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Why Isn't It Called A Driver Company?

By Bill Kistner

Picture this in your mind. A trucking company has a beautiful corporate office building, a profitable group of customers, a staff of experienced associates in operations, sales, maintenance and administration, a fleet of one- to four-year-old trucks, so all is wonderful, right?

The answer to our visionary question is “no” because where are the drivers? Without the drivers everything pictured above is meaningless. Without drivers there’s no company, no customers and no revenue.

Day in and day out, trucking companies are fond of saying, “Drivers are the heart and soul of our company. We attract and retain safe and reliable drivers. We provide our drivers with superior wages and benefits.”

However, if this is true, why do drivers, when asked confidentially, respond in a very different way? An Internet survey launched by Ramp Publishing and the consulting firm Trincon Group has uncovered a wide of range driver feelings and beliefs about their position in the industry.

The drivers who completed the survey are seasoned veterans; 84 percent have three to 10 years of experience, and 55 percent have more than 10 years of experience.

The first thing we learned is that drivers have a significant dissatisfaction and distrust the companies they work for. Sixty-five percent said they would stay with their present company only until a better job came along.

What lays behind this feeling are two factors. Twenty-eight percent stated that they could not earn enough money to meet their needs. Secondly, 49 percent say that it is because drivers are not treated with respect. Compounding these issues is the notion that 54 percent of the responding drivers believe that they do not have a well-defined future with their present company.

Beneath the surface, a high percentage of drivers say they are not valued since no one tells them what is going on or recognizes their accomplishments. Instead, drivers feel they only receive blame and criticism.
How would drivers improve these conditions and create a more productive environment? Survey respondents outlined nine elements needed to build a stable and contributing staff of drivers.

1. Establish higher standards for hiring quality drivers to cut out the gypsies.
2. Create an environment where drivers can consistently have more time at home.
3. Develop a true, realistic, career path, and promote, recognize and reward drivers accordingly.
4. Three or four times a year, inform drivers about what is going on in the company, how it affects them and ask for their feedback.
5. Recognize and compensate drivers for experience and accomplishments.
6. Establish a pay plan based on performance, training and accomplishments.
7. Provide drivers with regular reviews so they will know their status and what they need to improve.
8. Develop regular mandatory training on driving skills, technology, customer service and interpersonal skills.
9. Provide multiple opportunities for drivers to meet, get to know and interact with the people who affect their ability to do their job.

The drivers have now clearly told us what needs to be done. There are no longer any excuses for not acting.

In creating and implementing each of these critical elements, the process of building mutual respect will begin. Success will not be easy or instant, as there is a great deal of suspicion on the part of drivers. However, ask yourself where will the quality drivers of the future come from if these issues are not resolved?

This task can no longer be put off until another day. The problem of driver turnover and drivers leaving the industry is not going away. With the cost of driver turnover continuing to rise into the hundreds of thousands of dollars and the Employee Free Choice Act pending in Congress, time has run out. (See the driver turnover calculator at www.trincon.com)

Yet, all is not lost; there is hope to build upon. Fifty-five percent of drivers surveyed stated they like the work, lifestyle and freedom of driving. Further, 60 percent said they would recommend the trucking industry as a good place to work.

The clarion trumpet has been sounded. Action is now mandatory, because tomorrow will be here in the blink of an eye, and without action, there will be hell to pay.

Bill Kistner is Vice President of Marketing at Trincon Group.

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