Updated September 19, 2026. This page is refreshed monthly.
This page is published by 1 on 1 Truck Academy, a BPPE-approved, FMCSA-registered commercial driver training school in West Sacramento, California, and forms part of the school's career placement assistance. It is free and open to anyone — you do not have to be a student here. It begins with how a driver reaches the training-hour level the larger carriers ask for, and then lists where the work actually is: carriers, Sacramento-area employers, public agencies, and job boards, with phone numbers for the employers and agencies worth calling. No recruiters, no fees, no sign-up.
Reaching a 160-hour carrier requirement
Some trucking companies will not hire a newly licensed driver unless they graduated from a CDL school of at least 160 hours. It is a hiring standard the carrier sets, not a federal rule — the next section documents exactly where it comes from. This is how a driver meets it.
1 on 1 Truck Academy's Class A program is approved by the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education at 120 clock hours: 60 hours of ELDT theory and permit preparation, 50 hours of range and yard skills, and 10 hours of public road driving. That is 60 behind-the-wheel hours against a California minimum of 15, of which at least 10 must be on a public road.
A driver who needs more documented hours for a carrier that has set a 160-hour floor can add the school's skills refresher — 50 clock hours of range training covering pre-trip inspection, the air brake check, and the four California basic control skills exercises. The charge is $2,500.00, listed with all other charges on the fees and payment page.
120 program hours plus 50 refresher hours is 170 documented training hours, above the 160 that carriers such as JBS Carriers publish as their minimum.
The 50-hour skills refresher is provided at no charge to a graduate of 1 on 1 Truck Academy who has a job lined up with a carrier, where the training is requested within 30 days of graduation.
This is a promotional offer. It is limited, offered for a limited time, and subject to availability, conditions, and change at any time without notice. The charges that apply to any individual are those stated in that person's signed enrollment agreement.
Refresher training is supplemental instruction delivered within the institution's approved Class A and Class B programs. It is not a separate educational program and does not lead to an initial Commercial Driver License, and it is available only to a driver who already holds a valid CDL. It does not include ELDT theory and does not result in an Entry-Level Driver Training certification, because a driver who already holds a CDL has already satisfied that requirement. Hours are agreed in advance and documented in the driver's training record, and charges are stated in the enrollment agreement.
Call (916) 380-1218 or email office@1on1truckacademy.com to arrange it.
Manual or automatic: what the transmission restriction actually costs you
The vehicle you take the DMV skills examination in decides what is printed on your licence. Test in a vehicle with an automatic transmission and you receive the E restriction — you may operate only automatic commercial vehicles. Test in a manual and there is no transmission restriction, so you may drive either. The restriction stays until you retest in an unrestricted vehicle.
Be clear about the arithmetic: an unrestricted CDL qualifies for every job an E-restricted CDL qualifies for, plus the manual-only ones. Manual is always the larger set of jobs. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something.
What is not true is that a new driver must hold a manual CDL to get hired. That advice is widespread among recruiters and job coaches, and for the carriers that hire the most new graduates it is simply out of date:
- Schneider began ordering all new tractors with automated transmissions in 2015, said it expected to complete the conversion across its entire fleet by 2019, and stated that new drivers trained only on automated transmissions can be guaranteed a tractor equipped with one.
- FedEx Freight postings in California state that the automatic transmission CDL restriction is allowed.
- Swift, Werner, C.R. England, CRST, Western Express and May Trucking have moved to automated transmissions across most or all of their fleets.
- About 90 percent of new Class 8 trucks now leave the factory with an automated manual transmission. Volvo reports roughly 93 percent of the transmissions it manufactures; Daimler reports about 90 percent on the Freightliner Cascadia. In 2005, more than 95 percent of trucks were manual.
Where a manual licence still earns its keep. The postings that specifically exclude the E restriction cluster in one part of the industry: dump and tri-axle work, excavating and paving, roll-off refuse collection, heavy equipment hauling, some flatbed lease-purchase operations, agriculture, and older small fleets. Those are largely vocational jobs that ask for prior experience anyway — real work, often good money, but usually not a first seat.
One caution on the numbers you will see quoted. There is no published FMCSA or state figure for how many CDL holders carry the E restriction, and the percentages circulating on school websites — 40 percent of jobs, 85 percent of jobs — cite nothing. Make the decision on the equipment data and the named carrier policies above, which are documented, and disregard the percentages.
CDL training hours: what carriers actually require
This is the single most common question a new Class A CDL holder asks, and the answer is not what most people are told. Here is what the rules say and what employers say, which are two different things.
There is no federal minimum number of training hours. Under the FMCSA Entry-Level Driver Training rule (49 CFR Part 380), training is proficiency-based, not clock-based. FMCSA's own published guidance answers the question directly: the ELDT regulations do not require a minimum number of hours for the completion of behind-the-wheel training. A trainee must score at least 80 percent on the theory assessment, and the registered training provider must certify that the driver demonstrated proficiency in every element of the behind-the-wheel curriculum. FMCSA also allows states to set stricter standards than the federal rule. California sets a minimum of 15 behind-the-wheel hours.
Individual carriers set their own school-hour minimums, and 160 hours is the number that comes up most. This is a hiring standard written by the trucking company, not a federal rule and not a published insurance regulation. JBS Carriers, for example, states on its own driver page that it requires all new drivers to complete a minimum of 160 hours from a company-approved CDL school, and that an applicant with less than 12 full months of comparable experience must have completed those hours within the last 12 months. Other carriers set no hour requirement at all and qualify drivers on road test and proficiency. The only way to know is to ask.
The closest thing to an industry standard is 148 hours, not 160. The Professional Truck Driver Institute, a nonprofit certifying body, states that its standards were developed by bringing together schools, carriers, insurance providers and safety groups, and that they reflect the consensus of the motor carrier and insurance industries, drivers, and educators. PTDI course certification requires a minimum of 148 hours of combined instruction, 44 hours of hands-on-the-wheel driving instruction, and a minimum 80 percent pass rate on classroom and driving assessments. PTDI requires minimum training hours even though the federal government does not.
Where 1 on 1 Truck Academy sits against those standards
Hours are only one element any of these standards measure. On the elements that decide whether a driver is actually ready, this school trains above the published minimum.
| Element | Published minimum | 1 on 1 Truck Academy |
|---|---|---|
| Theory examination passing score | 80 percent — 49 CFR § 380.715(a) | 90 percent |
| Behind-the-wheel hours, Class A | 15 hours, at least 10 on a public road — California Vehicle Code § 15250.1(b) | 60 hours — four times the state minimum |
| Instructor commercial driving experience | 2 years operating a commercial motor vehicle of the class instructed — 49 CFR § 380.605 | 20 years minimum — ten times the federal floor |
| Total documented training hours | 160 hours, where a carrier sets one | 170 hours with the skills refresher |
The school also trains and certifies to proficiency at seven separately documented gates — theory and pre-trip inspection as one two-part gate, each of the four California basic control skills exercises evaluated individually, public road driving, and a Final Practical Evaluation administered by the Chief Academic Officer rather than the instructor who trained the student. A graduation record review follows the evaluations. A gate that is not passed does not open. Federal law requires proficiency to be documented; it does not require it to be evaluated this way. Every gate and the regulation behind it is set out on the school's training and compliance page.
- 120 clock hours — Class A program, approved by the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education. 60 of those hours behind the wheel, against a state minimum of 15.
- 50 clock hours — skills refresher: pre-trip inspection, air brake check, and the four California basic control skills exercises. $2,500.00.
- 170 documented training hours — above the 160-hour floor carriers such as JBS Carriers publish as their minimum.
- Free for our graduates — the 50-hour skills refresher at no charge to a graduate of 1 on 1 Truck Academy who has a job lined up with a carrier, requested within 30 days of graduation.
- Manual or automatic — the track is chosen with your instructor before skills training begins. The vehicle you take the DMV examination in is what sets the restriction on your licence, so the decision is made up front, not at the test.
(916) 380-1218 · office@1on1truckacademy.com · 3602 West Capitol Avenue, West Sacramento · Enroll now
The refresher offer is promotional. It is limited, offered for a limited time, and subject to availability, conditions, and change at any time without notice. The charges that apply to any individual are those stated in that person's signed enrollment agreement. 1 on 1 Truck Academy does not guarantee employment, job placement, or starting wages.
Start here: what a brand-new CDL actually opens up
The rest of this page is the job-search half: a free, open list of places to look for work once you hold a Class A or Class B CDL.
Two different markets hire CDL holders, and they have different doors.
- Over-the-road and regional carriers hire drivers straight out of school. Several run a paid finishing or training period with a mentor before you go solo. This is where most new CDL holders get their first seat.
- Local routes, public agencies, and union work usually ask for 1 to 2 years of verifiable commercial driving first. These jobs pay well and come with benefits and a pension, but they are typically a year-two move, not a first job.
A realistic plan: take an OTR or regional seat, build 6 to 12 months of clean, verifiable experience, then apply local and public. Keep your record clean — that record is what you are selling in year two.
Before you dial: make sure you are calling the carrier
Search for almost any carrier's name plus "driver jobs" and the first several results will be lead-generation sites — pages built to look like the carrier but run by advertising companies. They collect your name and number and sell it, and you end up fielding calls from a dozen companies you never contacted. A carrier often has four or five different numbers floating around the internet for this reason.
Every number in the table below was taken off the carrier's own website. If you find a different number somewhere else, check that the web address is the company's real domain before you give out your information.
National carriers that hire new CDL-A graduates
| Carrier | Freight | Recruiting | What their site states |
|---|---|---|---|
| Werner Enterprises | Dry van, dedicated, regional, OTR, teams | 888-577-4378 | Minimum requirements include being 21, holding a current Class A CDL, and being a recent graduate of a truck driving school or having verifiable tractor-trailer experience. Tuition reimbursement is offered to those who qualify. |
| Swift Transportation | Dry van, dedicated, regional, OTR | 888-871-3537 | Runs an entry-level track for recent graduates, including an over-the-road training period. Offers tuition reimbursement to licensed drivers who completed CDL training at another school, and asks that you call this number for the details. |
| TMC Transportation | Flatbed and open deck | 833-346-0455 or 800-247-2460 | States it hires recent CDL graduates and drivers with no Class A experience, and trains them on driving and load securement. Training classes start every Monday. |
| Schneider | Van, intermodal, dedicated, regional, tanker | 800-447-7433 (800-44-PRIDE) | Publishes this recruiting hotline for driver candidates, along with a live chat and a text-to-chat option, and runs recruiting events at schools throughout the year. |
Other national carriers that run new-driver or student programs. We have not verified their current requirements or numbers this month, so go to the carrier's own driver careers page before you apply: C.R. England, Prime Inc., Roehl Transport, Maverick Transportation, Melton Truck Lines, KLLM Transport, CRST, Stevens Transport, PAM Transport, Knight Transportation, Western Express, U.S. Xpress.
Sacramento-area local and regional employers
These have posted openings in the Sacramento region that accept recent CDL school graduates. Openings move fast — call or check the company's careers page for what is live today.
- Sysco Sacramento — 7062 Pacific Avenue, Pleasant Grove. Local CDL-A delivery driver, home daily. Postings have stated that recent driving school graduates are welcome. (916) 569-7000
- Linde (Sacramento) — local CDL A and CDL B delivery driver. Postings have accepted recent certification from a truck driving school in place of two years of driving experience.
- Amazon Freight Partner carriers — dedicated Class A local and regional routes run out of the Sacramento area by independent carriers. Requirements are set by each carrier, not by Amazon.
- Small and mid-size Sacramento carriers — dozens post "recent grads accepted" or "will train" every week. The live searches further down are the fastest way to find them.
Government and public agency jobs
Steady schedules, benefits, and retirement. Most of these classifications require one to two years of commercial driving experience, so treat this section as your year-two target and start watching the postings now. The phone numbers reach the offices that handle applications and exams, not a recruiter.
| Where | Phone | What to ask about |
|---|---|---|
| CalCareers (State of California) calcareers.ca.gov | 866-844-8671 | Help with your CalCareer account, applications, and finding the right exam. State jobs run through an exam and an eligibility list — get on the list early. |
| Sacramento County Employment Services Sacramento County jobs | (916) 874-5593 Job line: (916) 874-5627 | Collection Equipment Operator I and II, Transfer Equipment Operator I, Landfill Equipment Operator, Sanitation Worker. The job line is a recorded message available 24 hours. |
| City of Sacramento Employment Services 915 I Street | (916) 808-5726 | Integrated Waste Equipment Operator and other CDL classifications. Postings have required a Class A or B with air brake endorsement and one year operating a CDL vehicle, or equivalent military experience. |
| U.S. Postal Service usps.com/careers | 877-477-3273 | Tractor Trailer Operator (Class A) and Motor Vehicle Operator (Class B). Apply through the careers site; this number is the HR Shared Service Center for personnel questions. |
| USAJOBS usajobs.gov | Online only | Every federal opening in one place. Search "motor vehicle operator" and "tractor trailer operator." |
What USPS asks for: Tractor Trailer Operator requires a Class A CDL; Motor Vehicle Operator requires a Class B. USPS states applicants need a safe driving record, at least two years of unsupervised experience driving passenger cars or larger vehicles, and one year of full-time unsupervised experience driving a 7-ton or larger truck, tractor-trailer, or a 16-passenger or larger bus. These positions carry an exam requirement.
The Caltrans ladder, which confuses a lot of new drivers:
- Caltrans Highway Maintenance Worker — the entry class. Requires a valid Class C license and one year of general laboring work in construction or maintenance. No CDL required to get in.
- Caltrans Equipment Operator I — requires an unrestricted Class B license with the tank vehicle (N) endorsement, plus qualifying experience.
- Caltrans Equipment Operator II — requires a Class A commercial license with the tank vehicle (N) endorsement, plus qualifying experience.
School bus and transit operator roles are a separate track again. They require a Class B with passenger (P) and school bus (S) endorsements and a state certificate, and most districts train and pay for that themselves.
Job boards and live searches
Bookmark these. They update daily and are already filtered for new drivers in the Sacramento region.
- Indeed — new grad CDL, Sacramento
- Indeed — CDL no experience, Sacramento
- Indeed — recent CDL graduate, nationwide
- ZipRecruiter — entry level CDL truck driver, Sacramento
- ZipRecruiter — local CDL-A truck driver, Sacramento
- Glassdoor — CDL Class A driver, Sacramento
- TruckersReport — jobs for new truckers
- CalJOBS — the State of California's free job search system, run by the Employment Development Department. It carries public-sector postings the big boards miss. Help line: 866-333-4606
Search terms that pull the most results. For entry-level work: entry level CDL A driver Sacramento, recent CDL graduate Sacramento, CDL A no experience West Sacramento, student driver, will train, CDL A trainee, CDL apprenticeship Sacramento. For local and home-daily work: Class B driver home daily Sacramento, local delivery driver CDL Sacramento, building materials CDL driver Sacramento, regional CDL A driver Northern California. For construction and vocational work, search the equipment by name: bottom dump driver Sacramento, water truck driver Sacramento, ready mix driver Sacramento, roll off driver Sacramento. Those four bring up jobs the generic searches miss entirely.
Also worth checking: LinkedIn Jobs, CDLjobs.com, company career pages directly, and the local America's Job Center of California portals.
Free help finding work
- Sacramento Works Job Centers — Sacramento Works job-seeker services — free career counseling, job placement assistance, and computer access at centers across Sacramento County, run by the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency. They also run a Public Sector Pathways service specifically for people targeting government jobs. Call (916) 263-3800 for the center nearest you.
- America's Job Center of California — to find any job center in the country, call 1-877-US2-JOBS (1-877-872-5627).
- If you came through the Department of Rehabilitation or a WIOA program, tell your counselor you have your CDL in hand. Placement support is part of what they do, and many have direct employer contacts.
Northern California employer directory
These employers are worth targeting even when no exact opening shows in the searches above. Search the employer's official careers page, and call recruiting where a number is listed. This directory is compiled by 1 on 1 Truck Academy from employer sites and public listings; confirm the number and the current requirement with the employer before you rely on it. Graduates can also ask about the school's employer relationships and referrals.
| Employer | Area and work type | Recruiting / application |
|---|---|---|
| Devine Intermodal | West Sacramento — local and regional intermodal, full truckload | (916) 371-4430 devineintermodal.com/employment/drivers |
| IMC Logistics | Sacramento — local drayage and intermodal, home daily | imclogistics.com/careers |
| J.B. Hunt | Sacramento region — local, dedicated, final mile, regional, apprenticeship | 1-877-776-5188 jbhunt.com/careers |
| Teichert | Sacramento region — dump, transfer, water truck, ready-mix, fleet roles | (916) 484-3011 teichert.com/careers |
| Mike Lowrie Trucking | Dixon — flatbed, agriculture, aggregate | (707) 678-7575 |
| Button Transportation | Dixon — liquid and dry bulk, agriculture, fertilizer tanker | (707) 678-7438 |
| DeSilva Gates Construction | Northern California — dump, paving, aggregate hauling | (925) 829-9220 desilvagates.com/careers |
| KAG West / KAG Energy | West Sacramento region — fuel, chemical and food-grade tanker | Text APPLY to (805) 301-1212 |
| 1-800-PACK-RAT | West Sacramento — portable storage container delivery | (800) 722-5728 |
| Sysco Sacramento | Pleasant Grove — foodservice local delivery, home daily | (916) 569-7000 sysco.com/careers |
| Material Transport | Sacramento — flatbed and rail/truck transload | Apply online |
| WM | Sacramento region — residential, commercial and roll-off waste collection | wm.com/careers |
| Atlas Disposal | Sacramento — roll-off and commercial collection | Apply online |
| UNFI | West Sacramento — grocery and retail distribution, local and regional | jobs.unfi.com |
| Penske Truck Leasing | Sacramento region — dedicated account driving | penskedrivingjobs.com |
| Linde Gas & Equipment | Sacramento — industrial and medical gas delivery, tanker and hazmat | linde.com/careers |
| Airgas | Sacramento region — industrial gas and hazmat delivery | jobs.airgas.com |
| Oak Harbor Freight Lines | Sacramento — LTL regional freight | oakh.com/careers |
| R+L Carriers | West Sacramento — LTL and team | gojobs.rlcarriers.com |
| Ryder | Sacramento, West Sacramento, Rancho Cordova — local and regional | ryder.com/careers |
| Reyes Beverage Group / Reyes Coca-Cola | Sacramento — beverage delivery, home daily | reyesbeverage.com/careers · reyescoke.com |
| Ace Hardware | Rocklin — private fleet delivery | acehardware.com/careers |
| United Rentals | Rocklin — equipment delivery, local | unitedrentals.com/careers |
| SRS Building Products | Rancho Cordova — building materials, local | srsdistribution.com/careers |
| Meeks Lumber Company | Elk Grove — building materials, local | meekslumber.com |
| Pacific Coast Supply | North Highlands — building products. Postings reference manual transmission work, so confirm whether an automatic restriction is accepted. | pacificcoastsupply.com |
| Central Valley Builders Supply | Woodland — building materials, local | cvbuilderssupply.com |
| Pallets Unlimited | Lincoln — manufacturing logistics. Postings state experienced driver. | Apply online or call directly |
National carriers beyond the four listed earlier: Prime Inc. — reefer, flatbed, tanker and intermodal, 1-877-774-6356. Roehl Transport — dry van, flatbed and refrigerated, (715) 591-7050. May Trucking — western dry freight and 48-state refrigerated, (844) 251-4780. Covenant Transport — OTR, team and expedited, 1-888-763-5352. Western Express — dry van and flatbed with structured new-driver training, drivewx.com. Melton Truck Lines — OTR flatbed, apply online.
Which jobs to apply to first
Work the list in this order. It puts your applications where a new CDL holder actually gets hired, instead of spending week one on jobs that will screen you out on experience.
| Priority | Best fit | What to verify before applying |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Current local and home-daily openings | Experience requirement, whether there is physical unloading, the shift, and whether an automatic restriction is accepted |
| 2 | Employers known to consider recent graduates | Training period, trainer pay, tuition reimbursement, home time |
| 3 | Regional and dedicated fleets | Days out, service area, no-touch versus driver unload, guaranteed pay |
| 4 | Over-the-road training carriers | Trainer period, pay while training, contract terms, home-time policy |
What the published wage data shows
This is career-planning context, not a promise or a projection of what any individual will earn. Actual pay depends on the employer, the account, route type, experience, endorsements, location, and market conditions at the time of hire.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, the median annual wage for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers was $58,640 in May 2025 — above the $50,980 median for all occupations. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $40,140 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $79,380. The BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey put the annual mean at $59,710 for the same period.
Median pay by the industries employing the most drivers: truck transportation $60,320, wholesale trade $58,550, manufacturing $56,570, construction $56,080. BLS projects employment in the occupation to grow about 4 percent between 2025 and 2035.
New CDL holders typically start nearer the lower end of that range while building a safety record, route seniority and employer-specific experience. Pay rises along a few well-worn paths:
- Route type. Local and home-daily routes offer steadier schedules; regional and over-the-road routes often pay more per mile or per week in exchange for time away.
- Endorsements. Hazmat, Tanker, and Doubles/Triples — all covered in 1 on 1 Truck Academy training — open higher-paying and more specialized freight.
- Experience and tenure. Many carriers raise per-mile or hourly rates on a set schedule as a driver's safety record and tenure grow.
- Dedicated and team accounts. Dedicated retail and grocery accounts and team positions are advertised at the higher end, but usually require minimum experience, a clean MVR, and for teams, a qualified co-driver.
Figures above are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and describe the occupation nationally, not a guarantee for any specific driver, employer, or route. 1 on 1 Truck Academy does not set, control, or guarantee any employer's pay.
Questions to ask every recruiter
- Does this exact account accept a newly licensed CDL graduate with no solo tractor-trailer experience?
- Is there a paid training or finishing program? How long is it, and what is the pay during it?
- Will I sign an employment contract, a repayment agreement, or a training commitment?
- What is the actual starting pay — hourly, per mile, component pay, percentage, or a weekly guarantee?
- What is the expected weekly gross for a new driver on this account?
- How often will I be home, and is home time written into the offer?
- Is the freight no-touch, driver unload, hand truck, pallet jack, liftgate, flatbed securement, tanker, or construction equipment?
- What endorsements are required, and is an automatic transmission restriction accepted?
- Where is orientation, and are travel, hotel, meals and drug testing paid?
- What background, MVR, Clearinghouse and employment-history standards apply?
- Is there tuition reimbursement? When does it begin and how is it paid?
- May I have your name, direct telephone number, email address, and the job requisition number?
Interview and road-test preparation
Be ready to explain your training clearly and honestly. A new graduate should lead with safety, teachability, attendance and professionalism, and a willingness to start on the employer's training path.
A strong answer to "how much experience do you have?"
"I am a newly licensed CDL graduate. I completed structured CDL training that included inspection, air brakes, backing maneuvers, coupling and uncoupling, range skills, and public road driving. I am not claiming prior solo commercial experience. I am looking for an employer with a safe new-driver onboarding or finishing program, and I am ready to learn the company's procedures."
Road-test checklist. A carrier road test follows the same ground as the DMV examination — see the school's pages on the California pre-trip inspection, the skills test and the driving test.
- Bring your CDL, medical certificate, and any requested documents.
- Use three points of contact and wear proper footwear.
- Perform a complete walk-around and identify hazards before moving.
- Set mirrors, seat, belt and controls before starting.
- GOAL — Get Out And Look — whenever you are uncertain during backing.
- Signal early, control your speed, protect your following distance, and scan intersections.
- Do not argue with the evaluator. Ask for clarification before beginning a maneuver.
Your first 30 days
A new CDL holder should not wait for the perfect opening. The approach that works is controlled, high-volume applications with accurate follow-up. Record the recruiter's name, the date, the phone number, the next step and the follow-up date for every contact.
| Period | Minimum action | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Days 1–3 | Resume finished; CDL, medical certificate, MVR and endorsement list in hand; apply to 10 local or regional jobs | 10 complete applications |
| Days 4–7 | Call or email every employer to confirm the application was received; apply to 5 more | 15 applications, 5 follow-ups |
| Week 2 | Add foodservice, beverage, building supply, waste, construction and staffing companies | 25 applications |
| Week 3 | Expand to regional, dedicated and over-the-road training carriers | 35 applications |
| Week 4 | Second follow-up; interview practice; review restrictions and endorsements | Interviews, road tests or conditional offers |
A graduate who has submitted one or two applications has not run a serious job search. Hiring is affected by location, insurance, driving history, background, Clearinghouse status, age, endorsements, restrictions, schedule and freight demand — apply widely enough that one "no" does not stop you.
The FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse
The Clearinghouse is the federal database of drug and alcohol program violations for CDL holders. It affects both your licence and your hiring, and most new drivers only learn how it works when it stops them.
Register before you start applying. Registration is free and takes minutes at the FMCSA Clearinghouse site. Employers cannot run the query they are required to run until you have an account and have given consent, so an application sits still while you set one up.
A clean test does not appear on your record, and there is nothing for the clinic to report. The Clearinghouse holds violations, not clean results. Medical review officers report verified positive results and refusals to test; the only negative result ever recorded there is a negative return-to-duty test. The clinic that collected your specimen cannot add a passing result to your Clearinghouse record, and a test taken outside the DOT programme may not be reported to the Clearinghouse at all. An empty record is the correct outcome. What matters is that you register, pull your own record, and confirm it is empty. If something is on it that you do not recognise, only the employer or medical review officer who reported it can correct it — contact them directly, and use the driver petition process under 49 CFR § 382.717 if the information is inaccurate.
Prohibited status blocks the licence, not just the job. Since November 18, 2024, state driver licensing agencies must query the Clearinghouse before issuing, renewing or upgrading a commercial learner's permit or commercial driver license. An applicant in prohibited status cannot be issued the credential, and a driver already holding one has commercial driving privileges removed within 60 days of notification. This applies regardless of how much training has been completed. Prohibited status stays in place until the return-to-duty process under 49 CFR Part 40, Subpart O is completed and a negative return-to-duty test result is reported.
The employer's test is separate, and nothing substitutes for it. Before an employer may allow a driver to perform safety-sensitive functions, that employer must query the Clearinghouse and must receive a negative pre-employment controlled substances test result under 49 CFR § 382.301. That test is arranged by the employer. A test you paid for yourself, a test a school arranged, or a test from a previous employer does not satisfy it. Expect to test again at orientation, and do not let a recruiter tell you otherwise.
Check your own status before you spend money on training. It is free, it takes a few minutes, and it is far better to find a problem before enrolment than after the DMV refuses to issue your licence.
Have this ready before you call
- Class A or Class B CDL, and a current DOT medical examiner's certificate.
- Your entry-level driver training record. Your training provider submits it to the FMCSA Training Provider Registry, and carriers verify it there.
- Ten years of employment history with dates, addresses, and phone numbers. Carriers are required to verify the last three years.
- A current DMV driving record printout (H6). Pull it yourself first so you know what a carrier will see.
- FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse registration, and consent ready to give when asked.
- Age 21 for interstate work. Under 21 you are limited to intrastate driving in California.
- Endorsements widen your options fast. Tanker (N), Hazmat (H), and Doubles/Triples (T) each open job categories that are closed without them.
1 on 1 Truck Academy publishes this list as a free public resource. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by, or compensated by any employer, carrier, agency, or job board listed on this page, and no employer pays to appear here. We do not guarantee employment, job placement, or starting wages upon completion of the training program. Employment opportunities depend on many factors including the driver's qualifications, driving record, background screening, and employer hiring requirements, and hiring decisions are made by individual employers. Phone numbers, hiring requirements, pay, and openings change frequently — confirm all details directly with the employer or agency before applying. Page last reviewed September 19, 2026.