or state. It may have changed but it was allowed when requested.
Cons
If you are stuck needing a load on the weekends and your driver manager didn't work out a load ahead, you'll be hard pressed to get any help from the weekend crew. They are uncaring jerks if you have any problems and it can take hours to days for them to get back to you or act on something. The pay is really poor starting out (after you start on your own for the first 6-8 months). You'll get Short runs, with little pay, u can't afford much home time when it's time your first several months. You have to pay your dues when you are starting out. Regional and set routes are for those who have been their longer and are likable and personable. It's hit and miss with trainers / mentors and Driver managers. Many will complain that the trainer/mentor time is too short, but I disagree somewhat on that. It's not that it is too short, it's that new drivers feel scared and overwhelmed being and having to learn so much more on their own (which is why a good Trainer/ mentor is imperative and a helpful communicative Driver Manager is important). You will come across a lot of idiots and see some disgusting things at times from other drivers. Driving Truck is not as easy or mindless as it sounds to many would be drivers. There is a lot to learn, including laws, rules, weights, math, measures, critical thinking skills, driving, backing, customer service skills, patience, forgiveness, how to drive in different types of weather, some mechanical skills, dealing with stress and sleeping in loud strange places and if you want to team, learning to trust others to drive safely while you sleep and sleeping while moving.
