116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
In demand: Truck & bus drivers
Kirkwood trains people seeking Class B commercial licenses
Metro Pavers employee Michael Georgi poses for a portrait in front of the cement truck he drives at the Metro Pavers plant in Coralville, Iowa on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Savannah Blake/The Gazette)
Metro Pavers employee Michael Georgi prepares his truck to be loaded up with cement for a job at the Metro Pavers plant in Coralville, Iowa on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Savannah Blake/The Gazette)
Commercial drivers are one of the “in-demand” occupations in Iowa, one where employers are seeking more employees that are typically available.
Commercial drivers operate cement mixer trucks, dump trucks and straight trucks during all the seasons, but especially now as construction season ramps up. Holders of Class B commercial driver’s licenses also drive delivery trucks and school buses.
Iowa Workforce Development lists commercial drivers as an "in-demand" occupation, with more than 500 commercial driver openings across the state and at least 95 openings in the Cedar Rapids metro area.
The drivers’ hourly pay ranges from $18 to $28 in Iowa. Job websites like Glass Door report a salary range of $56,000 to $86,000 a year, and Salary.com gives a range of $46,900 to $50,872.
One man’s story
How do you obtain a Class B commercial driver’s license?
One way is through a course at Kirkwood Community College, where instructors walk students through the training and certification process.
Michael Georgi, 46, of Iowa City, completed the Kirkwood training and obtained his Class B license last April. He now works for Metro Pavers, with offices in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids, driving cement mixer trucks and dump trucks.
Georgi told The Gazette he’d had problems with alcohol and drugs in the past and is grateful to have his commercial license and a good job, noting he loves his job and that it’s given him “added incentive not to pick up a drink.”
“I go to AA,” he said. “That's my life. I'm getting better, better, and better. It's a lifelong journey.”
Georgi obtained tuition assistance for the Kirkwood training and has high praise for the program.
"They're not doing it for the money, “ he said. ”They're doing it because they like to see guys learn and earn a living.“
He said Metro Pavers now wants him to obtain his Class A commercial driver’s license so he can drive a semi-trailer truck and haul heavy equipment. The company has two Class A licensed drivers who are retiring after this year and need to fill those openings.
Metro Pavers has used the Kirkwood program for three seasons and has put nine people though the training with funding from a grant, said Tami Shaw, the company’s human resources manager.
"It has worked really well,“ she said. ”We've had very good success. Concrete mixer drivers are the company's most critical need every year.“
Kirkwood training
About four students complete the weeklong Class B training each week at Kirkwood, according to Curt Wheeler, a program developer at Kirkwood.
Kirkwood also offers a 50-hour course for those who have had no experience with or knowledge of commercial vehicles. And it has several refresher courses that helps drivers and students advance their skills.
Commercial vehicles requiring a special Class B driver’s license include straight trucks, dump trucks, school and passenger buses — just about any commercial vehicle short of big rigs like semi-trailer trucks, which require a Class A commercial license.
Federal regulations require that all commercial driver’s license holders be certified in one of four categories that cover the type of driving they do.
The Kirkwood training covers those elements as well as pre-trip information, basic mechanical operation of commercial vehicles — like air brakes and safety features. Trainees will drive a commercial vehicle on Kirkwood's simulator and will practice vehicle backing/driving on the school’s training range, driving on the road and DOT testing.
Training also is available for those wanting to learn how to use a manual stick shift.
The cost of the Class B training course is between $1,800 and $2,400, depending on a student’s experience and current license endorsements. That assumes students already have taken and passed a regular driver’s license test, Wheeler said.
Instructors are third-party Iowa Department of Transportation examiners, who test students after training is completed. To obtain the Class B license, students must pass DOT tests.
Kirkwood previously offered Class A training for semi-trailer truck drivers but dropped that program last year due to declining enrollment and the “significant and ongoing cost of maintaining up-to-date technology and equipment.”
That decision, Wheeler said, caused some to think the college no longer offers any commercial license training. But training continues for Class B commercial licenses, various refresher courses and Class A driver’s license support, he said.
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