The week-long, all-out celebration of professional truck drivers each year is exciting, but small, everyday expressions of gratitude can be just as important.
What’s happening: During Driver Appreciation Week from Sept. 11-17, U.S. Xpress is pulling out all the stops, giving gifts to every professional driver in our fleet, hosting celebrations at our service centers and dedicated facilities across the country, and giving away prizes that run the gamut from iPads to $1,500 in cash.
Why it matters: Shippers can get in on everyday appreciation for drivers by taking simple steps to make drivers’ lives easier. Whether it’s providing parking and other basic amenities or developing clear and consistent plans for loading and unloading, shippers can make or break a driver’s day.
The bottom line: Whether or not it’s Driver Appreciation Week, it’s always a good time to thank a trucker.
The all-out celebration of professional truck drivers during Driver Appreciation Week each year is exciting, but everyday expressions of gratitude can be just as important.
“When I get a message coming over driver text that just says, ‘Good morning George, you’re doing a good job,’ that just makes your day,” said George Dalhouse, a professional driver for U.S. Xpress. “Usually those texts might be something about a wreck or a closure, so you’d be surprised how good it feels to get a thank-you text. Little things really do make a difference.”
Professional truck driver George Dalhouse
During Driver Appreciation Week from Sept. 11-17, U.S. Xpress is pulling out all the stops, giving gifts to every professional driver in our fleet, hosting celebrations at our service centers and dedicated facilities across the country, and giving away prizes that run the gamut from iPads to $1,500 in cash.
But celebrating drivers is also part of the U.S. Xpress culture all year long, including our popular Wednesday lunches, when office employees serve drivers at our terminals, our annual Million Miler celebrations for our safest drivers, and even recognition for drivers of the month across our businesses and brands. Driver birthdays and service anniversaries are cause for celebration, too, and every driver is awarded points they can use to buy gifts or gift cards for those milestones.
Shippers can get in on the everyday appreciation for drivers by taking simple steps to make drivers’ lives easier. Whether it’s providing parking and other basic amenities or developing clear and consistent plans for loading and unloading, shippers can make or break a driver’s day. Here are a few quick tips for showing drivers appreciation every day:
- Automate Reporting: When shippers automate their reporting processes, particularly for basic requests, it frees up time for them to develop strategic solutions for any potential roadblocks.
- Lose the Wait: Having access to a trailer means nothing if it sits around waiting to be unloaded. Unload trailers quickly and cut down on detention time for drivers.
- Report Accurate Data: Provide accurate pickup numbers, delivery numbers, preload trailer numbers, or any other reference numbers, to keep everyone moving.
- Allow Flexible Hours: Finding a way to make preloaded equipment available for pickup after hours can make a huge difference in utilization and efficiency.
- Provide Quality Facilities: Being a truck driver isn’t easy, so when they do get to their destination, they want to be able to stretch their legs, use the restroom, maybe even shower. Providing these amenities is good for drivers — and they appreciate it.
Dalhouse runs long distance dedicated routes for a major shipper, and was chosen as the driver of the year by that U.S. Xpress customer. For more than eight years, he has hauled goods for this international consumer brand from his home base in Pennsylvania to destinations as far north as New Jersey and as far south as Virginia.
“They know how I like to run, and I have a really great relationship with them,” Dalhouse said. “They really make it so simple to get the miles, get the freight delivered, and get the work done.”
Feeling appreciated for his work by both his team at U.S. Xpress and his shipper is just one major reason he enjoys life at the wheel, Dalhouse added.
“We have a great crew, a really great group on both sides,” he said. “You never know what people are going through, and a little appreciation goes a long way.”
