Old hands and newbies advice requested!

Ever notice it's always the cut-rate haulers with the fancy rooster cruisers?

 

I would agree with you there, but with all of this CSA2010 stuff coming up, it would be wise for graduates to be checking out the companies they are applying with. From the sounds of it, your company's safety rating will have a definite impact on your chances of getting pulled around back at the scales.

And the last thing a new driver can afford is a hefty fine for something they were not "aware" of. Not to mention the points penalties....

 

CYA. Our shop lead will eventually cost our company and its drivers plenty. And when he gets his butt fired, I am next in line for the position.

That is when the owner gets to hear three years of pent up frustration from me as I tell him no. Why would anyone want to inherit that nightmare? And think of all these companies that have let their maintenance get by with as little as they can get away with. They need to go straight to the owner with this. The driver is the weakest link in this chain, all they can do is refuse to drive it and there is horde standing there waiting for his job.

Lawmakers have no real idea how the trucking industry works, I guess they think we are RR engineers with a strong union behind us.

 

Well, I can tell you right now, Hubcap, I don't envy you. I have heard some remarkable stories about the shops, and some nightmare scenarios as well.

What drivers need to be aware of is that there is a "WhistleBlowers" protection out there, and it is a law protecting drivers from retribution. We all know that there are "other ways" to get rid of undesirable employees, BUT it would be wise for EVERY driver, mechanic, and safety person in the industry to become knowledgable with this law.... YES, law.

There is nothing wrong with standing up for what you know to be right, nor is there anything wrong with you demanding that something be fixed on your truck before you take it out on the road. After all, who is going to argue the point of..."It's not safe and someone could get killed"...?

Personally, my shop is very safety conscious and everytime I bring my truck in for hometime, they hit it like a pitcrew and it goes through a process to ensure everything is 110%. It's a shame every place wasn't like that.....

Yeah, I know what I am saying sounds terribly idealistic, but you know what, until we change, nothing else will. I've only been doing this for a year, but from what I have researched and learned, don't you think it's about time the DRIVERS had a say in how all of this should work? Corporate America had their "fifteen minutes" and obviously things have not (for the most part) improved in the last 20 years. Seems to me that trucking was a much better industry before people who had never driven (or even been in) a truck started making all the operational decisions.

Yeah, it's about money.... no doubt..... but it should more so be about safety. And until these companies tighten up, safety is going to be a concern, and the person who stands to pay the ultimate price, be it a fine or a life, is the driver.