Will toys keep a ST driver happy?

[butterfly610]

Having some of the basics in the truck might help you retain drivers to a point if you are a good owner. My reason for saying this is because if they start to see that someone they meet on the road has a good owner, but their truck is bigger and has better stuff in it....they might be giving them a call. You hear about that all the time.

 

[Bambuild]

Can you elaborate on this?

Having some of the basics in the truck might help you retain drivers to a point if you are a good owner. My reason for saying this is because if they start to see that someone they meet on the road has a good owner, but their truck is bigger and has better stuff in it....they might be giving them a call. You hear about that all the time.

I will admit, when I drove, I had that bigger & better truck and at truck stops some other expeditors would comment on it. That is one thing that kept me happy, the other for me was getting home to see my kids. My owner provided me with a gps, refrigerator, microwave, he paid fuel and tolls and my pay was on time and correct. I provided the TV, DVD player, coffee pot and CB and at the time I used my ipod for music. The only reason that I left him was due to my kids and 3-4 times the pay locally. I would still be with that owner otherwise.

 

[cranis]

I like a company owner to give me a little leadway to get my trucks fixed, tires, brakes etc. I am driving the truck all the time and as the driver can tell when something needs to be done.
My biggest pet peeve is washing the unit.
We have a fleet card(mastercard) to get fuel only and and third party maintence company that we as drivers can call to get service. This is great because there are no out of pocket expenses for the driver. It can also rent a vehicle, buy usung tis service.
I say Take care of the maintance of the truck and for the most part the driver will take care of you. Also I say maybe do not just put a tv, gps or computer i truck, at your expense but if new driver atleast let them pay you so much at a time for theses items.

 

[nightcreacher]

you want driver happy,first only hire man and wife team,when bored they will find something to do.Make sure pay is high enough,another owner wont try and steal your team.Any team with hiring,already owns the toys.
money talks B S walks

 

[Camper]

As with just about any other aspect of any endeavor, if you take care of the fundamentals (good pay, on time payment, reliable equipment), everything else will fall into place.
As others have said, most candidates you're likely to encounter will have their own personal toys to begin with, so chances are, it's a token incentive that's not likely to carry much sway in terms of whether a particular driver signs on or not. Nonetheless, if the aforementioned fundamentals are firmly in place and you've got extra cash to spend on novelty incentives, then by all means, go for it.

 

[BigBusBob]

and bare in mind that those "toys" are a tax deduction. Whether it's the owner buying them or the driver buying them. Truck washes are even a tax deduction!!

a good truck, with good pay. and also give the driver some wiggle room, they're driving that rig all the time- so they should quickly "learn" the truck.... and they will know what it needs and when it needs it.