Why CSA 2010 and E-Logs are a good thing.

which actions ??

and who do you recruit for ??

 

I don't recruit for anyone. I base my decisions on a drivers "safe-osity" partially based upon their EOBR data. If a driver is constantly speeding he is a liability regardless if he can say the right things. Before we did this drivers could fool you, some were great communicators and this could play a factor in how the drivers were treated, and others were a holes and that played a factor. By using the EOBR data it helps to remove any preconcieved ideas about a driver from the picture. There are plenty of guys that I can't stand that do an excellent job for us, and there are a handful of guys that I like that need to improve.

Point being, an interview is just a measure of a drivers charisma. We have a criteria for hiring and that's been working for us. We use the EOBR to help us find room for improvement, you can call it babysitting if you like, I call it empirical safety (I don't call it that, I just made that up)

 

You're in a mood aren't you.

 

ok, I see where you are coming from..

 

Look at their expierence level. Do like alot of smaller company's do and not hire anyone unless they have over 2 years driving CDL Class A. Or instead of hiring a driver and then "babysitting" or "watching" or whatever the term you want to use to see if they have habits of speeding, excessive braking or whatever the case might be why not just look at their driving record and PSP and even call an old employee and talk real sweet and find out how bad he was. If they have a couple speeding tickets over 5mph DON'T HIRE THEM. Take a look at all of the inexpierenced drivers the mega carriers put on the road daily. Now just think if they wouldn't hire people with bad driving habits already, what good it would do. Alot of good.... I know I know we need company's that take students so we have drivers. Okay I get that but I think what NEEDS TO BE ENFORCED IS LONGER TRAINING AND ACTUAL TRAINING. Not team training running the truck 24/7 or 2 students in a truck with a trainer. None of the run down the interstate without wrecking and you pass the training. E-logs and EOBRs should not be mandated but Enforce better training should be.

 

Asking for references in today's world is pretty much useless. Privacy laws no longer allow a former employer to say anything about you other than to confirm that you worked from them between such and such a date. Then there are also the companies that are looking to get rid of someone and if they get a call for a reference don't you think they will give you a glowing review so that you become someone elses problem. I know people who have done that a few times.

Anyone can fake it for a road test, its only when they are by themselves that you can see how they actually drive. You can monitor how they are driving through an EOBR or you can follow them in your car. The latter is a very expensive way of doing things. If you are a safe driver do you think you will be getting hounded all the time. I doubt it.

 

Also I don't control the recruiting, so what can I control? Well nothing...that was a poor choice of words, but I can influence behavior.

 

if they are on electronic logs, they have a fleet of repair people plus an unlimited amount of money to spend at the TA parts and repairs, what can they get shut down for?

 

Nobody has an unlimited amount of money, and stating the obvious, people can't be controlled, merely influenced. I can put an eLog in your truck, but if you feel like violating you can violate. I have no way to tell if operate equipment without doing an inspection. All anyone can do is try to influence behavior. Some do it by reprimanding, others by rewards, me I like to mix it up and do crazy stuff randomly.

 

One of the problems that anyone hiring drivers has, is that years of experience is not a good indicator of exceptional performance. I have trained students in the past that had such a good head on their shoulders, I would have had no problem putting them up against drivers with 10+ years experience. Longevity does not guarantee a good mind set or work ethic. Companies have to cater to the lowest common denominator. Unfortunately, the exceptional drivers end up having to deal with one size fits all rules because of it. And that is probably the general mindset as to why organizations, trucking companies, and the government is pushing the elog game. If folks out here would have done a better job of policing themselves, then it might have not reached this stage.