kscarbel2 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Australasian Transport News / February 24, 2015The US Government is set to follow in the footsteps of Australia with an inquiry into whether pay rates affect safety in the trucking industry.The country’s truck safety regulator, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), says it will look at whether there is a relationship between certain methods of payment and unsafe driving behaviours.Australia’s National Transport Commission (NTC) examined pay rates in the trucking industry back in 2008 and found a link between remuneration and safety.The work led to the creation in 2012 of the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT), which has the power to mandate payment terms and conditions for employee and contractor drivers.The FMCSA says its study will be conducted using an online questionnaire involving randomly selected trucking companies, safety managers, owner-drivers, operations managers and company owners."The study will evaluate the relationship between property carrying motor carriers compensation methods and incidents of unsafe driving," it says in a statement."In particular, the research team will determine if there is a potential relationship between method of driver compensation and safe driving behavior."The FMCSA intends on surveying 2,184 people and says the results will be published this year.It says the work will examine multiple remuneration practices."The study will address hourly pay as well as others to determine if a relationship between compensation method and unsafe driver behaviors exists," it says."The goal of this study is to understand all of the elements of compensation and determine if there are any common factors that influence safe driving performance."US academic Michael Belzer has already looked into the influence remuneration has on safety in the country's trucking industry.In a study with US trucking firm JB Hunt, Belzer found that every 10 per cent increase in pay reduced the probability of a crash by 36 per cent.Another study he conducted of 102 operators over one year revealed a 9.2 per cent drop in crash rates for every 10 per cent increase in pay.Belzer’s work was cited in Australia to support the case for changes to remuneration methods and the creation of the RSRT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underdog Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Ding! Ding! Ding! The light bulb finally going on?!? Truckers are paid by the miles but regulated by the clock. Simple solution pay drivers for every hour they spend in the truck. Driving, loading, unloading, sitting in traffic, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6368 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 US academic Michael Belzer has already looked into the influence remuneration has on safety in the country's trucking industry.In a study with US trucking firm JB Hunt, Belzer found that every 10 per cent increase in pay reduced the probability of a crash by 36 per cent.Another study he conducted of 102 operators over one year revealed a 9.2 per cent drop in crash rates for every 10 per cent increase in pay.Belzer’s work was cited in Australia to support the case for changes to remuneration methods and the creation of the RSRT.I am curious . Is he saying that if you take an unsafe driver and give him more money he is now safer OR is he saying that by offering more money in the hiring process you attract more experienced/safer drivers. It's not clear from this article. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Dash Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Save my tax dollars, the answer is YES. So, now what?I am curious . Is he saying that if you take an unsafe driver and give him more money he is now safer OR is he saying that by offering more money in the hiring process you attract more experienced/safer drivers. It's not clear from this article.A driver paid by the mile or load is more likely to speed and/or take shortcuts when doing pre/post trips etc. vs. one who is paid hourly. If carriers don't want to go the hourly pay route they can choose to compensate for all activities such as the inspections, fueling, drop and hook, ALL stops, wait time. Unfortunately that option continues to be widely ignored by the industry. Most drivers on mileage pay get only the mileage pay and intermediate p/u's and deliveries (not all that common in the truckload segment), and minimal pay for delays after 2-3 hours "free time". Quote Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underdog Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 My employer, Brothers Auto Transport, recently modified the pay schedule to include stop pay, per unit loading pay, and a quality bonus for damage free delivery. Drivers, myself included, seem to be taking more time to do the job properly and not much noise about multiple stops, either. Because we are being compensated for our time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
41chevy Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 HoMy employer, Brothers Auto Transport, recently modified the pay schedule to include stop pay, per unit loading pay, and a quality bonus for damage free delivery. Drivers, myself included, seem to be taking more time to do the job properly and not much noise about multiple stops, either. Because we are being compensated for our time.If other companies did that it would help. Wait to speed limiters start and the mileage pay goes down for the per mile drivers Quote "OPERTUNITY IS MISSED BY MOST PEOPLE BECAUSE IT IS DRESSED IN OVERALLS AND LOOKS LIKE WORK" Thomas Edison “Life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave safely, in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting ‘Holy shit, what a ride!’” P.T.CHESHIRE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underdog Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 The only real dispute I have with my boss is his insistence on installing E-logs. I run pretty much legal, but I predict lost productivity. Drivers will stop taking chances instead of maximizing the 14 hour day, it will result in 10-12 hours a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Dash Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 My employer, Brothers Auto Transport, recently modified the pay schedule to include stop pay, per unit loading pay, and a quality bonus for damage free delivery. Drivers, myself included, seem to be taking more time to do the job properly and not much noise about multiple stops, either. Because we are being compensated for our time.Personally, I think that's direction all companies should be heading. I wouldn't want to pay a driver by the hour that's going to be stopping to trash around a truck stop every 100 miles. If there are two drivers doing the same run, the safer and more productive one should be paid more, or paid the same but working fewer hours. Regardless of how I'm compensated I will divide gross pay by hours worked. If I like the number I don't care how it was calculated.The only real dispute I have with my boss is his insistence on installing E-logs. I run pretty much legal, but I predict lost productivity. Drivers will stop taking chances instead of maximizing the 14 hour day, it will result in 10-12 hours a day.I've been on E-logs for 3 1/2 years and like them but my runs are structured and consistent. I wouldn't want them if I were running OTR. I was always a "pretty much legal" driver myself when running a paper log but sometimes one needs an extra 15-30 minutes to get somewhere and nobody is going to get hurt or killed as a result. As you said productivity will suffer because the driver will be looking to shut down sooner out of fear of going a minute over. Quote Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underdog Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 With auto transporters, there is a lot of on-duty time(line 4) loading & unloading more than driving. With that comes a lot of variables that can waste your time. Also, I run the I-95 corridor Baltimore, Philly, and NYC so traffic is an issue as well. We run daycabs too so finding a motel becomes an issue as well. A sleeper would allow me to be more productive, but the boss don't like sleepers because you give up one car per truckload. I guess I just go to the motel at 4pm and give up 1-2 truckloads per week. Gregg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Dash Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 With auto transporters, there is a lot of on-duty time(line 4) loading & unloading more than driving. With that comes a lot of variables that can waste your time. Also, I run the I-95 corridor Baltimore, Philly, and NYC so traffic is an issue as well. We run daycabs too so finding a motel becomes an issue as well. A sleeper would allow me to be more productive, but the boss don't like sleepers because you give up one car per truckload. I guess I just go to the motel at 4pm and give up 1-2 truckloads per week.GreggI hear ya. On my previous job I ran a daycab on overnight runs and with multi-stops I wasn't always able to make it to the motel I was familiar with. That can cut you're day short when in someplace like rural West Virginia and you don't have a clue where the next room with truck parking might be. Sucks that you'll have to give up entire runs as a result. Quote Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RowdyRebel Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 When you have a company owner intent upon forcing e-logs on the drivers, it generally starts with a few "test units" in a small number of trucks. It is absolutely vital that those test subjects show a decrease in productivity and a decrease in revenue generated. If the company owner sees that these things will cost him money, he's less likely to push forward with it. 1-2 loads per week less...2-3 extra motel rooms per week...PER TRUCK! When the test dummies decide to find work-arounds so that they can continue to get the job done, the boss is almost guaranteed to push forward with the BS. Make it cost him money, so that expanding the implementation will cost him A LOT of money. Otherwise, you'll have a babysitter in the truck with you. 1 Quote When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underdog Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 When you have a company owner intent upon forcing e-logs on the drivers, it generally starts with a few "test units" in a small number of trucks. It is absolutely vital that those test subjects show a decrease in productivity and a decrease in revenue generated. If the company owner sees that these things will cost him money, he's less likely to push forward with it. 1-2 loads per week less...2-3 extra motel rooms per week...PER TRUCK! When the test dummies decide to find work-arounds so that they can continue to get the job done, the boss is almost guaranteed to push forward with the BS. Make it cost him money, so that expanding the implementation will cost him A LOT of money. Otherwise, you'll have a babysitter in the truck with you.Some companies have gone E-logs already (Jack Cooper, United Road). All drivers I have talked to say same thing... It WILL affect your productivity. I cannot understand any company volunteering for a loss in productivity. I guess that's why I'm not in charge. I truly believe that is why the government has not already mandated E-logs. The higher-ups somewhere understand that it would require 2x as many trucks to move the same amount of freight in this country, resulting in a LOSS of productivity AND safety. Look at the food distribution system in this country- livestock and produce. Time-sensitive freight mostly moved by small, independent truckers( not subject to E-logs) who can keep it moving.Gregg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeamsterGrrrl Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 UPS has been using e-logs for over two decades now and is bigger and more profitable than ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Dash Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 UPS has been using e-logs for over two decades now and is bigger and more profitable than ever.UPS, like LTL, has the benefit of consistent, scheduled routing. For irregular route, for-hire carriers, the challenges of meeting customer demands while remaining compliant are much more difficult. A bus companies can run e-logs without having to change it's operations whatsoever. 1 Quote Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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