PHOTO CREDIT: SHUTTERSTOCK Guest post by FreightWaves’ Chief Economisr Ibrahiim Bayaan Job growth rebounded nicely in March as employers added nearly 200,000 workers to payrolls during the month. This strength in hiring did not translate to the trucking industry however, where payrolls declined for the first time in nearly a year. The Bureau of Labor […]

PHOTO CREDIT: SHUTTERSTOCK by Ray J. Haight, TCA Retention Coach As I’m sure everyone is aware, this process cannot be successful by jumping around the different levels; each section is designed to build on the last. So far, in this series, we have established the groundwork, platform, safety focus, as well as communication and recognition […]

PHOTO CREDIT: SHUTTERSTOCK Guest post by FreightWaves’ John Gallagher A formal rulemaking likely will not be required to make permanent a federal demonstration project that seeks to assign proper blame for trucking accidents. The 24-month “Crash Preventability Demonstration Program” that was launched by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) in August 2017 will end […]

Ashley Coker IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK The employer in this case hired an independent payroll service provider to take over all the payroll tasks that would otherwise be performed by an internal payroll department. A former employee sued the employer and the payroll company on multiple claims, including breach of contract, negligence, and negligent misrepresentation.  The payroll […]

Ashley Coker IMAGE: PARKSLEY VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY Motorists were in a pinch after load of crabs spilled onto a Virginia street Saturday afternoon. The driver hauling the crabs ran off the roadway, then attempted to overcorrect, according to Hopeton, Virginia emergency responders. The driver had to be extricated from the truck, but he sustained only […]

Ashley Coker FREIGHTWAVES CEO CRAIG FULLER REACTS TO NEWS OF FIRST TRADE / IMAGE: JOSH RODEN, FREIGHTWAVES FreightWaves, in partnership with Nodal Exchange and DAT, launched the world’s first financially settled Trucking Freight Futures contracts at 9 a.m. Friday, March 29. The first trade came through within 20 minutes of opening, at 9:18 a.m. The […]

(SOURCE: SHUTTERSTOCK) By TCA Vice President of Government Affairs Dave Heller & TCA Manager of Government Affairs Kathryn Sanner As March comes to a close, the timeline for Congress to produce a viable infrastructure plan is getting shorter. Realistically, if a proposal is to pass through both the House and the Senate, then make its […]

Ashley Coker (SOURCE: SHUTTERSTOCK) With less than nine months to go before the ELD mandate’s full compliance phase kicks in, TCA Vice President of Government Affairs Dave Heller is urging fleets still utilizing AOBRDs to start making the transition sooner rather than later. During phase two of ELD mandate enforcement, fleets that installed AOBRDs before […]

Chris Henry, Program Manager, TCA Profitability Program (SOURCE: SHUTTERSTOCK) “Empowerment is not giving your people the ability to make decisions. Empowerment is the giving your people the ability to mistakes” – Steve Hitchcock, COO of Duncan and Son Lines The above quote got me thinking deeply about empowerment – true empowerment, which also requires a […]

Ashley Coker IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK Detention time has climbed over the last couple of months, in conjunction with a stabilizing freight market. FreightWaves’ SONAR shows a sharp decrease in outbound tender rejection rates compared to all of 2018. This indicates that carriers are being more compliant with their contracted rates and turning to the spot market […]

IMAGE: VVMF The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) presented awards to recognize the efforts of Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) members who volunteered their time and equipment to haul The Wall That Heals in 2018. The presentation was made by VVMF’s Director of Outreach Tim Tetz during TCA’s 81st Annual Convention at the Wynn Las Vegas Resort in […]

IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK By TCA Retention Coach Ray Haight Recapping what we have learned so far from this series of articles would have us remember step one, which was creating a firm foundation for change starting with a commitment from the senior leadership. Step 2 was determining where you are in the marketplace for driver compensation […]

Ashley Coker IMAGE: JIM ALLEN/FREIGHTWAVES Some highlights from this month’s J.D. Power Commercial Truck Guidelines industry update: Volume at auction on the rise The number of trucks sold at auction rose moderately in February, which the report called a “encouraging data point” for a month without many auctions on the calendar. Pricing trended lower, but […]

R. Eddie Wayland, TCA Legal Counsel IMAGE: JIM ALLEN/FREIGHTWAVES The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently issued an important decision related to the classification of workers as either employees or independent contractors under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The decision is important because it overrules changes made to the independent contractor analysis under the […]

IMAGE: JIM ALLEN/FREIGHTWAVES By Steve Hitchcock, COO of Duncan and Son Lines I’ve read a couple of books recently that made me happy: “Factfulness” by Hans Rosling and “Enlightenment Now” by Steven Pinker.  Each book flies in the face of the doom and gloom we see and read every day in our news and other […]

Brian Snell, a professional truck driver for Pottle’s Transportation of Hermon, Maine, has been named the 2018 Highway Angel of the Year by the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) and its partner EpicVue. Snell was recognized during Tuesday’s general session at TCA’s 81st Annual Convention in Las Vegas. On June 8, 2018 at 2:15 a.m., the Snell […]

IMAGE: JIM ALLEN / FREIGHTWAVES Central Oregon Truck Company, Inc. of Redmond, Oregon, Searcy Specialized of Harrison, Ohio, and Meritor, Inc. of Kansas City, Missouri were recognized for their contributions to the 2018 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree during Sunday’s Communications & Image Policy Committee meeting at the Truckload Carriers Association’s (TCA) 81st Annual Convention in Las […]

Ashley Coker IMAGE: JIM ALLEN / FREIGHTWAVES TCA Retention Coach Ray Haight will speak at the National Recruiting and Retention Symposium in Ontario, Canada next month. The symposium, powered by TransRep, will focus on educating transportation industry leaders about recruitment, retention and human resources issues. “Drivers are most carriers’ number one issue,” Haight said. “Education […]

R. Eddie Wayland, TCA Legal Counsel IMAGE: JIM ALLEN / FREIGHTWAVES The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which is based in Philadelphia and has federal jurisdiction over Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, recently issued an important decision related to the classification of drivers as independent contractors. Carriers […]

(PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK) By Ray Haight, TCA Retention Coach An old saying goes “Silence speaks louder than words” and this can be especially true if your company doesn’t have an effective, robust communication strategy in place. If you aren’t using your words to effective communicate, I would guess that your retention numbers are suffering much by […]