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Western Express
VerifiedYes. Western Express hires people with criminal records.
This employer states that a criminal record does not rule you out on its own. What we confirmed, and what we could not, is set out below.
Nashville-based over-the-road trucking carrier with several thousand trucks, known among drivers for hiring applicants with criminal records and new CDL graduates.
How to apply
Apply through the Western Express driver application page; recruiters review driving, work, and criminal history case by case.
Which roles are closed to you
A company willing to hire you can still be forbidden by law to put you in a particular job. None of these are Western Express's decision, and none of them are a reason not to apply for the work that is open.
Delivery or truck driver (CDL) Restricted A DUI or a drug conviction involving a vehicle can disqualify you from driving commercially, for one year or for life depending on the offense. A first conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance, refusing a breath test, leaving the scene, causing a death through negligent driving, or using any vehicle to commit a felony takes you off commercial vehicles for one year, or three years if you were hauling placarded hazardous materials. A second conviction for any combination of those offenses is a lifetime disqualification, though a state may reinstate you after ten years if you complete a state-approved rehabilitation program. Using a commercial vehicle to commit a felony involving manufacturing, distributing, or dispensing a controlled substance, or a severe human trafficking felony, is a lifetime bar with no ten-year reinstatement. Your state licensing agency applies this, not the carrier. 49 CFR 383.51 · checked September 17, 2026
Box truck or straight truck driver (no CDL) Restricted Even without a CDL, a DUI or a drug offense while you were on duty in a commercial vehicle can take you off the road for six months to three years. This rule covers any driver of a commercial motor vehicle in interstate work, including smaller trucks that need no CDL. The disqualifying offenses are driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, refusing a required test, transporting, possessing, or using Schedule I drugs, amphetamines, or narcotics while on duty, leaving the scene, and any felony involving the use of a commercial vehicle. The offense has to have happened during on-duty time; a first offense is one year, or six months if it only involved transporting or possessing those substances, and three years if you had another disqualifying conviction in the three years before. 49 CFR 391.15 · checked September 17, 2026
Hazmat driver (CDL hazmat endorsement) Restricted A hazmat endorsement runs through a TSA security check, and a set list of serious felonies blocks it, some for good and some only while they are recent. TSA uses one offense list for hazmat endorsements and TWIC cards. Twelve are permanent: espionage, sedition, treason, a federal crime of terrorism, a crime causing a transportation security incident, improper transport of hazardous materials, explosives offenses, murder, bomb threats, certain RICO convictions, and attempts or conspiracies to commit them. Fifteen more are interim, meaning they only count if you were convicted within seven years of the date you apply or were released from incarceration for them within five years, and they include drug distribution, robbery, extortion, arson, kidnapping, assault with intent to kill, immigration violations, smuggling, bribery, firearms offenses, and felony dishonesty or fraud. TSA decides, you can appeal a mistake in the record, and you can request a waiver for every offense except espionage, sedition, treason, and terrorism. 49 CFR 1572.103 · checked September 17, 2026
Port, dock, or maritime worker (TWIC card) Restricted A TWIC card is what gets you into a port or onto a vessel, and TSA uses the same offense list it uses for hazmat, with most of it timing out after seven years. Twelve permanent disqualifying felonies cover espionage, sedition, treason, terrorism, a transportation security incident, improper hazmat transport, explosives, murder, bomb threats, and certain RICO convictions. The other fifteen are interim and only disqualify you if the conviction came within seven years of your application or you were released from incarceration within five years, which means an older robbery, drug distribution, arson, or fraud conviction drops out on its own. Being wanted or under indictment for a listed felony holds up the card until the warrant clears or the indictment is dismissed, and you can request a waiver for any interim offense and for most of the permanent list. 49 CFR 1572.103 · checked September 17, 2026
Appealing a TWIC or hazmat denial Restricted If TSA turns down your TWIC or hazmat endorsement over a conviction, you can ask for a waiver, and the request is decided on your record since the offense. You have until 60 days after TSA serves the final determination to send a written waiver request, and you can ask during the application instead of waiting. TSA weighs the circumstances of the offense, restitution you made, any state or federal mitigation such as a pardon or expungement, and anything else showing you are not a security threat, then answers in writing within 60 days. Waivers are available for every interim offense and for the permanent offenses other than espionage, sedition, treason, and a federal crime of terrorism. 49 CFR 1515.7 · checked September 17, 2026
Airport ramp, baggage, fueling, or terminal worker (SIDA badge) Restricted Working in the secure part of an airport takes a badge, and 28 listed offenses block it if you were convicted within the last ten years. The list runs from air piracy, murder, and espionage to armed or felony unarmed robbery, extortion, felony arson, distribution of a controlled substance, and any felony involving theft, burglary, willful destruction of property, aggravated assault, bribery, possession of stolen property, or dishonesty, fraud, or misrepresentation. It only reaches back ten years from the date you apply, so an older conviction does not count, and an arrest with no conviction is not disqualifying. The airport operator makes the call, must tell you the FBI record is why, must give you a copy of it if you ask, and must give you 30 days to correct it if it is wrong. 49 CFR 1542.209(d) · checked September 17, 2026
School employee with direct contact with students Restricted No federal law decides who can work in a public school, so which convictions disqualify you and for how long is set entirely by your state. Pennsylvania shows the shape most states use: a permanent list plus tiers that expire. There, homicide, aggravated assault, kidnapping, sexual offenses, endangering the welfare of children, corruption of minors, and any felony under the state drug act bar you for life, while any other first, second, or third degree felony bars you for ten years from the end of your sentence, a first degree misdemeanor for five years, and repeat DUI graded as a first degree misdemeanor for three years. The rule covers cafeteria workers, janitors, bus drivers, and contractors, and it does not reach employees with no direct contact with children. Pennsylvania treats a felony drug conviction as a lifetime bar, which is the opposite of how federal child care rules treat it, so do not assume one state answers for another. 24 P.S. § 1-111 (Pa. Public School Code, Act 14 of 1949) · checked September 17, 2026
Where they hire
These are the places we can name. We are building a real location list so this can answer "near me" properly.
Nashville, Tennessee Location A site we can name for this employer.
Your rights in Tennessee
Tennessee banned the box for state government jobs only, so a private employer here can still ask on the application.
How this entry can change
If you have applied here and what happened does not match what this page says, tell us and we will check it again. Corrections go to our reviewers, not to the employer, and we publish what changes. Report a problem.
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