Build a Positive and Sustainable Safety Culture for Your Company
Driver Expectations and Driver Retention
Did you know that 50% of drivers will leave a company in the first six months because the job wasn’t what they expected? This driver retention issue is all about the culture of the company hiring.
When it comes to hiring new drivers, you want to make sure they are a good fit for your company if you want to reduce driver turnover. So, how can you ensure the drivers you hire will fit in and have their expectations met? There are 4 things you can do to improve the recruiting and hiring process.
Honesty in Recruitment
The first step towards hiring the right drivers for your company is honesty during the recruitment process. You want to bring in as many drivers as you can to help your company grow, but if you aren’t honest during the process, you increase your overall costs.
Every time you have to hire a new driver, and retrain, you are adding to the costs it takes to maintain your business. If you start out being truthful about what the job entails, you have a better chance of attracting the best driver candidates for your company.
This honesty includes expected schedules and routes, type of freight, type of equipment required, and how you plan to pay them. Drivers tend to prefer certain environments, which leads to another important step in setting the right expectations.
Check Driver Work History
You will have a better idea of a driver’s comfort zone by reviewing their work history. This is a good base line for whether they will fit into your company. For instance, someone who has worked regional jobs previously is going to feel more comfortable with that scenario than doing over the road driving.
You also want to check how often they switch between jobs. If they switch often with companies like yours, this is a good indication that setting is not right for them.
Checking their work history also means looking at their accident and violation history. Part of making sure a driver is a good fit is knowing they will fit in with your company’s safety culture. Once you have a good idea a new driver will fit in, you want to prepare them for their job expectations in more depth.
Start New Drivers with Onboarding Training
If you want to improve driver retention, you need to make sure new hires are fully prepared to work with your company. Onboarding training will help you provide the materials they need to know what is expected of them and will help you make sure they are serious about joining your company.
Using an online commercial driver safety training management system will allow you to provide all the training materials needed to prepare new hires for their role. Make sure they understand what their duties and responsibilities will be.
During onboarding, you will also want to put your expectations in writing. Give new hires a good idea of the good and bad involved with working at your company. Be clear about their role and have them sign to show they understand.
Follow Up with New Hires in the First Six Months
If you really want to increase driver retention, you will need to follow up with new drivers and provide feedback during the first six months. During this follow up, you should also be prepared to listen to feedback from your new hires.
This is a good opportunity to make sure both sides are living up to expectations. Discuss how new drivers are doing with their role and hear what is and is not meeting their expectations. This follow up is also a good opportunity to determine if a new hire needs further training in specific areas.
Communication is Key
If you want drivers to stick around, you need to have open communication with them. Driver retention starts with drivers who understand expectations and feel valued by their employer.
Training, using a program like Trucking 52, is a great way to help drivers prepare and maintain expectations throughout their employment. You can provide training year-round with Trucking 52, so drivers are always ready and know you value their safety.
Trucking 52 also simplifies the training process, so you can ensure drivers get the training they need without disrupting workflows. Would you like to see for yourself how easy it is to get started? Contact us to set up a free demo.
