Testimony from a trucker

On a nippy December day in 2007, coming back from Ottawa with an empty trailer, I received three pre-plans for three different trips. I had to turn down the first because my log didn't allow me to do it and the delivery deadlines were even tighter for the second.

I had an intuition because there was a strange vibration in my steering wheel. I decided to continue on my route convinced that the left tire was worn down and that I would have to change it when I arrived.

I turned down another pre-plan saying that I had to change the aforementioned tire before getting back on the road.

Then, I received a message that ordered me to report to "Safety" because I had turned down three pre-plans. Upon arriving, I decided to change my tire regardless, then headed to "Safety".

Accusations that I was dishonest were thrown right in my face by two Challenger Safety managers. Another person was in the room, but I didn't know her name and she didn't speak.

Finally, they decided to put a note in my file. This reprimand still follows me to this day. You have no idea how humiliated I felt that day.

After this, I had to go to a garage to have my tire aligned and the mechanics had to make some other repairs. This is when they informed me that I was on the verge of losing a wheel!

The next day I returned to Safety with the proof in hand. They refused to remove the note from my file, even though I threatened to go directly to headquarters, in Cambridge. They in turn threatened to make my life difficult if I followed through on my plan.

I even spoke to someone in human resources, but this person refused to help me get the note removed from my file.

By turning down the pre-plans and having my truck wheel repaired, I had without doubt prevented a serious accident and saved my life, as well as other people's lives.

I can tell you today that I do not regret having acted as I did.

Reply to Dan Einwechter’s letter, delivered by PUROLATOR Courier

1) “You have every right to act on your convictions. That’s what DEMOCRACY is all about”

It seems, Messrs. Challenger, you feel the only convictions people can have are those you share. Democracy you say? Whose democracy?

For example, each truck is equipped with a satellite uplink through which we receive our “assignments”. The drop down menu on the uplink begins with a choice: accept or refuse (y-n). If we say “refuse”, we have to explain why. So, you have to explain to them the reason why (whether you don’t have the time or whether you have to be at home on that day). Sometimes, even when a driver has a good reason for daring to put “no”, he is told that he can’t refuse, that he doesn’t have a choice, that there’s no other driver available to do it. Furthermore, dispatchers never take the time to ask about our availability for that same day or for the following days, because the next day, if they notice that we didn’t send in our hours, they call up to remind us.

2) “You have the right to refuse […] and no one has the right to use inappropriate tactics to try to sway you”

Just how are we supposed to take this letter then that was sent to each employee (driver) by PUROLATOR Courier? Is it not an attempt to dissuade us from joining the union? Though chock-full of your elegant turns of phrase, this letter was meant to tell us what to do and what not to do. Do you think we’re preschoolers that need to be “informed” of our rights? Democracy you say?

3) “The union might promise you lots of things, like better pay, better benefits, more job security and more control over your workplace”

Messrs. Challenger, why do you think we’re applying for membership with the Teamsters? At least they’ve offered to IMPROVE our lot at Challenger. You, Messrs. Challenger, never promise us anything. You IMPOSE your so-called benefits, respect and wage increases (when the economy gets better). And if we ask questions or put up any resistance, we may expect reprisals and reprimands, such as one or more days of suspension without pay. Isn’t that right, Messrs. Challenger? And when a driver is suspended, it’s always said with him alone of one side and two company representatives on the other. It’s like you’re trying to outnumber us. The union promises to put us on equal footing.

4) “Teamwork”

Messrs. Challenger, I’m not sure you understand the real meaning of the word. All you care about is “ME, MYSELF, AND I”. I suppose you think teamwork is just for the office team. Isn’t that right, Messrs. Challenger?

5) “Certification and Unionization: What does it really mean to join?”

As far as “making sure you are informed […] before making a commitment”, if I remember correctly, about 15 years ago when Challenger hired me, I had to sign this paper and that paper - to get a fuel charge card and to agree to abide by the rules and regulations, etc. – and unknowingly signed a document that allowed Challenger to take a monthly sum out of my pay for Challenger’s charity work (so they’ll look good in the Cambridge community). I was pushed to sign everything quickly and didn’t have the time to see what and why I was signing. If a driver does notice them (the donations) and refuses to give the money, he was in for a reprimand. What’s more, it would’ve taken all day to read the rules and regulations “Bible”.

6) “Think seriously about it”

For your information, Messrs. Challenger, a driver is capable of thinking and making decisions on his own. And if he signs an application card, he is well aware he will be made a member.

7) “What are union dues anyway?”

You say that the money the union gets is taken out of our pay cheques (at a rate of two and a half times our hourly rate, once per month, as a deductible expense on taxable income) and that no one knows exactly where that money goes. Well, Messrs. Challenger, we do know where it goes. It goes to union leaders and their expenses in their efforts to help other workers who are being harassed by condescending employers. I believe my dues will be used for the common good rather than for selfish reasons. For example, spending millions of dollars on a silly machine like your precious simulator, and forcing drivers with 10, 15 and 20 years of experience – on pain of sanction – to forego a day’s work so they can be tested once a year, all that, just so Challenger can look good to the community.

You haven’t increased our pay since 2003. You took away the $15 we used to get for going through customs. You don’t pay us for stops ($52 CAD is a lot of money) for the loss of 15 minutes for the famous 24 hours (according to regulations) or for all that down time waiting for a return assignment, all the while using those savings to make “gifts” for your customers in hopes of retaining them.

8) “Challenger’s right to be heard”

It seems to me you only use the words “concerned” and “well-being” as a last resort to try and save face. Isn’t that right, Messrs. Challenger? Honestly, what are you thinking? Frankly, since when are you concerned for our well-being, how much time we get off, and how much time we get to spend with our family and friends? Whenever you feel like it I suppose, or perhaps when you hear the word “union”. Isn’t that right, Messrs. Challenger? Do you talk about your concern when a driver wants to go home after he’s been on the road for 10 days? No, you just give him another assignment in the opposite direction of home. And if he says no – if he selects (N) rather than (Y) – you tell him, “You know how it works. That’s just the way this business is. Sometimes you don’t have a choice”!

9) "Direct communication with our employees"

Are you talking about one-way communication? Oh yes! We know about that. But you don’t, Messrs. Challenger, so I will refresh your memory a bit. Ages ago, you gave us a questionnaire to fill out (and indicated we should not forget to sign it, because this information was confidential), to find out what our expectations were, to find out what the company could do to improve its relationship with employees and clients. A number of us filled out this questionnaire, but without signing it (given that we wanted to avoid any potential retaliation), and we never noticed any improvement related to the suggestions we made.

So one day, when the time came to fill out another one, we asked you to set up a meeting to discuss our questions and suggestions. You set up a meeting—which was also the last—with us on a Saturday morning (unpaid). In fact, we were not there to discuss our suggestions, but rather to hear you talk about yours. When we started talking about our concerns, the gathering suddenly ended... Of course, Messrs. Challenger had to return to Cambridge.

With regards to the CDs, newsletters, meals, recognition, it's also not bad for your image because, in any case, you always talk about you and what you have done or accomplished. With regards to the voice mailbox for drivers to communicate amongst themselves, it hasn't worked for ages.

In addition, this communication from a truck with other drivers depends on your dispatcher and is only used if you have to have to set up a place to change trailers for the return trip, because for everything else, it is too expensive to use. This is what our dispatchers tell us. With regards to constant monitoring of the industry for the purpose of being able to adjust our compensation, I will say to you, Messrs. Challenger, that since 2003, you have not been overly zealous, have you? That was the last time we were given a pay increase. Well, there is surely someone somewhere in these big Challenger offices who is not doing his or her job, right? What do you think? And yes, speaking of posted job offers, which postings are you talking about? It has been ages since we've seen any.
With regards to getting direct comments from employees, perhaps you make note of them, but we have never seen the results. In summary, all our comments and suggestions interest you, provided they make allowance for the alleged volatility of your business environment.

10) "Trust and respect"

When you talk about the type of working relationship you claim to maintain, I don't understand exactly what you are talking about. For me, it has been a very long time since you have spoken with your drivers or, rather, read and applied the comments from the questionnaires they filled out, or am I wrong? With regards to mutual respect, Messrs. Challenger, perhaps you could discuss it with your representatives from the Dorval office, and ask these gentlemen what they mean by RESPECT. For my part, I believe that the relationship you actually have with your employees in no way contributes to your potential. As drivers, we do not wish at all for things to continue like this. Regarding the working conditions that, according to you, are only offered by Challenger, I do not know if drivers elsewhere are required to leave for a minimum of ten days and travel, on average, 250 to 275 miles /400 km to 430 km per day in addition to waiting endless hours for a return trip, because the office folks  have started to find one only after you are sent our "empty call." What do you think? Do they have that at other places?

So, Messrs. Challenger, this text was my response to the long letter you sent us, because I believe that you are not (or do not want to be) aware of all the nonsense you communicated to us on those five pages. Your vision of things does not come close to ours, because we see how things actually happen. Contrary to what you may think, we too can think!

So it will be with great pleasure and much satisfaction that I am going to join the Teamsters Union and duly sign the membership card.

Thank you from one of your drivers (with more than 13 years at your SERVICE) who sincerely hopes that the current situation at Challenger will end with the help of the Teamsters rather than with your pretty promises.

When life leads us elsewhere . . .

A number of years ago, I approached Challenger Motor Freight in Dorval to offer my services as a heavy truck driver. I went through all the steps and was finally hired as a driver. I was so happy to become a part of the "big family" at this company, which at the time was considered THE company that respected its drivers the most and whose slogan, "Welcome to our big family," took on full meaning there.

The years passed and I felt like a fish in water. I could sleep at night and make my deliveries in a normal period of time, all without having a gun pointed at my head. I was happy to have finally made the decision to switch companies and to regain my inner peace while doing a job I loved.

The years passed, and the Challenger management team completely changed, and at that point, everything turned upside down. I gradually discovered that they no longer had any respect for the drivers and no consideration for the good work we did for the company. Also, I felt that some people were using psychological harassment. There was no way to talk to management anymore. There was nothing to be done. I explained to them that I did not want to make deliveries to New York City because I was too afraid to go there. Also, when I was hired, I had been promised that I would never have to make deliveries to New York City.

They answered that all that was rubbish, that it wasn't up to me to choose whether I wanted to go there or not, and that if I didn't, things would go very badly for me. For the first time in my life, I was facing psychological harassment and it started to destroy me from the inside. I continued to refuse to make deliveries to New York and they summoned me to the health and safety office, where I was confronted by people who took turns "pushing me around".

I tried to defend myself as best I could but was unable. I did not succeed. They called me loser, a bad driver. If I wasn't happy, I could go look for another job. For them, at the time, all the heavy truck drivers wanted to work for Challenger. However, I really thought that the occupational safety and health representative was going to help me and try to stop his colleagues, but this was not the case.

How many times, in the middle of the night while I was sleeping, was I sent advance schedules, as if they couldn't send them to me in the morning? Was it a scheme to keep me awake? Coming from them, nothing would have surprised me.

I could write more about the difficult situations I endured at Challenger Motor Freight in Dorval, but I am going to stop here.

Today, I am no longer a part of this "big family" and I am extremely happy about that.

They wanted my hide, and they got it. But they were never able to rob me of my mind, my integrity, or my intelligence. I left and I am very happy to be away from that pathetic company.

Today I realize that, when life leads us elsewhere, we must follow . . . .