Driver Appreciation Week Contest 2018 Winners and Top Submissions

/ Drivers, Fleet Management, Fleet Safety

Best 20 Ideas for Driver Appreciation and Retention

We want to thank everyone who submitted their ideas for our National Truck Driver Appreciation Week Contest! It was difficult to slim down the list, but here are the three winners including the top 20 submissions!

Contest Winners!

  1. $250 Amazon gift card: Al Batista, Gold Medal Bakery
    • The management team came in on the drivers’ day off and cleaned all the cabs. We then left a lunch box filled with waters and snacks with a personal note signed by the manager who cleaned that cab.
  2. $150 Amazon gift card: Julie Decker, Paper Transport, Inc.
    • At Paper Transport we have fleet level cookouts all week. We travel to our remote sites and give drivers prizes including an extra week.
  3. $75 Amazon gift card: Nancy Parker, Big Freight Systems, Inc.
    • We hold breakfast for the drivers, as well as 3 BBQ’s throughout the week where we try to cycle all drivers through our terminal. We all spend time getting to know the drivers. Also every driver receives a free freezer jacket with our logo on it. They love them!

Top Submissions!

  • Michael Lewis, KTS Jax LLC
    • Driver Retention: Every year drivers get a week paid vacation with a max of three weeks. Then after five years they get a four week paid consecutive sabbatical plus normal three weeks’ vacation everywhere. Every five years they get another sabbatical.
  • Priscilla Degollado, Overseas Trucking USA
    • Give drivers a list of items to choose from at range that one desires and let them choose from it. Any driver will be happy with anything that is given to them that shows we appreciate them.
  • Gwen Cacciatore, Enchanted Rock and Landscape Supplies
    • Five-day cruise with $500 in spending money so they come back refreshed and renewed.
  • Sheri Baker, Holmes Company
    • We contact all our vendors the month before and get all kinds of “goodies” to pack each of our drivers a google bag and have door prizes as well to do drawing for all the drivers. Plus we pay them $30 for a meal expense that week. We also have drinks and snacks all week for them.
  • Kathleen Gleason, CM3 Building Solutions
    • Message driver along their route for free lunch that “you” arranged.
  • Jerry Hill, Atlas Pumping
    • Driver Appreciation: Team up with major truck stops such as Flying J, Loves, Petro, Travel centers, Major Hotels & Restaurants, for freebies/discounts for CDL drivers that week across the nation.
  • Ann Melvin, Chesapeake Plumbing and Heating
    • We are having a special breakfast for techs and we always start our day by having a safe driving talk before they head out on the roads.
  • Mariah Short, Keller Logistics Group
    • Our HR department is hosting a contest where drivers and their families will submit a photo of them and their Keller truck. The winning family will get a family dinner on us!
  • Lauren Pohlmann, Thomas E. Keller Trucking
    • We are having each dispatcher film a video thanking each driver for what they do and sending it to driver’s emails.
  • Rashim Thakur, Ajit Transport, Inc.
    • Good communications with drivers for anything good done by them. Any violations or damages look for root cause. Try to understand driver’s problems. Have meetings one on one. Listen to their problems. Make them grow with you. Reward them wherever required.
  • Steve Heglmeier, Heglmeier Transportation Services, LLC
    • 1) Offer free inspections at scales for O/O’s with a promise of no CSA points for infractions, just point those out so we can get them fixed, with a carrot of a CSA sticker if you pass. You get to pull in if you have time in your schedule, driver’s choice.
    • 2) For company drivers – the good old standby of free BBQ with a free t-shirt and coffee mug works.
    • 3) Free massage. They could even be those nice massage chairs you see in truck stops.
  • Nikki Light, L1 Contracting, LLC
    • We are paying for and delivering the feed for their kids’ show animals! They will all be getting little gifts throughout the week to show our appreciation!
  • Charles Hall, Sprint
    • Two free movie tickets for ELD drivers that have no violations for one month.
  • Stephen Bruchet, Kleysen Group, LP
    • Supply a small gift (such as duffle/tool kit bag) with a letter of appreciation them for their hard work and a handshake thanking our O/OP’s. Also we will provide coffee and snacks (such as: fresh fruit like apples, bananas, oranges, and some pastries) all day on Wednesday that week in our shop. Also hang up a very large banner at our head-office informing the general public that it is “National Trucking Week.”
  • Krystal Salm, Benton Integrity Roofing & Windows
    • Show your driver you appreciate him or her by decking out their cab to make it more pleasant and comfortable (ie. new seat covers, floor mats, coffee warmer, etc.).
  • Tracy Brown, Future Foam, Inc.
    • Following the Golden Rule retains drivers. Treating them the way you want to be treated, listening, caring, understanding, patience. A driver’s world is lonely, and stressful, having a dispatch that sincerely appreciates them all year, and expresses that on a daily basis, retains drivers. The appreciation week, get a free meal and a gift, the team as a whole makes the retention!
  • Kayla Davidson, Davidson Trucking, Inc. 
    • A personalized thank you card to our drivers and their families from the CEO of the company with a gift card to take their family to Texas Road House.

Thanks again to everyone that participated in our Driver Appreciation Week Contest 2018!

If you’re looking for more ideas to show truck drivers your appreciation and ways to keep them happy doing one of the most demanding jobs in the U.S., check out our Driver Retention and Driver Safety Resource Centers.

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