Do trucking companies hire people to spy on drivers?

I plan on because a boss that feels like that have to be a hawk is a micro-manager and an ### to work for.

 

spying is not only on truck drivers.

Cubicle Drivers are subject to every kind of PC-enabled spying in the office. No one really complains about the spying, only about inconveniences and the resource-consumption it causes slowing down the computers.

Be glad you don't have an open laptop with a webcam and microphones in it.

I see some of the "how's my driving" 1-800- stickers out there that can't be read. Obviously damaged by the hazards of travel. I'd hate to have one of those things. Every idiot on the road having a bad day would be calling.

 

I have thought about having one of those made and putting one of these numbers on it.

641-985-7888
617-861-3962
413-351-2684
508-556-3549
781-654-2925
212-660-2245

 

I like that idea, maybe if I become a truck driver I’ll get a sticker with my phone number, then when people call to object about my driving I can consider the way I drive. I won’t worry about the dopes, unless a bunch of dopes complained about the same thing, then I may think about it.

I wonder if my ego can handle the reality of my driving skills?

 

So I worked for a guy who owned two trucks. And he was leased onto CRST Malone, and had his trucks run through an agent, who, between the four people in that office, probably oversaw 30 or so trucks. So, if they needed to get a hold of someone, it wasn't so difficult to take a couple minutes and call them. And the boss man knew if I didn't answer the phone that I was driving, and I would get back to him. And he rarely ever had to call me, because I made it a point to phone in once daily.
Now, let's upscale that a bit. Let's say we're talking about the owner of a company with over 1000 company trucks. The owner doesn't know their drivers on the individual level that an owner of a two truck operation would. They may have dispatchers assigned to boards of 20, 30, maybe even 50 drivers, who they're working with around the clock, and can't always take the time to make a phone call for a little thing such as location. On top of that, they may have customers who will want to know where their freight is at any given time without warning.
So, I think the Qualcomm is a very useful tool for such a fleet. All the same, I was glad to not have to deal with one.

 

ABSOLUTELY SOME COMPANIES DO. I used to work for a company where the safety men had radar guns in their cars like cops but I wouldn't think it would be as common now with all the electronic tattle tales they have in their trucks.

 

Good idea. I might do that. But I would get me a 900 number. Complain all you want, call 24-7, for only $3.99 a minute.

"Please hold. Your call is very important to us...if you are calling to complain about that big evil truck driver and flip if him, press 1 now! Please continue to hold. There is another annoying motorist on the line right now. As soon as that motorist is done, he will be with you. You are next in line!"

 

I should do this as an extra income stream while I am driving my truck LOL

 

Very funny.
If you don't want anyone watching you on the road...BUY YOUR OWN TRUCK and HAUL YOUR OWN LOADS.
Markel has been around some 50+ years or more. I have been stopped by them myself back in the 80's when I drove carhaul for Anchor Motor Freight. They had marked vehicles and would pull over trucks and do a safety check.
CTA or California Truck Association does voluntary road observations of member vehicles and sends the report to the company.
When I was with a member company of NATA or Nat. Automobile Transporters Asso. member companies would meet at a POE somewhere. I have met reps. from Jack Cooper, Ryder, Allied out at the POE in Ehrenberg, AZ and we did road inspections on any of "our" trucks that pulled in.
Almost all companies in every type of business do performance evaluations. What is the big deal? If you are operating your truck like a professional you will get a good evaluation which will go to your company. Proabably the safety dept. A good (or bad) will go in your file. Good drivers get good reports.

 

Kind of a funny story about being checked. I worked for a 25 truck family run regional company so we all knew each others truck # and such. Once in a blue moon they would post these reports in the drivers room to give us ammo to harrass people with. Anyways one was posted with and it wasn't complimentary. Trucks following too close,driving too fast for conditions yada yada yada. We're looking at the date and truck # and we start snickering. On the date they had checked us there was 5 trucks going to Montreal and the truck # was driven by the boss that run because we were so busy. The boss just laughed it off but he never lived it down at company parties and such.