Working as a dispatcher: getting real work ethically and safely

In this lesson

• There are four realistic ways to get paid to dispatch. In-house at a carrier, as an employee of a dispatch company, as a freelance dispatcher for owner-operators, or through an agency or staffing firm. They differ in who pays you, what the law calls you and how fast you learn.
• Small fleets hire by referral, a phone call and a trial, not by a formal process. Your resume, a portfolio of practice sheets from this course and a calm phone manner replace the experience you do not have.
• Pay comes as salary, hourly, commission, a percentage of linehaul, or a mix. Each one changes your risk. Run the math before you compare offers, and never plan on the best case.
• Nobody legitimate charges you to be hired. Fees for a "dispatcher license", training you must buy from the employer, equipment you must purchase, or a check you must deposit and partly send back are all scams.
• Your certificate is a certificate of completion from Truck Dispatching USA, a private training provider. It is not a government license, not accredited by a degree-granting body, and it guarantees no job or income. Describe it in those words everywhere.
• Get every arrangement in writing, understand the difference between an employee and a contractor at a high level, and have an attorney or tax professional review anything you sign. This course is education, not legal, tax or financial advice.