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Despite calls urging truck drivers to register in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse database, over 90% of drivers applying for jobs have not done so, said Jeremy Reymer, founder and CEO of DriverReach, a recruiting and compliance management company.
Reymer told attendees at the Katz, Sapper & Miller 2020 Trucking Owners and Leaders Roundtable on Feb. 4 in Indianapolis that more than 3,000 failed drug and alcohol test results have been recorded in the database in the first 30 days of operation. The site went live Jan. 6.
“That is good news because now we are aware of them and previously they were going undetected,” he said.
While drivers are not required to register, carriers can be put in a tough spot where they are not allowed to pressure drivers to register, but without drivers registering and providing consent, carriers may not be able to meet legal requirements. Reymer noted that a carrier must do a “limited query” of its drivers in the database at least once a year. A limited query will only tell the carrier that a driver has something in their file. To get the full results, a full query must be conducted, and that requires the driver’s consent.
The flip side is that even though drivers are not required to register, carriers are unable to hire one until they provide full consent for a query, which can only be accomplished by registering.
“At the end of the day, if [the driver] won’t register, I can’t hire them,” Reymer said. “At the time the driver is applying, that is the time to find out if they are registered and if not, get them a link and start that process.”
Registering is not a simple task, Reymer added, but from a carrier’s perspective, there is benefit in terms of compliance to having drivers register and for fleets to obtain consent for full queries.
“At the very least you are going to have to run a limited query at least once a year,” Reymer said. “The cost of not being compliant is significant. It is not more than $2,500 per incident, so if you are a 1,000-truck fleet” that could be $2.5 million in penalties.
Reymer said he has heard of some fleets trying to discourage drivers from registering.
“There is a tactic to not get your existing drivers to register because that makes it easier for them to get hired [by another carrier,” he said.
Reymer said he remains supportive of the clearinghouse, but he tried to leave attendees with some practical advice in managing the process, in particular the driver recruiting and hiring process. He pointed to the clearinghouse rule’s 30-day lookback provision, which fleets can benefit from.
“If you do a full query on a driver and it’s clean, and you hire the driver, if something [then] shows up within 30 days going forward, the carrier will be notified,” Reymer said.
A common issue facing carriers in the onboarding process is discrepancies in license numbers. The commercial driver’s license (CDL) number the driver inputs must match exactly the number the carrier inputs to conduct the query. Also, if drivers haven’t registered and provided consent, the process is slowed because FMCSA mail a letter to the address of the CDL holder asking them to register. Once the driver is registered, a link to provide consent will be emailed. Owner-operators running under their own authority must register as both a driver and owner, while those operating under a carrier’s authority only need to register as a driver.
Reymer suggested carriers update their recruiting materials and provide information and links to the registration process from the beginning. Including a driver consent form can also speed the process.
“I have been an advocate for the clearinghouse since I got into the industry [in 2004-05],” he said. “We want safer roads; we want people who should be off the roads off the roads, or at least put them through a process [to determine their safety].”
Lloyd Andrews
OMG! Why don’t they just be done with all their red tape and scheming ways to make money off drivers…. And make ROBOTS to drive these trucks! Better yet, why don’t we make it MANDATORY for the ones who keep pushing this crap down our throats to have to spend a min of two weeks in an otr truck, or they’ll lose xx amount of dollars, so they can see what real life is like living on the concrete! Methinks this guy should just stick to bowling and thank the truck drivers that bring the stuff to build bowling alley, and bring bowling pins and balls! I got out of the industry when they came up with the cpap money making scheme. Yes my neck is larger than 18″ and I didn’t and won’t buy a stupid cpap machine, and that was 2010 and whad’ya know…. I still snore like a polan chain saw, and I’m still alive!!
Gloria A Lizardo
This is nonsense and shouldn’t be another thing we have to worry about. I wont join this data base. Like the driver mentioned, we get tested randomly that should be enough. Someone’s pockets are getting lined and there not out here doing the job!!!
Anon y. Mouse
Why can’t employers just have a terminal in hr for employees to pull up their accounts and just do a print out for employee files? Most don’t want this database around, I see no reason to support it.
Larry Teague Jr
It’s people like this guy I bet he pop pills and drink alcohol like a fish then y’all try to regulate everything in trucking what truckers need to do is go on strike stay on strike till things change oh I forgot to many dam company drivers to dam scared too
Larry Ray
I find this “database” , just another infringement on personal privacy, we take random D&A test as it is, what’s next, registration of my DNA? I’d love to see the test results of the industry executives and politicians that brought this about.
Herman Grajeda
I live in Long Beach, CA and the air here is already toxic and people in LA County are been diagnosed with heart disease, lung cancer.and some other breathing – air toxic chemical that damages the human body.
To shift gears, the Motor Carrier is not responsible for the driver as the driver is not responsible for the Motor Carrier. Therefore, a o fees, penalties shall be imposed on the Motor Carrier.
I have already shared my opinion about the rules and the respect stablished to FMCSA. We pay fees for MC, pay fees for the Ports then we shall be independent contractors, owner operators as we are titled.
For example, do we drugs test or have a data base for a independent contractor that is going or rebuilt your restroom or any other type of independent contractor.
Let the prosecution rest.
I believe the way the system was without any database was fine and stop trying make it more complicated for the American Truck Driver.
Is not like we drivers go to your desk and tell you what drawer to open or what pencil to sharpen or what paper to clip and enter the results into a database for you to get hired by another employer.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please feel free to email me at [email protected]
Think about before rules are been put on us.
Founder
Clean Truck Driver Program
Bobby Otay
I see a bigger problem with tobacco how about just living on the planet Earth and breathing air more signs of the times this doesn’t help improve safety of the road it’s just another individuals way of scamming people out of money
ThaGearJammer25/8
Just goes to show how forward thinking the industry is…. the most used drug is alcohol! Hardly tested for! Everything is is a toxin and flushed though the system in days… except weed, which is legal. Why not use the resources for mental health?? Therapy? Helping with depression? The underlining issue for use. And driver aggression. Ohh btw it’s fee based and we’ve established the monopoly, soberly your same Flavor of scum bag government official D & R.
Art
This concept is a joke.
Imagine every driver in the country needing to register on DMW website to give permission for auto insurance agency to check their records.
Way too complicated… and people change jobs left and right.
Will Bradford
More regulations to take more money from the truckers. Meanwhile, those that want to use drugs still do. I know several that are mocking this as they have found loopholes to get around it. They even beat random drug test. Myself, I get called in frequently because the carrier knows I am clean. I have never done drugs but it cost me more in this legal garbage. I would love to know how much kick back this jerk that thought of this is getting? We need to shut down, but their are very few of us O/O’s
Will Bradford
Please….don’t give them any ideas
Last real trucker
I think after president trump gets reelected fmcsa,needs cleaned out I’m getting with him and that chow lady this bs with them is getting really stupid