Twenty trucking companies from across North America have been named the 2013 Best Fleets to Drive For by the Truckload Carriers Assn. (TCA). The annual survey and contest, now in its fifth year, identifies for-hire trucking companies that provide the best workplace experiences for their drivers.
This year’s winners are:
In addition, five companies have been identified as “Fleets to Watch” (honorable mentions) for demonstrating innovation in their driver programs:
The nomination process began in the fall of 2012, when company drivers and owner-operators were asked to nominate carriers that operate 10 or more trucks. After confirming the validity of the nominations and the trucking companies’ desire to participate, CarriersEdge, sponsor of the contest, interviewed human resources representatives and executives of the nominated fleets about their corporate direction, policies, and programs. Nominated fleets were evaluated against a scoring matrix covering a variety of categories, such as:
A selection of each fleet’s drivers was also surveyed, with their feedback compared to management’s and incorporated into the final score. The responses were then tallied, resulting in the selection of this year’s winners and honorable mentions.
“It’s a pleasure to report that we had a 50% increase in nominations and participation for the fifth anniversary of the program. Clearly, being named a Best Fleet to Drive For is a prestigious title that is motivating companies to constantly raise the bar on the offerings they provide their truck drivers,” said Mark Murrell, president of CarriersEdge.
The Yanke Group of Companies, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, holds the distinction of being the only company to be named a Best Fleet for all five years since the program was launched.
“I think that’s a real achievement, considering how much we’ve seen fleets improve their programs since we started,” said TCA President Chris Burruss. “It’s very difficult to get named a Best Fleet to begin with, let alone remain on the list for five consecutive years.”
Now that the winners have been named, the next phase of the contest is to announce the highest scoring fleets from each of two categories: Best Overall Fleet for Owner Operators and Best Overall Fleet for Company Drivers. These overall winners will be honored at the TCA Annual Convention, March 3-6, 2013, at the Wynn Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.