Class A Truck Drivers are the type of commercial drivers who drive a large vehicle. They can legally drive and tow heavyweight trucks. They understand how to drive safely assigned vehicles which they use to transport goods from the place of production or origin to the assigned destination given. As a Class A Truck Drivers, you will pick up loads efficiently and safely, organize the goods, handle and unload the goods at the selected destinations. You must inspect your vehicle before and after each trip while you similarly check the weather conditions and road reports before departure.
A valid truck driving license is important to be able to work in the position, not only this but also the ability to travel regularly and drive for long hours with good knowledge of the rules and regulations of driving trucks. A trucking school diploma is a plus. You must also be able to undergo background and drugs checks as stated in the regulations. A trucking school diploma is a plus. You will earn about $58,393 yearly as a Truck Driver Class A.
What is a Truck Driver Class A?
What Does a Truck Driver Class A Do
There are certain skills that many truck drivers class a have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed hand-eye coordination, hearing ability and physical health.
How To Become a Truck Driver Class A
If you're interested in becoming a truck driver class a, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 8.8% of truck drivers class a have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 1.2% of truck drivers class a have master's degrees. Even though some truck drivers class a have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Truck Driver Class A Job Description
Truck Driver Class A Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a truck driver class a can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as technician, progress to a title such as team leader and then eventually end up with the title superintendent.
Average Salary for a Truck Driver Class A
What Am I Worth?
Roles and Types of Truck Driver Class A
The role of a truck driver class a includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general truck driver class a responsibilities:
- Responsible for proper loading, unloading, and securing of wheeled carts weighing up to 200 lbs to prevent movement
- Perform complete pre- and post-operation inspection of the vehicle in accordance with company policy to ensure tire pressure, fluid levels, safety equipment, gauges,
- Centerline is hiring cdl class a drivers for a variety of local opportunities. All types of class a equipment such as flatbed, dry van, reefer, etc full-time
There are several types of truck driver class a, including:
Truck Driver
Role:
Remember when you were a little kid and you would move your arm in a pulling down motion every time you passed a large semi-truck? You know that excitement when the drive actually honked? That's actually one of the responsibilites of being a truck driver.
While we're totally kidding, honking at kids (and let's face it, some adults) does make the long road trips a little more fun. After you take a professional truck driving school and obtain your commercial driver's license, then you'll be able to see the country. Imagine all of the cities and towns you'll get to drive through.
- Average Salary: $60,326
- Degree: High School Diploma
CDL Class A Driver
Role:
If you have ever wondered what CDL stands for in the job title, CDL driver, we are here to clear up any doubt: CDL means commercial driver's license, and drivers in possession of this permit operate large and heavy vehicles such as trucks or tractor-trailers transporting goods and sometimes hazardous material for commercial use.
Working as a CDL driver is not your average 9 to 5 job. If you get hired without having consulted your wife or partner first, you might have a problem. Working as a CDL driver will have you on the road, all around the country, for more than 300 days a year on lengthy routes that will not allow you to return home more than once every three weeks.
This job could be just right for you, if you are not the follow-the-flock kind of guy. Or girl. You can work during day or night, as long as you respect the maximum duration of working hours, which is 70 hours over an eight day period, so it seems doable to the average Joe. And you will be expected to cover 125,000 miles each year, which is around 2500 miles a week, 500 miles every working day. You'd better love that landscape, that's all we are trying to say.
- Average Salary: $52,203
- Degree: High School Diploma
Truck Driver-Over-The-Road
Role:
A Truck Driver-Over-the-Road, more commonly known as an OTR truck driver, travels long routes, transporting goods. OTR drivers operate large vehicles such as heavy-duty trucks and trailers. They plan their routes and load their trucks, handle the documentation of their cargo, and collect payment for their services upon delivery.
Taking on this job will deeply affect every part of your life. This position could not be more different from a 9 to 5 job. It is more of a lifestyle than a job, actually. The further you drive, the more you earn, so if you want to make this project worth your while, you will not be going home very often.
You need no specific education to get hired as an OTR truck driver. A high school diploma will do the trick, and you must be fit to drive a vehicle, obviously. Having clear vision, excellent hearing, good physical health is a must, and of course, the ability to sit for long periods of time, basically all day, every day.
- Average Salary: $69,158
- Degree: High School Diploma
States With The Most Truck Driver Class A Jobs
Mouse over a state to see the number of active truck driver class a jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where truck drivers class a earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Number Of Truck Driver Class A Jobs By State
Top Skills For a Truck Driver Class A
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 38.9% of truck drivers class a listed cdl on their resume, but soft skills such as hand-eye coordination and hearing ability are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Truck Driver Class A Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Truck Driver Class A templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Truck Driver Class A resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Truck Driver Class A diversity
Truck Driver Class A Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among truck drivers class a, 8.3% of them are women, while 91.7% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among truck drivers class a is White, which makes up 58.5% of all truck drivers class a.
- The most common foreign language among truck drivers class a is Spanish at 67.4%.
Online Courses For Truck Driver Class A That You May Like
1. Health Care Delivery in Healthcare Organizations
Have you ever needed health care and thought that there must be better ways to get or deliver health care? For example, have you found yourself thinking that there should be a way to get a diagnostic test or treatment at home? Or do you work in a healthcare organization and find yourself thinking that there must be better ways to deliver health care? If you have, this course is for you. Course content includes an overview of health care delivery including healthcare consumerism, the patient's...
2. Setting the Stage for Success: An Eye on Safety Culture and Teamwork (Patient Safety II)
Safety culture is a facet of organizational culture that captures attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and values about safety. A culture of safety is essential in high reliability organizations and is a critical mechanism for the delivery of safe and high-quality care. It requires a strong commitment from leadership and staff. In this course, a safe culture is promoted through the use of identifying and reporting patient safety hazards, accountability and transparency, involvement with patients...
3. Truck Dispatcher Training (STEP BY STEP, work independently)
FULL COURSE- How to Become a Truck Dispatcher, how to book loads for semi-trucks and start your own Dispatch Company...
Best States For a Truck Driver Class A
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a truck driver class a. The best states for people in this position are North Dakota, Wyoming, Connecticut, and New York. Truck drivers class a make the most in North Dakota with an average salary of $76,218. Whereas in Wyoming and Connecticut, they would average $70,618 and $69,692, respectively. While truck drivers class a would only make an average of $68,598 in New York, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. North Dakota
$76,218
Avg. Salary
2. Wyoming
$70,618
Avg. Salary
3. Oklahoma
$65,072
Avg. Salary
How Do Truck Drivers Class A Rate Their Jobs?
Top Truck Driver Class A Employers
Most Common Employers For Truck Driver Class A
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Covenant | $71,709 | $34.48 | 145 |
| 2 | Schneider National | $71,569 | $34.41 | 476 |
| 3 | Werner Enterprises | $71,080 | $34.17 | 617 |
| 4 | Penske Logistics | $67,756 | $32.58 | 293 |
| 5 | Ryder System | $67,582 | $32.49 | 1,081 |
| 6 | Penske Truck Leasing | $65,792 | $31.63 | 423 |
| 7 | J.B. Hunt Transport Services | $65,174 | $31.33 | 465 |
| 8 | Prime | $61,862 | $29.74 | 247 |
| 9 | Knight Transportation | $59,164 | $28.44 | 1,060 |
| 10 | Centerline Solutions | $57,603 | $27.69 | 199 |
Truck Driver Class A Videos
Becoming a Truck Driver Class A FAQs
How Long Does It Take To Become A Truck Driver Class A?
It takes 5 years of professional experience to become a truck driver class a. That is the time it takes to learn specific truck driver class a skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education.
How Long Does It Take To Become A Class A Driver?
While the length of time to become a Class A truck driver varies from state to state; it averages about seven weeks. Typically training courses last seven to twelve weeks of full-time training. However, some can even be up to 18 to 24 weeks.
How Much Do Class A Truck Drivers Make?
Class A truck drivers make around $64,333 a year. There is a good deal of variability; however, a Class A truck driver's earnings vary, starting as low as $34,000 to as high as $100,000 a year.
How Much Does It Cost To Get A Class A Cdl?
It costs between $3,000 to $5,000 to get a Class A CDL license. Each state, however, has its own set of requirements and fees for obtaining a Class A CDL.
General Fees include:
Knowledge Test - costs between $5 and $20 and includes the issuance of a Commercial Learner's Permit
Road Skills Test - costs $30 and $60
Standard CDL License - costs between $75 and $100
Endorsements - costs between $5 and $10 for each endorsement
Other costs can include application fees, drug screenings, fingerprint and background checks for HAZMAT Endorsements (typically $100), and re-test fees.
Is A Class A Cdl Worth Getting?
Yes, a Class A CDL license is worth getting. It's a great time, more than ever before, to get into a Class A CDL truck driving career, with so many jobs available.
Holding a Class A CDL license gives you great job security. There's also a good deal of flexibility in the type of trucking job you can take. Some truckers are away for weeks at a time, while other truck drivers are home every night and weekend.
Is Driving A Class A Truck Hard?
Yea, Class A truck driving is hard. While becoming a Class A driver is not difficult, working as a Class A driver can be. Many Class A drivers must work long hours, spend lots of time away from home, and remain seated for most of their workday.
What Is A Class A Truck Driver?
A Class A truck driver license allows you to operate equipment of all sizes and weights. You must have this if you are deciding to drive a semi-truck or a combination of truck and trailer. Class A also allows you to drive flatbeds, livestock, and tank vehicles.
What Is The Difference Between Cdl Class A And B?
The difference between CDL Class A and B has to do with what size of the truck is covered on the CDL license type (A, B, C).
A Class A license takes seven weeks to complete and includes 168 classroom hours.