Arkansas Trucking Association

ATA hosts 2nd Annual Safety Symposium

Arkansas Trucking Association held its second annual Safety Symposium at the Embassy Suites in Little Rock on October 2-3. This year's line-up offered attendees from 28 member companies six educational sessions.

The event was sponsored by Coolfire Solutions and DriverReach.

Tuesday morning was dedicated to Litigation Landmines in three sessions led by attorneys from Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP. First Kyle Wilson and Michael Thompson delivered direction about how to react in the critical moments after an accident in their presentation “First Response.” Then Neemah Esmaeilpour discussed drugs and how to ensure you have a drug-free workplace now that Arkansas has legalized medical marijuana. Esmaeilpour answered questions about what to do when your employees qualify for their medical marijuana card and how important it is to identify safety-sensitive positions.

After lunch, attorney Jerry Sallings discussed reptile theory and presented a role-playing video that demonstrated the kinds of questions and the sequence of questions that appeal to one’s primal sense of fear and traps the respondent in an unfavorable deposition.

At the end of the first day, Scopelitis Transportation Consulting’s Dave Osiecki explained where video event recording technology is today, the types of devices available, how to use the data they provide, and the ways video event recorders deliver on your investment.

On Wednesday, retired senior vice president of safety, security, and driver training at Schneider National, made a case for creating a culture that values safety above profit. The presentation prompted discussion among attendees about how operations teams and safety teams can work together in the goal of improving safety culture at a company.

Finally, FMCSA’s Kevin Breedlove talked about how highway police are enforcing the ELD Mandate, answered questions about personal conveyance flexibility, and what’s ahead for hours of service.