Programmed to Screw
Werner Enterprises would like the U.S. public to believe that a QualComm aboard EVERY truck makes trucking safer. This is FALSE.
Werner Enterprises would like to have ALL Drivers believe that the QualComm is infallible. This is FALSE.
Bum Steer | Glitches
Galore | Abuses | DOT
Legal? | Don't Touch It! |
Werner's Rogue Team
No Safer--Deadlier
Werner Enterprises had 21 fatal crashes in 2002!
Werner's fatality rate was 1:948 (One death for
every 948 tractors) in 1998. The fatality rate increased
to 1:655 in 1999. For 2000, the fatality rate increased to 1:480.
For 2001, the fatality rate increased to 1:447. Similarly, for
2002, the fatality rate increased to 1:391. Werner Enterprises
has no right to be in business with a safety record like that!
See Chart for comparisons.
Werner Enterprises had more accidents during the year 2002;
Werner's accident rate was 1:15. (One accident for every
fifteen tractors.) See Werner
Charts for more info.
Werner's adoption of the QualComm had absolutely nothing to do with public safety or driver safety. Werner's primary reasons for embracing QualComm monitoring was increased cost savings and improved operational efficiency. Period.
A mile here, a mile there...
Werner Enterprises pays its company drivers by a pre-determined "computer database" set of miles. Werner's fraud is that a driver thinks they are being paid by-the-mile, but--in reality--the driver is travelling more miles than the computer is giving them credit for. It is a nice loop-hole in the system...for Werner that is. Drivers must trust Werner and have faith that Werner is fairly determing the correct miles. If a trucker drives over the pre-selected mileage, the driver will not be paid the extra miles.
Bum Steer
A driver may think that Werner's Database has accurate information to accurately find shippers/receivers. No such luck. In fact, Werner's computer based directions are often incorrect. I asked my Trainer why he would not report wrong directions. He told me he tried, but his dispatcher didn't care.
Glitches Galore
The software used to provide a physical location of a Werner truck is "buggy." For example, when I was driving in Texas, I recorded the name and mile marker of the rest stop I was visiting. When I checked the computer, the location of the stop was some 200 miles to the north...basically in the middle of nowhere. The flaw doesn't lie in the GPS longitude, latitude, and altitude triangulation algorithms, which can be (if desired by Werner) cleaned up to provide pinpoint positioning using Differential GPS (DGPS). This type of miscalculation is a software (translation) error.
ABUSES
An ignorant Werner dispatcher armed with QualComm coordinates can be dangerous and possibly even deadly. While I was engaged in "hotel duty" in the Allentown, PA terminal, one driver was explaining a positioning error to his dispatcher. The dispatcher told him that the system was flawless and no errors could exist; the driver continued to argue that his QualComm location was wrong. If the coordinates are false and a dispatcher continues to believe them--the driver has little recourse. A driver could complain to Werner Safety, but most likely this dispatcher will report the driver and he will receive a write-up. Werner then applies their famous "constructive termination" practices--reduced miles and hotel duty. Werner doesn't like problems.
DOT Legal?
Werner drivers can still drive illegally. You can log on as your partner's number. You can drive on "personal time." I'm sure "Team Werner" has a few tricks.
Don't Touch It!
Drivers are told not to operate the QualComm while the vehicle is in motion. Answering the QualComm is grounds for termination. What's the driver going to do if a dispatcher wants a real-time report every five minutes? Wait until the next truck pull-off or rest area, which maybe 100 miles away? Yes, that's what C.L. says. However, what C.L. says and how you keep your Werner job are two entirely different things. Pickup the QualComm and answer it and keep moving, but don't get in an accident. That's the unwritten policy. Cellular phones (while driving) are bad enough and the QualComm is worse!
The paperless log system has reduced Werner's paper work and has provided C.L.'s dispatchers with the location of the tractor (trailer?) that are--at times--questionable. Werner Drivers are saved the "hassle" of filling out old fashioned paper logs. Such a deal.
CL's 12 "Apostles"--A novel idea
Werner Enterprises created a new Safety Department called
The Werner Road Team. Twelve die-hard Werner Truckers
were given an opportunity to see the inner workings of the
Screw-O-Matic. Werner's 12
Apostles will be spreading safety tips to drivers, ethics
(professionalism), and good tidings. Those screwed by Werner
will call this a public relations ploy.
Let's not be too hasty in passing judgment. Werner's Apostles
will bridge the "communications gap" and act as
"liaisons." Wow, Werner admitted it had a problem,
but no longer! "Working together" the Werner Road
(Rogue) Team will "help" drivers, dispatchers, and
goal driven Werner accomplish mutual goals. Feels warm and
fuzzy. In order for the Werner Rogue team to be effective
they MUST monitor QualComm communications. Taking a rough
figure of 7,202 Tractor units and dividing 12 Apostles results
in 600. Roughly speaking, 1 Werner Apostle is responsible
for 600 Tractors. Ideally, they may discover one or two violations
a day. In this scenario, Werner's Rogue Team doesn't have
enough Apostles. They will be overworked and unable to pursue
all violations. And if they pursue a single violation, how
will the driver or dispatcher be disciplined? As an internal
police force, little discipline will occur. Like having a
fox watch the hen house. Absurd! These Apostles have no Great
Commission!
Werner's
Rogue Team maybe better suited for union busting.
(Notice the distinctive Rogue Team patch) The Rogue Team appears
multi-cultural!
As a driver, you can't complain Werner screwed you because
you were a minority or a woman. Werner's Rogue Team is made
up of African-Americans and other nationalities. The Rogue
Team will take good care of you--like a Big Brother. Ok, the
Rogue Team is mostly white guys--some are more equal than
others!
Here is what it is all about. Instead of offering an hourly
salary and better pay to all drivers--Werner created this
flimsy "team." There is a Judas amongst CL's Apostles
and I want to hear from him!
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