CSA already is having a ripple effect in recruiting, driver development
We’re only two months in, but the effects of Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) – the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new safety measurement system for rating carrier safety performance – already are being felt by carriers. In the face of a predicted driver shortage, CSA likely will exacerbate the situation, placing a greater need for proactive driver recruiting and retention strategies. Here are four ways CSA is (or will be) affecting fleets and how they are adapting their driver development strategies to stay ahead of the game.
1. Recruiting for safety
While fleets don’t assume responsibility for the past driving transgressions of new hires, they are evaluated on crashes and inspection data accrued by drivers under their own U.S. Department of Transportation numbers. These violations remain on fleets’ records for a period of two years and can cause an “ALERT” in one of CSA’s seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs). Increased attention to the safety performance of potential drivers can help fleets avoid negative CSA scores.
“If you don’t take care of your CSA scores and protect the safety of your drivers and the general public, you’re going to be a short-lived company,” warns Mike Hitchcock, corporate director of driver development for Phoenix-based Knight Transportation.
As the combination of CSA and an aging work force begin to chip away at the size of the driver market, many fleets will turn to new entrants in place of veteran drivers. U.S. Xpress – which recently announced plans to increase its work force in Chattanooga, Tenn., by 30 percent (roughly 300 workers) – is considering a move toward new drivers.
“From a long-range viewpoint, we think [CSA] is going to impact us in looking at taking a higher percentage of our work force from an entry-level area,” says Russ Moore, vice president of recruiting for U.S. Xpress. “We probably aren’t as dependent on entry-level driver training as some of our competitors, but I think long-term that is going to be a bigger part of how we construct and attract our work force.”
“In addition to CSA, you’re looking at a generational change in our industry,” adds Greg Thompson, U.S. Xpress spokesman. “Long-time drivers are approaching retirement age. With that combination, it’s a great opportunity to be looking at [vocational and driving] schools.”
Fleets are seeing responsible drivers embrace the changes to CSA’s Safety Measurement System. Savvy drivers looking for work are even checking CSA scores for the carriers they’re considering. “They’re going on the FMCSA website and looking to see who has alerts,” says Jamie Steele, director of fleet development and recruiting for Indianapolis-based Celadon. “From a recruiting standpoint, those are the folks you want to work for you because they care about where they work.”
2 New applicant screening
When FMCSA released its Pre-Employment Screening Program (PSP) last year, it provided fleets with complete transparency into applicants’ violation history (five years of crash data and three years of inspection data). While not directly related to CSA, fleets can use PSP reports to predict how drivers might perform based on past performance in order to decrease fleet exposure to violations in CSA’s SMS.
“The more driver safety and performance data available to review will ultimately screen out poorer performers, as companies will not hire these drivers for concern over their own potential negative carrier scores,” says Bert Johnson, director of human resources and recruiting for Joplin, Mo.-based Con-way Truckload.
