Wadhams Enterprises would love to hire nearly 40 more people to drive their freight-hauling trucks. However, there aren’t nearly that many people with commercial driver’s licenses lining up to fill those positions.
FLT
So, the family-owned company on Bostwick Road has taken the bull by the gear shift and started two schools to generate a pool of drivers.
The first 3- to 4-week training session was set up in Rensselaer, across the river from Albany. That was opened in August 2016. The second school was established in Geneva a year ago at the former Howard’s Express terminal in the Geneva Industrial Park on Forge Avenue.
To date, the two schools have graduated about 90 people, each one passing the state Department of Motor Vehicles road test and earning a CDL. Wadhams puts an applicant for the school on its payroll immediately and covers the training. Once he or she gets a CDL, they are guaranteed a job with one of the four Wadhams truck divisions, opening the door to a new career.
Company President Steve Wadhams said the pay range is $45,000 to $90,000 annually, plus benefits.
One of the people Mike Ferguson is now training at the Geneva facility is Michael Cecere.
Cecere worked in the restaurant business but lost his job. The 36-year-old is the sole provider for his wife and their six children. He will take his DMV road test Friday. If he passes, he’s eligible for a CDL — and a job hauling milk for Earl T. Wadhams Inc.
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