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Road trip
Fields on Wheels
Slow down
Kenworth makes stop in Leduc during its road tour.
Conference addresses role trucking plays in agriculture.
B.C. reduces speed limits after uptick in collisions.
DECEMBER 2018 VOLUME 29, ISSUE 11
Reach us at our Western Canada news bureau Contact Derek Clouthier Derek@Newcom.ca or call 403-969-1506
WWW.TRUCKWEST.CA
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Image can be everything Panel says industry must step up to attract more people into trucking By Derek Clouthier
As the trucking industry navigates its way into the future, this past year had its share of successes and challenges, and 2019 is shaping up to be no different.
Reflections and foresight Western associations highlight greatest achievements of 2018, challenges for coming year
SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN There is a popular notion that if you pay, they will come, but much more goes into recruiting and retaining a quality workforce. Image plays a key role in the trucking industry’s struggles to attract a new, younger crop of employees. As a group of six panelists pointed out, work-life balance, safety, and comparable values all come into play when considering a career path. Speaking during the Saskatchewan Trucking Association’s (STA) annual AGM and Gala in Saskatoon Oct. 26, Erin Diehl, co-owner of D&E Transport, said it’s all about providing the basic needs anyone would expect in a workplace. “In our experience, to keep anyone interested in a career – women, Indigenous Peoples, minorities – you need to have the basic amenities for them,” said Continued on page 17
LANGLEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA Another year has nearly come and gone, and 2018 had its fair share of news that shaped the industry in one way or another. Whether it was how Canadian carriers were adjusting to the ELD mandate south of the border, what steps the industry is taking to address the need for more drivers, or the push for mandatory entry-level driver training in the aftermath of the Humboldt tragedy, the industry had a lot on its plate in 2018, and will continue to in the coming year. Truck West spoke to each of the western associations to see what they thought was their most significant achievement this past year, and what they could foresee as being the biggest challenge of 2019.
British Columbia For the British Columbia Trucking Association (BCTA), 2018 was all about making life for their members a little bit easier when it came to government red tape.
Shelley McGuinness, communications specialist with the BCTA, highlighted several wins for the association and its members on this front, including a strategy for one carrier for dealing with HOS restrictions exacerbated by delays from a long-term construction project in one region. Another was for the recall of a PST bulletin for aggregate haulers that required businesses selling and delivering product to tax deliveries, where the same was not required for third-party transporters. The BCTA was able to reverse permit fees incorrectly applied to heavy-haul carries. They also helped unblock delayed permit approvals and assist with reservations for over-dimensional vehicles on B.C. ferries, which McGuinness said was causing headaches due to long wait times. “These are a few brief highlights, but overall, BCTA saved approximately $3.54 million through policy and advocacy ‘wins’ and other types of assistance for our members and the industry this year,” said McGuinness. “We put time into industry-wide issues and those are important, but what our members also need is Continued on page 15
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By Derek Clouthier