Why You Should Hire Veterans for Your CDL Driving Jobs

Military veterans are motivated, disciplined, and proven team players

Veterans can often have a hard time transitioning back into civilian life once they complete active duty. In fact, an estimated 70% of veterans will go at least one month without a paycheck during their transitory period.

Why? For many the path to civilian employment is not so clear after years of service. Many veterans struggle to translate their military experience to civilian skills and careers. Further, companies are challenged to effectively tap into this pool of talent due to the resources and knowledge required. Geographic dispersion and strict transitory timelines enhance these challenges.

We need to bridge the gap and support veterans in finding jobs in transportation

Many of the skills veterans hone in the military can be directly applied to the trucking industry. In fact, veterans are excellent candidates for CDL driving positions, as well as other positions in logistics careers.

“Veterans bring a skillset that is embedded during boot camp and ongoing training throughout their career. The military instills the best qualities that make a great truck driver,” says Giovanni Colosi, former U.S. Marine and Vice President of Driver Careers at TransForce. “Veterans display leadership, dependability, self-discipline, attention to detail, critical thinking, mental stamina and teamwork. These qualities are what help keep them safe and reliable on the road, which is important for any carrier.”

In an industry that faces labor shortages on an ongoing basis, finding reliable, skilled talent pools is invaluable. Military veterans represent the perfect opportunity to grow your fleet, diversify your workforce and enhance your leadership team. Perhaps that is why private fleets alone have increased their talent sourcing from the military 2x between 2021 and 2022 alone.

TransForce trains veterans to become CDL drivers

A key part of TransForce's mission is to eradicate unemployment for U.S. Military Veterans. We aim to achieve this through our in-depth CDL training programs with our ever-growing partner trucking companies.

Through our Troops Into Transportation program, we've supported over 10,000 veterans transition to civilian life and find jobs as CDL drivers. Our campuses are located on military bases nationwide, which allow us to effectively find and train talent on a weekly basis.  

Our program is a Department of Labor approved Apprenticeship Program and is a Department of Defense recognized National Skillbridge Program. For our students, we provide comprehensive hands-on training and several highly successful certification programs to secure their Commercial Driver’s License. As a job first program, we ensure each graduate has an employment contract before they exit The CDL School.  

How can your organization find and hire military talent?

While there are challenges to finding and recruiting military talent - none of these obstacles are insurmountable. There are plenty of public and private resources available to organizations today to help them find and hire military talent. And as for retention? According to our own data at TransForce, employing veterans for over a decade, we see retention rates up to 80% higher than peers from other communities.

A complete guide to finding and hiring military talent, developed by Hiring Our Heroes and TransForce, will help your business navigate the unknowns.

Hire an American Hero Today

With over 2,500 military veterans graduating from our schools each year, and as a U.S. Military Approved Apprenticeship Partner - TransForce is your #1 source for Military Veterans in CDL careers. Contact our team today to learn more about this opportunity and place a Veteran behind the wheel for your business.