Six of top 20 ‘Best Fleets to Drive For’ based in Canada
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The top 20 Best Fleets to Drive For in Canada and the US have been announced by CarriersEdge and the Truckload Carriers Association, and once again there’s a strong Canadian contingent.
Six of the 20 best fleets are Canadian, including: Bison Transport; Celadon Canada; D.J. Knoll Transportation; Erb Group; Kriska Holdings; and Yanke Group. Rounding out the Best Fleets were: Best Cartage; Boyd Bros. Transportation; Don Hummer Trucking; Fremont Contract Carriers; Gordon Trucking; Grand Island Express; Landstar Systems; Motor Carrier Services; Paramount Freight Systems; Sammons Trucking; Steelman Transportation; Tennant Truck Lines; Trimac Transportation in Houston, Texas; and WTI Transport.
Also getting a nod this year as “Fleets to Watch” were: Liberty Linehaul of Ayr, Ont.; TimeLine Logistics International of Saskatoon, Sask.; American Central Transport; Epes Transport System; and Melton Truck Lines. These fleets were deemed to be worth watching as they boast some innovative driver-oriented programs.
The Best Fleets to Drive For program is administered by Canadian online training firm CarriersEdge along with the Truckload Carriers Association. To qualify, a for-hire trucking company with 10 or more trucks must be nominated by one of its drivers or owner/operators. Nominees then undergo a detailed screening and interviewing process conducted by CarriersEdge.
Considerations include: total compensation package; health benefits; pension plans; professional development opportunities; advancement opportunities; commitment to employee personal growth; commitment to continuous improvement; team-building activities; turnover rate; and fleet safety.
Mark Murrell, president of CarriersEdge and founder of the program said interest continues to grow.
“For 2012, we saw a heightened level of interest from the nominated fleets. It seems that everybody wants to be named a Best Fleet to Drive For,” he said. “Some folks even called us before we began interviewing just to double-check that we had their current contact information.”
“We saw a 35% increase in the number of fleets that not only agreed to participate, but completed all their interviews and paperwork on time to make it to the final segment of the competition,” added Gary Salisbury, TCA chairman and the president and CEO of Fikes Truck Line.
Program administrators said more fleets seem to be offering profit sharing as part of their compensation packages lately. They also seem to be replacing some of their traditional safety-based bonus systems with more comprehensive programs. Drivers are increasingly being rewarded for things such as fuel efficiency, on-time delivery and training initiatives, organizers say.
Two grand prize winners – Best Overall Fleet for Owner/Operators and Best Overall Fleet for Company Drivers – will be announced at the TCA’s annual convention March 4-7 at the Gaylord Palms in Kissimmee, Fla.
For more information, visit www.bestfleetstodrivefor.com. To read a feature on some of the best practices of last year’s winners, visit here.
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I was surprised that Coastal Pacific Xpress out Cloverdale British Columbia wasn’t included in the top six companies. Led by Jim Mickie and his group drivers, dispatchers, mechanic etc… is well deserving of being in the top 6 companies. They have been known in BC as one of the best employers to work for, as well they are well-received for their community work.
Re ” SPY IN THE CAB ” IE, Tachograughs, [ elec recorders ]
I am 70 years of age, and have been hauling freight for 54 years, and still doing it for fun in the UK.
I am self employed, mostly running 44 ton reefers on a spot hire basis.
Companies offer me more work than I can handle,why, because I work with in the law, the “tacho” is my best friend, I get paid from the minute I put the tacho in till the minute it comes out!
I have worked with tachos since they were introduced in the UK, we had the same doubts, but as I stated at more than one union meeting, the only people to have a problem with them, would be drivers and employers working outside of the law !
The tacho allows the driver to say NO when the employer is “screwing” the job, also it is your greatest witness when involved in an accident, to prove you were within the speed limit, and your safe driving style before the incident.
Thank god the days of running three log books, 24 hrs a day have gone, just to keep your job, a roof over your head, and food in the kids bellies!
All of us at Sammons Trucking out of Missoula Montana are very proud to be included with such fine companies.
Hard to believe that this crap is still going on in the industry I mean with dispatchers lying to driver’s for appointments and still not a lot of respect from shippers or receiver’s But the industry still has a bad image from the old days i guess. There are still a lot of bad driver;s out there with bad attitudes and not a lot of customer service skills which are needed in today’s world. But that being said there are just as many professionals who wear it too from all ends. The companies, dispatchers and customers. No matter what you go through to deliver a load, someone, somewhere, is not satisfied. It is a real morale killer.
Why isn’t Purolator or UPS on this list? The hourly rate that theirdrivers are compensated for is one of if not the highest in the industry, not to mention a list of other positive incentives that some of the others don’t offer. Why did CarriersEdge and TCA leave out these great companies.
many years ago,i went to work for a company just east of winipeg,they have green t800 kenworths.they were rated among the top 50 companys in canada to work for,i though alright.during the oriontation,a driver sid the first 3 months they will treat you like gold,after that you are just a number.a year later when i left,there was only one guy out of 8 of that were in the oriontation.what i would like to know how do they base thier findings,whats good fo one drive may not be good for another.OTHER THAN SITTING WHITCH IS PART OF THE JOB,DISPATCHERS LIEING ABOUT PHONY APOINTMENT TIMES,just ask me to be early,rather than lie.ps i worked for coolx many years ago,john mckula,operations manager,would kill the dispatche who lied about an apointment,if you lie this week next week they wont believe you.he lived by those words.