|
January 23, 2007
Note: To print this newsletter in its entirety, simply press the
print button on your web browser.
CLICK HERE to send us your
comments about this newsletter.
Headline News
EOBR NPRM Appears in Federal Register
FMCSA has proposed, through the Federal Register to amend the Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to incorporate new performance standards for
electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) installed in commercial motor vehicles
(CMVs) manufactured on or after the date 2 years following issuance of a final
rule.
Under the proposal, motor carriers that have demonstrated a history of serious
noncompliance with the hours-of-service (HOS) rules would be subject to
mandatory installation of EOBRs meeting the new performance standards. If FMCSA
determined, based on HOS records reviewed during each of two compliance reviews
conducted within a 2-year period, that a motor carrier had a 10 percent or
greater violation rate (pattern of violations), FMCSA would issue the carrier
an EOBR remedial directive. The motor carrier would be required to install
EOBRs in all of its CMVs regardless of their date of manufacture and to use the
devices for HOS recordkeeping for a period of 2 years, unless the carrier
already had equipped its vehicles with automatic on-board recording devices
(AOBRDs) meeting the Agency's current requirements and could demonstrate to
FMCSA that its drivers understand how to use the devices.
By proposing this mandate, FMCSA believes that carriers using EOBRs under a
remedial directive would significantly reduce and in some cases, virtually
eliminate several types of HOS violations including driving time violations,
form and manner violations and false-log violations.
On-board hours-of-service recording devices meeting FMCSA's current requirements
and voluntarily installed in CMVs manufactured before the implementation date
of a final rule may continue to be used for the remainder of the service life
of those CMVs.
Finally, FMCSA would encourage industry wide use of EOBRs by providing the
following incentives for motor carriers to voluntarily use EOBRs in their CMVs:
-
Revising the Agency's compliance review procedures to permit examination of a
random sample of drivers' records of duty status;
-
Providing partial relief from HOS supporting documents requirements, if certain
conditions are satisfied;
-
Other potential incentives made possible by the inherent safety and driver
health benefits of EOBR technology.
At this time, FMCSA is seeking comments on this proposed rule, specifically
regarding other incentives for EOBR adoption. They are interested in
identifying additional regulatory relief that a motor carrier’s EOBR use may
justify, including relief from specific HOS requirements or limitations
consistent with the safety and driver health benefits of EOBR technology.
Click
here to review the EOBR NPRM as it appeared in the Federal Register.
Click here to review TCA’s original comments in
response to the 2004 EOBR ANPRM
Top
EOBR Proposed Rule Draws Spectrum of Reactions
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) proposal to mandate
electronic onboard recorders for motor carriers that violate hours-of-service
rules has elicited a broad range of reactions from trucking stakeholders and
safety groups.
Among the harshest critics was public-advocacy group Public Citizen, which
called the proposed rule “a very weak standard.”
“Instead of mandating onboard recorders in all commercial trucks with a fair,
across-the-board standard, FMCSA released a proposed rule that would require
recorders only for trucking companies that have been caught significantly
violating hours-of-service rules,” said Joan Claybrook, Public Citizen
president. “These recorders should be mandated in an across-the-board standard
that treats all companies equally.”
Public Citizen is deeply vested in hours-of-service (HOS) reform, since it led a
lawsuit against FMCSA that resulted in the U.S. District Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia declaring the 2003 HOS “arbitrary and capricious” for
not sufficiently considering its effect on driver health. The Court chided
FMCSA for not including EOBRs in the 2003 rule.
The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) has advocated for EOBRs to be mandatory on
all trucks, with the choice of technology left to carriers. However, CTA used
markedly softer language than Public Citizen.
“Our concern with making EOBRs mandatory only for repeat violators is that it
holds those carriers of any size, who are more likely to cross a scale or to
have an audit, to a higher standard than others,” said David Bradley, CTA CEO.
“The sooner governments provide carriers that are already using EOBRs, or those
who would be willing to adopt them, with meaningful incentives, the better will
be compliance with hours-of-service rules and the more level the playing field
will be for all.”
CTA noted that the EOBR rule “may have a relatively minor impact on Canadian
carriers” given that compliance orders would be given “based on HOS violations
found during an audit rather than in roadside inspections.”
By contrast with Public Citizen and CTA, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers
Assn. (OOIDA) does not appear to support any mandated installation of EOBRs,
criticizing the proposal for being “long on Big Brother.” OOIDA called the rule
“a misdirected attempt to deal with the root causes of hours-of-service
violations.”
OOIDA said that the rule does nothing to alleviate the work conditions that
pressure drivers into violating the rule to begin with: excessive loading and
unloading time.
“The real hours issue related to fatigue…[is] the 30 to 40 more hours drivers
spend each week on loading and unloading docks that will not be captured by
these devices,” OOIDA said.
The Teamsters union has endorsed the rule, but said that it “will continue to
negotiate language in future contracts that prevent the abuse of data collected
by EOBRs.” Specifically, Teamsters is concerned that data used in any
electronic tracking system could be used as grounds for disciplinary action
against its members.
Perhaps the strongest backer of the FMCSA proposal was the American Trucking
Assns., which said the rule was “a sensible approach to the greater
implementation of technology designed to improve safety and document driver
compliance with work and rest rules.”
“We support this incentive-based approach to the use of electronic onboard
recorders,” said ATA president & CEO Gov. Bill Graves. Written by
Top
Are you in for the long haul? Better Communication Can
Lead To Better Retention
“The pay was too low.”
“The time away from home was too great; and not what I was told it would be.”
“The company did a poor job of telling me about the business.”
“I wasn’t sure what my future would be and I felt it was just as easy to pick
another carrier than stay with this one.”
These are the types of quotes trucking companies are hearing on a daily basis as
more and more employees make a bolt for the door to work for a competitor. All
of them point to a critical one-two combo deficiency: higher expectations from
employees about what they will receive and miscommunication about the company’s
goals and objectives.
Employee retention continues to be one of the most significant costs of managing
a business in the trucking industry today – and there is no clear end in sight
as the industry grapples with growth and a shrinking talent pool.
Consider that the American Trucking Association estimates 80 percent of all
departures are due to employee dissatisfaction, and only 20 percent due to
attrition and industry growth. Add to that the incredible cost of an employee
loss, which brings expense of between $3,000 and $12,000 per driver, and the
issue is not only too big to ignore but could be the difference in the fight to
be profitable or even keep the doors open.
The retention issue is a complex one, and the reasons employees leave can often
vary from individual to individual. So there isn’t one clear solution to
eradicating turnover in the trucking business. No silver bullet will put this
tough issue to rest. However, there are some simple, systematic steps every
company can take to improve employee relations and have a positive impact on
driving down employee departures.
Experience bears that those employers who focus on improved employee
communication are more successful in retaining and growing their businesses.
They also tend to be stronger financially, and better prepared for down turns
in business. They realize having a well-informed employee base is critical to
their long-term success. And they believe a well planned, and well-executed
communication process can have an impact on building trust and in convincing
talent to stay put.
But how does one go about being effective at communicating with employees? Where
do you start and how do you institutionalize a process to ensure your employees
remain engaged and connected to the business?
Most successful communication processes are built from three key cornerstones:
-
Define the goals and objectives.
-
Assess and know the audience.
-
Review and determine the best vehicles to reach employees.
While the development of an effective communication plan is not rocket science,
it does require a focus on these steps and a concerted effort by the employer.
Here’s more about each cornerstone needed to build an effective effort….
First, define the goals and objectives…When it comes to driving
better communication to impact retention, one obvious goal will be to reduce
turnover by a set amount. As you develop a communication plan, come to grips
with the goals you believe are attainable in the next 12 months – a reduction
in turnover of 5 percent is a good starting point.
But defining the metrics are only part of the equation for goal setting. It’s
important to know management’s view on turnover and how committed they are to
making a change. And, you should consider what other issues might impact the
messages you will develop. Has the company gone through any major changes of
late, such as an acquisition or perhaps a reduction in force? How will those
factors influence what you communicate to drivers and the tone in which you
communicate?
As you are defining the goals, it is equally important to fully understand the
culture of your organization. For instance, how does your company differentiate
itself in the market? Why would this be a better place for drivers to work?
Defining those differences will become additional key messages that you include
and emphasize in subsequent communications to employee groups.
Second, assess and know the audience…To be effective in any
communication effort you need to fully understand the attitudes and perceptions
of the audience. Once you have that foundation, you can then begin to pinpoint
what employees don’t understand or might be confused about. Your communication
messages can then focus on clarifying and honing in on those misperceptions.
There are some wonderful tools at your disposal to gauge employee knowledge and
understanding, including inexpensive on-line survey tools. Other useful tools
include focus groups, one-on-one interviews and even results from exit
interviews. In the area of focus groups, these can be extremely valuable in
unearthing more detail and specific reasons behind employee behavior. And, with
new technologies, such as web ex sessions, it is more cost-effective and easier
to get groups of employees together to conduct detailed discussions on topics.
One of the mistakes organizations make is to assume why employees leave. These
assumptions can sometimes evolve from comments heard from a vocal minority. But
real research to understand perceptions will either validate those assumptions
or help you see more clearly where a disconnect exists.
Third, review and determine the best vehicles to reach employees….
While many organizations will use some of the same vehicles to communicate with
employees (email, newsletters, videos, group meetings, etc.) each company is
different…and what works in one organization may not necessarily be the best
approach for another company. So ask yourself, when communicating key messages
in the past, what has worked best for your organization? What tools have you
used to reach people and get a message through with the most impact at the
least cost?
At the same time you are considering past techniques, take time to connect with
other communication professionals who might bring new approaches to the table.
For instance, electronic communication tools, such as eMagazines and eLearning
devices, have been successfully deployed to help employees understand issues to
a greater extent. You might want to mix some new approaches and efforts in with
what has worked in the past to expand the impact of your effort.
One of the hottest new communication techniques in the market today is the use
of personalized communication. You have at your fingertips a wealth of
information and data about each of your employees – including pay, the value of
the benefits programs, and other rewards that employees may not even be aware
of. By summarizing all these values in one document, you can show an employee
the tremendous value of employment – including the dollars that go beyond the
paycheck. And, if branded properly, you can integrate messages in your
personalized summary sheet that drive home the reasons why continued employment
makes sense.
Will these type efforts thwart all turnover? Of course not, but a communication
plan that clearly focuses on the goals, takes into account employee
understanding, and applies tried-and-true approaches with new ones, will help
set the course for better results. Recent studies state that a comprehensive
communication effort can reduce turnover from 5 to as much as 25 percent. And
that is welcome news for an industry overburdened with disgruntled and dismayed
employees.
Donald R. Sanford is a Managing Director for Buck Consultants, an ACS Company.
Buck is an international human resources consulting firm. Mr. Sanford serves as
National Practice Leader for the Communication Line of Business within Buck and
has worked extensively for many organizations throughout the United States on
all types of corporate communication issues, including employee engagement and
retention. For more information on Buck, visit
www.buckconsultants.com, or write to
Donald.Sanford@buckconsultants.com.
Top
Focusing on What Matters
What you focus on, you get more of. That goes for good things as well as the
bad. That is why a Leader has to pay careful attention to focus and understand
the implications of his or her actions. Remember, people are watching your
every move to determine how they should act in similar situations. Your focus
is contagious.
When developing company goals and objectives, it is important to focus on the
items you want more of. We don’t want to reduce accidents; we want to increase
accident-free operations. We don’t want to reduce driver turnover; we want to
improve driver retention. We don’t want to eliminate bad debt; we want to
improve on-time payment and collections. The difference is subtle but very
significant.
Look at the messages you are sending as a company and as a Leader. Are you
constantly talking about, and therefore focusing on, what is wrong? Or are you
focused on the desired outcome, what you want more of? Are you a
forward-looking company or are you constantly reminding your people what they
are doing wrong? It is much easier to focus on the problems, because they are
obvious, and more difficult to focus on the solutions because they may not be
so obvious yet. And when they do reveal themselves, they sometimes require
difficult decisions to implement. Quite simply, it is easier to focus on the
problem instead of the solution.
One of the problems with meetings in today’s business environment is that we
spend a significant amount of time talking about what is wrong,
casting blame for who was wrong, and often debating why they
were wrong. Efficient and effective meetings establish the objective (identify
the problem) and then spend the bulk of the meeting focusing on the solution.
Leaders don’t let meetings get bogged down with the past. They keep their eye
on the ball and the ball in front of you. Once the ball is past you, it is too
late.
As a Leader, the challenge is simple: You must learn from the past, learn from
what went wrong, and then let go of it. Focus on the solution,
on what you want more of, on the desired outcome. The best companies in
business today are forward thinking, but more importantly, they are forward
focused and solution-oriented.
Providing a solution-oriented work environment provides your people with a
target, a finish line. And as we have said many times before, race horses run
harder when they have the finish line in sight. To turn your thoroughbreds
loose, give them an objective to focus on, point them in the right direction,
and let ‘em run!
Be a Leader every day!
Bill Webb is Senior Vice President at FFE Transportation Services, Inc., a
publicly held refrigerated carrier based in Dallas, Texas. He is also the
founder of The Blue Flame Project (www.theblueflameproject.com), a nationwide
leadership initiative, and the author of the upcoming book “Igniting The Blue
Flame: A Call to Leadership.” He speaks throughout the country on the issue of
leadership.
Top
TCA Salutes Highway Angel Brian Brown, of Eskridge,
Kansas
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 19, 2007
Contact: Nancy O’Liddy, Director, Public Affairs
703/838-8859 or noliddy@truckload.org
Alexandria , VA, January 19, 2007 – The
Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) recently recognized Brian “Brownie” Brown,
of Eskridge, Kansas, as a Highway Angel for rescuing a woman trapped in a
burning vehicle.
While traveling west on Highway 470 in Topeka, Kansas, Brown noticed an SUV
about 300 yards ahead of him start to veer back and forth on the road.
Suddenly, the vehicle took a hard right, flew off the road down an embankment,
hitting trees in its path, until it crashed violently against some trees and
burst into flames.
“I was caught in that moment when I wondered if I was going to sleep tonight if
I didn’t stop,” said Brown. “I knew she was down there and no one else was
around.”
Brown, who was driving a full fuel tanker, made sure he secured his rig safely
off the road and put his flashers on before grabbing his fire extinguisher and
running off to help. Another driver who had stopped yelled for Brown to call
emergency on his cell phone. Brown said he remembered yelling back, “There’s no
time for cell phones. Whoever’s in that car right now, we gotta get him out of
there quick.”
Brown took off running, hoping the other driver would follow. After maneuvering
through broken trees to get to the vehicle, Brown saw the female driver was
unconscious, so he pounded on the passenger-side window, not knowing whether or
not the woman was alive. Meanwhile flames engulfed the engine. Brown tried to
“buy us some time” by using his extinguisher, “but every time I tried to
extinguish the flames, they came back harder,” he said.
Fortunately, the other driver came to assist and while he pulled open the
passenger door to try to remove the woman, Brown continued to attempt to
extinguish the flames. Although she was conscious now, the woman couldn’t move
her legs, making it difficult for the other gentleman to get her out alone.
Brown finally threw down his extinguisher and went to help.
“That was the most terrifying part of it,” Brown said. “Flames were melting the
metal, blowing fuel all over the hot exhaust. I smelled the fumes from the
burned out plastic for two days after that.”
The two men quickly dragged the woman about 175 to 200 yards and then watched as
the flames broke through the dash and enveloped the car. If we had sat down and
made a phone call, she wouldn’t be here today,” Brown said.
Once the paramedics arrived, Brown gave them pertinent information and hurried
back to his fuel tanker, which was located far enough from the scene but still
was a concern to him. He knew, however, he had done the right thing in
stopping.
“My wife was in a bad accident about a year ago, so when I saw that happen, I
got goose bumps and I knew I had to help,” Brown said.
Brown received a Highway Angel lapel pin, certificate, and patch for his
efforts, and his employer, United Petroleum Transports, also received a
certificate for acknowledging a Highway Angel in their midst.
Since its inception in August 1997, the Highway Angel program has recognized
hundreds of drivers for the unusual kindness, courtesy, and courage they have
shown others while on the job. TCA has received letters and emails from people
across the country nominating truck drivers for the program.
“We continue to be amazed by the number of professional truckers who go out of
their way to help a stranger and many times put their lives at risk as well,”
said Nancy O’Liddy, director of public affairs and marketing for TCA. “TCA is
proud and delighted to offer the kind of program that gives these drivers the
recognition and support they deserve while at the same time creates a greater
public awareness and appreciation for the many outstanding drivers in this
industry.”
To view archival copies of past Highway Angel press releases, visit our website
address at www.truckload.org/pressroom/index.htm#angelnews
To nominate a driver online, go to
www.truckload.org/highwayangels/nominate.asp. For more information on
the program, contact TCA at 703/838-1950 or via email at
Angel@truckload.org.
TCA is the only national trade association whose collective sole focus
is the truckload segment of the motor carrier industry. The association
represents dry van, refrigerated, flatbed, and intermodal container carriers
operating in the 48 contiguous states as well as Alaska, Mexico, and Canada.
Representing operators of over 200,000 trucks, which collectively produce
annual revenue of over $20 billion, TCA is an organization tailored to specific
truckload carrier needs.
# # #
Top
TCA is the only national trade association whose collective sole
focus is the truckload segment of the motor carrier industry. The association
represents dry van, refrigerated, flatbed, and intermodal container carriers
operating in the 48 contiguous states as well as Alaska , Mexico , and Canada .
Representing operators of over 200,000 trucks, which collectively produce an
annual revenue of over $20 billion, TCA is an organization tailored to specific
truckload carrier needs.
|