Arkansas Trucking Association

Industry Communications Demand More Creativity

By Tom Ricciardone, Guest Writer

A truck driver’s day begins with the end in mind.

 Safety first. Safety always. There can be no compromise.

 Where what it takes is driven by what’s at stake: Dedication, passion, commitment—to upholding the highest standards of excellence.

 Where hard work and working hard are the price of entry. And professional pride is personal.

 Where preparation and attention to every detail are never in question. All day. Every day. No matter where. On and off the road.

 Each day the road ahead is filled with challenges. Unforeseen risks. From anywhere. At anytime.

 For the professional truck driver, for the business that keeps America moving, their business is safety.

What's in a Name?

By Greg Jones, Guest Writer

So, is that driver your employee? Or maybe an independent contractor? And what’s the big deal anyways?

Well, it might not be a big deal in some respects. But if facing exposure for hourly wages, unemployment insurance taxes, and company benefits is critical to your company, then the “employee”/ “independent contractor” distinction is a big deal.

Unfortunately, in our industry the determination of driver status remains a rather murky and treacherous area. And that lack of legal predictability can serve as the wellspring for costly litigation, as exemplified by two Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decisions issued Aug. 27, 2014. Both cases pitted FedEx Ground against FedEx delivery drivers in California and Oregon. The core issue was whether those drivers would be characterized as “employees” versus “independent contractors” under California and Oregon laws. If deemed to be “employees” (rather than “independent contractors” as their operating agreements with FedEx described them), then FedEx faced wide-ranging exposure for unpaid wages and company benefits.

Not Backing Down: The Fight for Highway Funding

By Philip Byrd, Guest Writer

Congestion and gridlock are, unfortunately, a way of life for us in the trucking industry. Traffic delays add costs, waste fuel and time and generally make the job of delivering America’s goods challenging.

Gridlock and congestion have also seized up our government in Washington – delaying critical actions that could make the job of delivering America’s good easier.

First, in June the Senate appeared poised to make our highways safer by easing the restrictions on the use of the hours-of-service restart. The Senate Appropriations Committee – by a bipartisan 21-9 vote – adopted language proposed by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) that would have lifted the restriction on using the restart more than once a week and the requirement that the restart include two periods between 1 and 5 a.m. for a year while the impact on safety were studied.

Shannon Newton, Selected to Lead Industry Group

The Board of Directors of the Arkansas Trucking Association (ATA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Shannon Newton as President.

Shannon has been with the ATA since 2003 and has served as vice president since 2008.  She succeeds Lane Kidd who resigned earlier this year. Newton will assume her duties immediately.

 "When we began our search for a new president, we knew that an experienced leader with deep industry knowledge and a broad skill set was exactly what we needed," stated Craig Harper, ATA Chairman of the Board and EVP/COO of J.B. Hunt Transport, Inc. “Shannon is a dynamic leader and extremely knowledgeable on the complex issues faced by our members. The board was unanimous in this appointment. She became the clear choice to lead the Arkansas Trucking Association forward.”

 “I am honored and humbled to have been chosen to lead the ATA,” said Ms. Newton. “The Arkansas trucking industry is a recognized national leader. My years with the association, working on behalf of this great industry, the member companies and the thousands of dedicated, professional men and women, in the cab and out, have been so rewarding. I welcome the opportunity as president to continue to work with the ATA’s extraordinary and dedicated staff and with these extraordinary members to help drive our industry’s growth.” 

Strength in Numbers

By Mitchell Lowe, Guest Writer

Most Americans have heard of political action committees, or PACs, but couldn’t tell you the first thing about them—except that they’re evil. Their malicious image is largely the result of negative press and the wide- spread demonization of special interest groups in the political process.

The fact is PACs, in one form or another, have been around since the advent of free elections…and they’re here to stay. Simply put, PACs are the joining together of individuals with common interests to achieve a goal. Today PACs should be components of the overall legislative and political strategy of any entity (company, trade association, etc.) that finds itself subject to the whims of a regulatory body.

Eyes Wide Open: The Big Rig Dilemma

By Tom Ricciardone, Guest Writer

On February 5, the day after an icy, wintry mix hit Central Arkansas, the front page of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette featured a four-column wide photo of an over-turned tractor-trailer. The bold type headline: “Rig Flips on I-30 Exit Ramp.”

Just days later, after another blast of weather, Sunday’s Page 1 headline read: “Woman Missing After Leap Into River to Avoid Hit By Rig.”

Imagine, with no advance warning, you have five minutes to address a room full of colleagues from throughout the state. Your task is to present a short bullet-point wish list for “marketing” the Arkansas trucking industry within the state and beyond.

As an industry insider, with a unique vantage point, what would you tell them?

This brief column can only scratch the surface, highlight a few “wish-list” items that might resonate along with some essential points of context to consider.

What Driver Shortage?

By Steve Banker Guest Writer

In the latest State of Logistics Report, it is reported that the trucking industry is currently short by about 30,000 drivers. Logistics professionals are frequently warned by trucking trade associations and big carriers about how CSA regulations have reduced the driver pool, and how Hours of Service will reduce driver productivity by perhaps 8 percent on average.

Who’s Winning the Political Perception Game?

By Mitchell Lowe, Guest Writer

While it’s difficult to identify any political winners in the aftermath of last month’s partial federal government shutdown, it’s not difficult to deduce that U.S. Senator Mark Pryor likely benefits the most from the fact that it occurred more than a year prior to Election Day 2014. Several recently released surveys show that Arkansans place most of the blame for the shutdown on President Barack Obama and the Democrats. One such poll, the 15th annual Arkansas Poll, conducted by the University of Arkansas from October 10-17, reveals that 39 percent of likely voters blamed the President and his party for the shutdown, while 27 percent placed blame with Republicans in Congress.

Video courtesy of TalkBusiness Arkansas

From The President's Desk

Much has been written about the new hours-of-service rules. Not many people in the industry are happy and even fewer know what to do about this seemingly endless cycle of change in the number of hours a commercial truck driver may work. Let's take the issue down to its basics. Because that's where the problem and the solutions can be found.

Not long after the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) was created, the agency began looking at ways to reduce the number of fatalities involving big trucks. That is essentially the agency's only charge.
The hours-of-service rules, or HOS, regulate the number of hours a truck driver may operate his vehicle in a week. So, naturally, those HOS rules became the cornerstone for the FMCSA in figuring out how to reduce accidents. The logical observation was (and is) that if you can reduce the number of hours, or improve the rest times, you can reduce driver fatigue, and if you can reduce driver fatigue, you can reduce the number of accidents.There were other factors that bolstered that view. A casual observer will see that a truck driver can drive as many as 11 hours with a brief break and work about 60 hours in a week. Most wage earners put in 40 hours a week. If asked if they want to drive a truck, most folks would pass on the job right there.

From the President's Desk

Three years ago a young man walked into a trucking company and applied for a job as a truck driver. The application process went well. So the company offered him a job—subject to passing a urinalysis—the federally mandated drug and alcohol exam that helps make sure we keep drug abusers from operating our tractor trailers.

As a matter of corporate policy, the company also required the applicant to pass a second drug exam—by removing a small half-inch snippet of hair and having it tested as well. You see, a urine test can identify drugs in your system over the last few days. Hair can identify drug use over the last few months. It's the preferred method in corporations where people are employed in high security or safety sensitive occupations. Although he passed the urinalysis, the hair test revealed he was a heavy cocaine user. So the trucking company sent him on his way.