trucking industry safety

Retaliated-against safety whistleblower to get thousands from ex-employer

March 4, 2020

OSHA has determined that Universal Trucking Solutions LLC – a defunct Hartford, Connecticut, commercial motor carrier – and its co-owner, Juan Ramirez, violated the whistleblower protections of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA). Agency investigators found that the company and Ramirez retaliated against a driver who repeatedly voiced concerns to management about faulty vehicle maintenance.

Invest in truck driver slips & falls protection

Invest in slips & falls protection

Safety footwear and fall protection protect truckers from specific hazards

Jane Jazrawy

June 19, 2019

Trucking can be a hazardous profession for drivers – and that’s before the driver has even set foot in the cab or put the vehicle in gear. For good reason -- fleets focus much of their attention on minimizing risks on the road, but there are also risks when a driver is on his or her feet as well, due to the risk of a fall.

driver training benefits, reduce your liability

Reap driver training benefits

Keep people safe – and reduce your liability

Mark Murrell

December 20, 2018

The worst time to realize your fleet’s safety program doesn’t measure up is when you’re answering questions in court, or at a deposition. Yet, even the best companies can find themselves in that uncomfortable position. If they do, it’s a sure bet the fleet’s own safety training program is where plaintiffs’ attorneys will look.

OSHA intervenes after driver fired for refusing to drive illegal truck

March 9, 2016

A truck driver fired for refusing to drive a company vehicle pulled from service by the Iowa Department of Transportation is owed $55,000 in back wages, damages and compensation from his employer, the finding of an OSHA investigation.

Driver fatigue led to fatal 2014 multi-vehicle collision in Ill.

February 10, 2016

The National Transportation Safety Board announced Tuesday that the probable cause of a fatal January 2014 crash near Naperville, Ill., was a truck driver’s delayed reaction caused by fatigue and the poor safety behavior of a high-risk motor carrier.

From NIOSH’ Research Rounds bulletins

Survey of long-haul truck drivers underscores safety concerns

December 25, 2015

When we go to the grocery store, we expect to find shelves stocked with the food we like, seldom reflecting on how it got there. Behind those stocked shelves, however, are the long-haul truck drivers whose jobs regularly require them to leave their families, friends, and homes to travel hundreds of miles to deliver the products that we buy.

DOT moves ahead on truck tech rule

Issues notice of proposed rulemaking on improved rear impact protection

December 10, 2015

The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that focuses on upgrading the Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSSs) that address underride protection in light-vehicle crashes into the rear of trailers and semitrailers.

Explosion injures four workers in St. Louis

Saia Motor Freight Line Co. operated forklifts with defective safety switches

February 16, 2015

Four employees were hospitalized, two of them in critical conditions, after an explosion at a St. Louis trucking terminal on Aug. 6, 2014. The explosion's cause: a forklift's ignition source and a loose coupling connection to a liquid propane gas tank.

South Dakota trucking company, driver declared imminent hazards to public safety

February 9, 2015

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has declared a Mitchell, South Dakota-based trucking company, Lonnie Roth, and separately its owner, Lonnie Roth, as a commercial driver, to be imminent hazards to public safety and ordered the company and the driver to immediately cease all interstate and intrastate commercial operations.

Safe Trailering

July 29, 2014

Selection of binding chains: (49CFR 393.102) Truckers frequently use chains to tie down their loads securely, to enhance safety and abide by the law. There are two important factors to keep in mind when evaluating chains.