VIDEOOn this week’s episode of Taking the Hire Road, Josh Hankins, senior vice president of safety, security and driver personnel at J.B. Hunt, sat down with guest host Leah Shaver, president and CEO of The National Transportation Institute, to discuss how listening to drivers and jumping in-cab helps to drive the direction he and his team take with policies, and to highlight J.B. Hunt and Carol Ekster’s new book, “Trucker Kid.”Hankins has been with J.B. Hunt for nearly 20 years. He started part time in the driver personnel department while attending the University of Arkansas. “Back then, I was taking applications over the phone for folks who wanted to come work for J.B

VIDEOOn this week’s episode of Taking the Hire Road, Tracy Rushing, executive director of safety and recruiting with R.E. Garrison Trucking and recipient of the Influential Woman in Trucking Award, sat down with host Jeremy Reymer, founder of DriverReach and Project 61, to discuss the importance of having the right mindset when it comes to recruiting and how staying focused on drivers is what sets the best carriers apart.“I love talking about one thing that really matters, and that is how to keep our drivers working,” Rushing said.  “We laugh sometimes, because our whole industry is expected to be an invisible powerhouse that brings us everything we need, and by the way, we need to do that without any interruption to the rest of the world,” Rushing said. “A lot of times, we lose sight of the role of the recruiter in all that.” R.E. Garrison Trucking is known across the industry for its commitment to supporting drivers. “There are two types of people at RE Garrison – you will either drive a truck, or you will support the person driving a truck,” Rushing said. “We’ve spent some time this year reflecting on how that sets us apart as a destination employer for drivers and staff around the country,” Rushing said. “I’m actually proud to say that it’s setting us less and less apart, because other carriers have picked up on our successes and adopted that mentality.”At R.E. Garrison Trucking, Rushing says, every position outside of the cab of the truck has to support what happens in that cab for the business to be successful. “Ultimately, to make all the superhero moves we need to make for this industry to do what it needs to do, we have to stay focused on that end goal, which is the backbone of everything we do,” Rushing said.“I’m really proud to see the alignment that was born of us making that commitment,” Rushing said

VIDEOOn this week’s episode of Taking the Hire Road, Brandon Wiseman, owner and president of Trucksafe Consulting, sat down with host Jeremy Reymer, founder of DriverReach and Project 61, to review important compliance-related changes to trucking’s landscape that come with Phase II of the Drug Alcohol Clearinghouse program.Trucksafe is a DOT consulting company that helps transportation companies stay in compliance with DOT regulations.“Our goal is to help trucking and bus companies of all sizes stay in compliance with the multitude of regulations that apply to their business,” said Wiseman. “We want to help keep their drivers safe and compliant and out of the crosshairs of regulators.” Trucksafe regularly publishes informative content through podcasts, social media, online resources and the Trucksafe Compliance Network, a forum that helps safety professionals learn from one another.Recently, Trucksafe launched eRegs, a software company that provides digital versions of the federal safety regulations. “Now fleets and their drivers can access an up-to-date version of the regulations more easily than ever,” said Wiseman. “The eRegs app includes access to all of the content we’ve developed to help break down practical steps for following those regulations.”Since 2020, Trucksafe consulting has been primarily focused on helping the industry comply with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Commercial Driver’s License Drug Alcohol Clearinghouse program. The Clearinghouse is a secure online database that gives employers, FMCSA, state driver licensing agencies (SDLAs) and state law enforcement personnel real-time information about commercial driver’s license (CDL) and commercial learner’s permit (CLP) holders’ drug and alcohol program violations. The Clearinghouse enables employers to identify drivers who commit a drug and alcohol program violation while working for one employer but who subsequently fail to inform another employer, as required.Employers are required to annually query the Clearinghouse for current and prospective employees’ drug and alcohol violations before permitting those employees to operate a commercial motor vehicle on public roads.Thankfully, the Clearinghouse closed a significant compliance loophole with drug and alcohol compliance in 2020, according to Wiseman.“For the many drivers and carriers who are using the Clearinghouse correctly with registered accounts, it’s definitely accomplishing its purpose,” Wiseman said. “The FMCSA publishes its reports every month, and in the most recent numbers, there are roughly 180,000 CDL drivers currently in prohibited status, meaning they’re legally prohibited from operating a commercial motor vehicle. We’ve seen that number rise substantially in the past few years. It’s catching folks who have had drug or alcohol problems.”There are currently only a few methods for enforcing the Clearinghouse requirements, including FMCSA compliance audits