Answers to e-mails

I have been getting loads of e-mails asking me the same questions maybe I should have a questions and answer section on my blog saves them keep asking me the same thing lol. I will answer the 2 main questions I get from them because a few seem to think I am sacred to publish negative comments about H&R so here goes.

The 2 questions i get asked the most are about the way we get paid and the other is why is there is a big turn over of drivers.

The pay in my opinion is very wrong (the Canadians have their way of doing things... who are we to tell them how to pay)! You get paid by the mile, its all worked out on a computer which is OK if you have a job but there have been times when drivers, including me, have been sent to one yard only to find out the trailer is in another yard but you don't get paid for their mistakes! You have to fill out a trip envelope and that has to be in by Wednesday or you don't get paid which is so unfair most guys here have families and if they get no wages then how do they buy food and pay bills, most truck drivers live from week to week and missing a weeks money is a major problem for them.

In Europe we get paid by the hour so many of us drivers knew roughly at the end of the week what we would get in our pay packets the next week, but not here its a total mystery I have o'level math and some times I'm baffled by the payslip!!

A number of drivers have said about getting paid by the hour but that will never happen here so don't come over to Canada thinking it will change because it won't. There have been many moans about sitting around waiting for a job or trailer to be loaded or unloaded but no moans when they get going and can earn up to $300 for a days driving. Most of the moans are from drivers who have always been paid by the hour I was once an owner driver so its OK for me and other ex owner drivers we understand from time to time you don't get paid for things.

There have been a few times when I have spoken to a driver who has bent over backwards to help save a load and found out his reward for that was no pay the next week because where he helped the dispatcher out he didn't get his envelope in on time and the few i have spoken to said that's the last time they help.

In my opinion... If we got paid by what out mileage reader says in the truck then they could add a small box on the bottom of our daily macro check asking us drivers for our mileage each day then at the end of the week they could do the wages with no hassle. Then, as in Europe we would have a rough idea of what we will get in our pay packets. All the expenses could be sorted out when they get the trip envelopes back but at least doing it this way its much fairer and the driver is going to get a pay packet every week. I think it sucks that a family man has to go without any money for a week just because he helped a dispatcher out of the shit by getting someone elses load to the delivery point on time.

If the way we got paid was done in a more fair way then there would be a lot of very happy drivers here. Like I have always said its not a bad company to work for it just needs a few changes. There is a saying in England 'if its not broken don't fix it' but that's not the case here its broken and if it was fixed drivers would be happy and would bend over backwards to help the company but not when you get stitched up with no money.

Question 2... Why is there a big turnover of drivers?

There seems to be a big turn over of drivers in Canada full stop. H&R are a big company they have loads of drivers, its not how many drivers leave you have to worry about its the percentage of drivers that leave I will give you an example

company A has 500 drivers, 100 leave in a year

company B has 100 drivers, 50 leave in a year

Company A has a big turnover but if you do the math... company A loose 20% of drivers a year and company B loose 50% so which is the best company to work for!!

The major problem with the truck company's in Canada is they have no incentives to keep the drivers. Does a company who say they care for the drivers let them go without money for a week after the drivers have done them a favour... NO! How does a company show a driver they appreciate them.... send a thanks every now and again on the macro.... NO! The company's in Canada think there is a never ending supply of drivers and they don't really seem to be bothered if a driver leaves or not because they have another bum to fill the seat...thats just the way it is!

All the good companies who look after drivers never have any jobs going because all the drivers are happy so why leave and lets face it if you have 500 very happy drivers they would do anything for a company that looks after them.

As a driver its good to get something extra from a company because you have done a good job. There are a number of things a company could do to make driver happy like fitting wi-fi in every yard. I don't mean the cheap and nasty stuff, at least when a driver is waiting for a trailer he can chat to family and friends. It would be even better if someone sorted out wi-fi at 2 meat plants we sit around at a lot. They would be less moans from drivers lol or when it comes to buying trucks have them fitted out with all the toys like fridge/freezer TV DVD microwave truck sat nav etc, If every truck was fitted with the right truck sat nav it would save a company so much money in fuel costs and insurance claims it would pay for all the extras in the truck in less than 6 months and make the drivers life a lot more stress free.

I know the first thing people will think about is the cost but when you work it out it is far less than keep training drivers up or paying high insurance because a dumb ass driver has taken the wrong route and spun around and hit cars!

If you had trucks fitted with all the extras as well as paying a driver the mileage he does every week and free wi-fi in all the yards, would there be drivers leaving? I don't think so! I don't want to upset anyone in the office but you are the ones who got drivers in from Europe. Give a driver what he needs not what you think he wants. H&R have a very good reputation in Canada for getting the job done, they have a very good kerb side image (I am proud to drive my truck) so why can't they go for the full Monty and have the best reputation for keeping drivers and making the driver happy and proud to work for H&R. If, and its a big if, they did change or think of some of the things I have said there would be one hell of a queue outside the door, then they could get rid of the rubbish and increase the size of their fleet because no driver would leave would they! It would not take them long to be the number one company in North America they are two thirds of the way there now... just a bit more!

Here's a good idea put questionnaire in drivers wage pack asking them whats wrong and see what comes back.


One last thing.... you read a lot about drivers leaving but the one thing you never hear is how many drivers jumped the fence and found the grass was not greener on the other side and came back!!!!!