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goodmichael

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Everything posted by goodmichael

  1. I am currently 55 years old, will be 56 in April, God willing. I guess , I am a job hopper. If I am not happy I am not going to sit around and be miserable. I am not going to sit around and watch a movie that sucks either. I will get up and leave. I offer suggestions on things I see need improvement, including safety items. I am not trying to run your company. I see thing being where the rubber hits the road that you do not. I speak face to face with clients daily to them I am the face of your business. My record for hours worked in a 2 week pay period is 178.93 hours. I am not lazy. I work until the job is complete. I have no issue working nights, holidays, and weekends. This is a service business. I have stepped away from many a holiday meal to answer a call for service. Only to return and zap it in the microwave. I do have basic requirements though. I expect you to be responsive and accommodating to maintenance. I currently reminded management that the Made in China trailer tires on my car hauler trailer had close to 57,000 miles on them. His response was are you checking the air pressure on them. I have never received any formal training on the equipment I operate, never received any instruction on weight limits, never any training on what to do in case of an emergency. The only documented training that I received was to take an online defensive driver training for four wheelers. I would say the safety program is horrible, but there is no safety program. I am older, and really do not need anyone's blowing smoke up my ass, but it does not hurt if management or ownership tells employees that they are appreciative of their efforts and thank them once in a while. I make decent money. Not great money, just decent. I have a substantial resume. I have a BA degree as well as 2 AS degrees, one of which is I Automotive Technology specifically on Ford vehicles, I have a class A CDL, a clean driving record, can pass any drug test you want to throw at me at any time 24/7/365/366 on leap year. My home is paid for and I do not have to take crap from anyone. As I stated if I am not treated with at least a minimum amount of respect I will leave. I am not asking for an employer to kiss my ass to come to work. I am asking to be treated like a valued member of the team, not like a Made in China tool that is thrown in the trash.
  2. When buying technology you should not buy cheap. You get what you pay for.
  3. Towing, as a whole, will never acquire or keep the highest quality operators until as a whole, they provide benefits, guarantee time off, enforce safety standards, and promote training and education. There are very few companies that provide medical insurance, a retirement plan, paid vacation. These benefits are very costly. Many companies are too concerned with price matching the competition than they are in concentrating on the cost to run a legitimate business operation. I swear, many owners remind me of over the hill whores whose main focus is what Cinnamon around the corner is charging and who she is doing. Your focus should be building a stable, customer focused business. Focus on your niche, and exceed the expectations of your niche. I was stranded a few years ago, out of town, and called for a wrecker. A service responded and sent a truck that could have doubled as an ashtray. The driver had a sleeveless shirt, arms covered in tattoos, trucks was dirty. I was also traveling with my dog, an Australian Sheppard. The driver quickly commented that the dog could not ride in the truck. I told him that the truck was so filthy neither of us would be riding in it. I told him to just go. You could smell cigarette smoke five feet from the truck. We waited for another company to send a truck. The second truck was clean, the operator was uniformed, and after a reasonable discussion we agreed that Wilbur would ride in the cab with us. Why, oh why, are you so afraid to charge a reasonable rate to provide for your employees? Many of you LOSE, yes LOSE money with every call because you want to be the cheapest in town! Your goal should be to be the most profitable. Do not be concerned with Cinnamon, be concerned with your operation.
  4. I just can not comprehend the attitude some people have towards safety. In the towing industry as well as as the construction industry. It is parallel to trying to explain what causes crime. There are so many factors. Ultimately it is the operator who is responsible for their safety. But how do you explain it when the operator refuses to wear a vest, refuses to take a few seconds to put out cones, refuses to take a minute to mentally prepare a job safety analysis, or JSA, which is a survey of the scene? It is not solely the operator though. Owners have a responsibility to provide a safe working environment for their employees. While many take safety serious, a higher majority do not. And what about motor clubs who are only interested in profits, and getting the member serviced at the cheapest rate. And what about the motoring public, manytimes who are the causation of the incident because they drive like a whore running from church, do not maintain their vehicles, and could care less about people they share the road with let alone the poor soul who has to pick up the pieces on the side of the road. States as in law enforcement need to start citing operators who do not wear PPE. OSHA needs to start becoming more aggressive towards the industry. Once a few owners get hit with 14,000.00 fines, maybe it will heighten everyone's awareness. Then that prevailing attitude of, "sucks to be you", will take on a whole new meaning.
  5. The failure, as well as the negative attitude towards safety that permeates this industry leaves me shaking my head. Do you people not value your lives? You as an operator are ultimately responsible for your safety. You as an operator control the scene. I asked a StateTrooper some years ago to block off a lane for me. He refused to do so. I just replied, "okay" and then proceeded to pack up all my stuff. He was busy filling out his paperwork, and did not realize I was leaving until I was already packed up and pulling away. Without the casualty. He asked me where I was going. I informed him I was going home. I had endured a very bad day and was not about to play reindeer games. Traffic was backed up for miles on the interstate. Not my problem. His problem. I left him there. We wound up having a sit down with his commander. We got everything settled. I mitigated the risk by walking away. Crashes are like Lay's potato chips. There is always another, and they will always make more.
  6. Profit is your best friend. Your goal should be to make money, profit, with each and every call. Far too many people buy trucks, run them hard, and either lose money or just break even. Then one day the become aware that they owe 50k on a truck with 300 k miles on the clock. Then it is just a matter of time before a catastrophic failure, transmission or engine failure, rear axle, or even a tire blowing to send them over the cliff to financial ruin. Know your cost to run a call, as well as your cost outbound and loaded. Do not be afraid to charge for extra equipment. There is no such thing as free. You do not get free diesel, there is not a tree in the Amazon where you can go pick "free" gojacks, straps, and bridles. They have to be paid for.
  7. I am going through an issue currently where my employer wants me to run a three car hauler overweight. I never received any formal training on loading, unloading, weight distribution, 3 points of contact, or anything safety related. I am preparing a guide to provide and assist the next person to jump in the seat. Management as well as leadership simply does not care. And I am through with them.
  8. You have to distinguish between the role of a leader vs. the role of a manager. A manager in one setting is a dispatcher. They are a facilitator, decisionmaker, enforcer. They literally tell people where to go. A lead driver keeps up with the trucks, their maintenance, and to a degree, promotes safety. A leader has the big picture on the horizon and gets everyone to do the buy in. They should be constantly promoting safety. They should be constantly promoting that the client is the real "boss" of the company. Without the client, all we have is yard full of pig iron and plastic. We have too many managers out of their lane, functioning or delegating as leaders. There is no gray area between a leader and a manager. A good leader is generally a good manager who has elevated and honed his or her skills. A good manager must do the same to rise and aspire to the level of leadership. It is an entirely new level.
  9. Should be a person who promotes SAFETY and conveys a consistent message of safety. Safety does not cost you money, it pays dividends. Promoting a safe working environment should bea number 1 priority. I just read the narrative on the 18 year old in Fla. who was struck on the side of the road. Where was the safety aspect? There is no rim and tire combo, no car, worth your life. It can and will happen to you. Next time you have a safety meeting, for those who do, bring a set of dice. Have a few of your drivers roll the set. When they roll an 8, 5&3, 2&6, 4&4, tell the person that is how fast you will die roadside if you are not safety minded 100% of the time. It will happen that fast, just like an airbag being deployed. Once you smell the smoke, it is all over.
  10. That is a cool story. Hard work, determination, and faith always win.
  11. You are more optimistic than I am. Looking at the math, I give it about 7 more years. That is why folks need financial planning. Nobody ever taught me. I hope people learn by my shortcomings.
  12. I watch and study the behaviors of people constantly. People walk right into traffic and do not even look. They are oblivious to vehicle operators that may or may not see them. People need training on crossing the street.
  13. The younger operators need to be mentored on investing. I do not believe social security is going to be round when I leave the workforce in ten years. I mentor younger workers on opening ROTH IRA due to the tax advantages.
  14. How many of you provide or ensure your operators carry water and ice? Hypothetical situation: driver picks up family stranded in the middle of nowhere, in triple digit heat. Loads casualty, loads family. Enroute to town, wrecker suffers from a breakdown. Stranded, no ac, no shade, triple digit temps, forty miles to closest town. What is your contingency plan?
  15. What is your insurance carrier going to say? You have to train your operators to constantly think risk mitigation. Do you really think you have a snowflakes chance in he'll in a courtroom doing this. Your carrier is just going to cut a check.
  16. It really opened my eyes to the importance of record keeping as in documenting training.
  17. I stated in another post that I had just completed a 30 hour OSHA class this last week. This class was sponsored by the Texas Department of Insurance. As part of the class, I was able to speak directly to a compliance investigator. He stated that OSHA has to receive a complaint for the agency to initiate an investigation. That complaint can come from an employee, a person who observes an unsafe situation, or from a required report such as a fatality or a person injured on the job that requires the injured worker to be admitted to a hospital. He stated that all rules and requirements apply to the towing and recovery industry. Transportation is the number one leader in fatal occurrences/accidents in the workplace. In the towing and recovery industry, I believe record keeping on training and education is where leadership sets themselves up for failure. Do you have documented records on the training your staff receives? This includes use of PPE. Do you know what PPE you are legally required to provide? Do you know what PPE is not your legal responsibility? Are there disciplinary consequences for employees who fail to wear required PPE? Do you have specific policies and procedures for working in a situation with live traffic? Have your employees received training on working in live traffic? Are they practicing these safe operating protocols? One item I did not think about was a Heat Plan. Did you know that you are required to provide your employees with water? Are your employees given training on the symptoms of heat related illness? Do you have a training and education file on each of your employees? OSHA fines start at 14,000.00 per violation. Are you prepared?
  18. Brian, great analysis to keep everyone safe.
  19. It never ceases to amaze me how so many people fail to value training and education. I attended an OSHA 30 class thislast week, and learned so much about record keeping and documentation. I learned that I do not know half of what I need to know.
  20. I concur with your statement. If training and safety mechanisms are not practiced, or ignored the training has zero value. This industry loses 65 lives a year. That is totally unacceptable. That is 65 families that lose a father, mother son, daughter, aunt, uncle, cousin, neice, or nephew. It is not a raw number, it is a person. Why do we continue to change tires on the side of the road? There is no rim and tire configuration that is worth my life, or your life. Why do we, as an industry, continue to not use blocking vehicles roadside. Why do we, not demand that a blocking vehicle not be SOP, on roadside recoveries? Cost is not an acceptable answer.
  21. I just attended a 30 hour OSHA training. I spoke to a OSHA investigator and specifically asked him about the towing industry. He stated that OSHA regulations do indeed apply to the towing and recovery industry. He stated that training such as Wreckmaster that has a curriculum is a good STARTING point for training. He stated that it is the employers responsibility to ensure that the employee has proper personal protective equipment. The employer must provide safety glasses, anti colored vests, as well as gloves. The standard is gear that will be used primarily in the scope of the job. If an employee might use the gear outside thatscope,that's open, not the employers responsibility to provide it. Workbooks might be worn outside the scope of employment t thus are not required as are prescription safety glasses. One itemthatJfound interesting was that OSHA requires a HEAT PLAN for those working in the heat. Do your employees have water? Do they have training on what symptoms are of heat exhaustion? Heat stroke? Do you have a file on each employee that documents training? OSHA fines start at 14,000.00. Another area that I was unclear on is that an employee has to report a violation in order for OSHA to initiate an investigation. An employer can request an audit from OSHA and have a representative from OSHA do an assessment of their operation. Many in this industry do not understand how the process works. That includes bothemployeesas well as workers.
  22. Greetings, I have been away for some time due to works well as rehabbing from injuries as well as illness. Hope you guys missed me. I live in SA, TX. We are blessed to have what is called the HERO program which was sponsored by a Texas Department of Transportation , TXDOT, grant. These folks assist stranded motorists as well as provide traffic control for tow trucks as they work a scene. A wrecker operator can call them to request their assistance at no charge. They put out cones, provide a blocker vehicle, and overall enhance the safety of the. scene. It is a great program. That being said, that officer is definitely going to lose some vacation time due to a preventable fleet crash incident. I personally do not block traffic with avehicle to prevent a secondary crash. I will advise the occupants on selecting a safe staging area, and will assist injured occupants, and will block a scene if doing so will protect an injured person. But that is my limit.
  23. It is the responsibility of an employer to provide PPE to employees. The day will come when OSHA gets knee deep involved in this industry, and starts handing out deca thousand dollar fines like Skittles. Maybe then safety will become a priority.
  24. I feel that anytime you are completing a lift, or are underneath anything that has a potential to fall, you should have a hardhat. That being stated eye protection should be standard when you step out of the truck. OSHA classifies struck by as one of the "fatal four" causes of fatalities.
  25. Realistically, you look like you have your ducks in a row when you have a safety vest, eve protection, and a hard hat. You set up the perception that you are a professional, and instill confidence. I currently work for a dealership network transporting vehicles from various dealerships to their internal auction. I see people staged on the shoulder of the highway loading and unloading vehicles on almost a daily basis. They are an accident waiting to happen. Yesterday I was instructed to do the same by a member of a "leadership" team. I informed him that I do not unload on the shoulder of any road. He pointed to another operator who was unloading on the frontage road of IH 35, with traffic speeding by at 50mph. We had a very heated, ugly discussion.
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