If you’re planning to launch a new incentive program to promote safety or fuel efficiency, be sure to communicate with employees. Put your commitment to the program in writing, and form an advisory team to identify related problems, suggest solutions and develop action plans. An ongoing newsletter or message from the president will help maintain interest in the initiative.
Source: How to Implement Incentive Programs for Safety and Productivity, Transport Development Centre, Transport Canada

Keep bonus payments separate

If offering bonuses for safe or fuel-efficient driving, keep cheques separate from regular pay envelopes. That way, drivers won’t begin to see the payments as a component of traditional compensation packages.
Source: How to Implement Incentive Programs for Safety and Productivity, Transport Development Centre, Transport Canada

Distribute payments frequently

Consider paying bonuses on a quarterly basis, rather than annually, to allow quick re-entry into an incentive program in the event of a penalty.
Source: How to Implement Incentive Programs for Safety and Productivity, Transport Development Centre, Transport Canada

Incentives lead to fewer claims

Surveyed truck fleets reduced their insurance claims, workers’ compensation claims and crashes by 65 per cent after introducing safety incentive programs.
Source: Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Retention and Safety, U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Turnover linked to crashes

Commercial Motor Vehicle drivers who hold two or more different jobs in two years are at a higher risk of being involved in a crash than drivers with stable employment records. Those who average three or more jobs in each of the two years are twice as likely to be involved in a crash.
Source: Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Retention and Safety, U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Career paths retain drivers

The most progressive fleet training programs offer drivers the opportunity to advance to other positions in the company, such as management or sales. Drivers who receive this training are less likely to change jobs.
Source: Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Retention and Safety, U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Train the whole employee

Comprehensive training programs devote attention to lifestyle issues and the personal challenges that face truckers. Drivers who take these programs feel more committed to their company.
Source: Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Retention and Safety, U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Are you overlooking women?

The 2001 Census identified trucking as the top employer of Canadian men, with 255,990 of them holding jobs behind the wheel. However, only 7,520 women held driving jobs – doubling their numbers in 10 years, but still accounting for less than three per cent of the overall workforce.
Source: 2001 Census

Skilled sources outside Canada

Canada’s Immigration requirements don’t tend to look at foreign truck drivers as skilled workers, making it more difficult for them to enter the country. But the Canada-Saskatchewan Agreement on Provincial Nominees recognizes truck drivers among the list of key job skills required by the province.

The Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council (CTHRC) is an incorporated non-profit organization with a volunteer Board of Directors that is representative of stakeholders from the Canadian trucking industry. With the conviction that the best human resources skills and practices are essential to the attainment of excellence by the Canadian trucking industry, the mission of the Council is “to assist the Canadian trucking industry to recruit, train and retain the human resources needed to meet current and long-term requirements”. For more information, go to www.cthrc.com.