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er was based on the knowledge I had garnered through numerous training courses and experience as a manag- er and business owner prior to my re- birth as a trucker.
I spent a minimum of three months with each new driver. The first month was demonstrate and repeat, repeat, repeat, increasing the challenges in the training process day-by-day and discussing skills in detail.
It was a period to develop trust
and comfort in the cab. The second month saw drivers taking full respon- sibility under my supervision, asking for support as they needed it.
The third month saw the addition of some extreme driving conditions in which we reverted to the demon- strate and repeat, repeat, repeat mod- el of the first month, but now the new driver was instilled with a level of confidence and a stronger skill set to cope with the challenges.
It was a program that was very well received by the new recruits and my employer.
But at the end of three years, I was of the mind that no single individu- al or single carrier can carry on this intense level of training in perpetu- ity without broad support from across the industry.
Ironically this is how the MELT program has been developed.
To act as a mentor is to serve as a trusted counselor or teacher, espe- cially in occupational settings.
Safety is embodied by an intense period of mentoring provided by pro- fessional driver-trainers that make permanent the skills drivers have learned through introductory train- ing. Practice only makes perfect if a learned skill is repeated under the supervision of a qualified coach and mentor.
That process needs to be institu- tionalized across the trucking indus- try. Now is the time for professional drivers to step up and take possession of this critical file.
Road safety is a driver issue; driv- ers own it. Drivers should be involved heavily in every step of the training process and its development.
The answer as to how drivers will accomplish this is straightforward. Get involved. But we can’t do it as individuals, we have to take on this challenge as a group. Therein lies the hurdle drivers have been unable to overcome, because we not only have to bring our skills together as a group but we then have to interact with car- riers, enforcement, training institu- tions and legislative bodies.
That’s a huge task and is usually met with people throwing up their arms and saying it can’t be done.
But it can be done in four distinct stages: 1) MELT; 2) mentoring for three to six months; 3) team driving for a period of one year; 4) remedi- al/ongoing training developed by all partners and made available univer- sally across the industry.
This is the path to recognizing
our profession for what it is, a skilled trade, and it will only come to fruition if professional drivers take an active role in its development.
At the moment there are too few experienced drivers engaged in the training process.
We can change that.
Al Goodhall has been a professional long-haul driver since 1998. He shares his experiences via his ‘Over the Road’ blog at http://truck- ingacrosscanada.blogspot.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at @Al_Goodhall.
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