Finding/Keeping

Attracting and Retaining the Best Drivers

Laura AlbertsHuman Resources Manager

Western DisposalOctober 2, 2008

lalberts@westerndisposal.com

A little about my Company – Western Disposal Private

In business for 38 years

Operate in Boulder County primarily (30 miles north of Golden)

120 employees total

Half (60) are Drivers

Dramatically reduced driver turnover and increased new hire quality in recent years…

Even very different organizations will hopefully gain some useable ideas

Turnover History 1999 – Over 80%

54 route terminations

2006 – 8% Just 5 route terminations Best ever

2008 – year to date 11%

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

43% 40% 29% 22% 13% 10% 8% 13%

1999 – A Wake Up Call A VERY bad year for route turnover

Revolving door of new hires

50 route terminations total

40 with <1 year of service

half (20) of those in 1st 30 days !

We were filling a job 3-4 times before achieving a good fit (revolving door)

Most terminations were involuntarily

Something was wrong!

Today Average Driver tenure is 6.8 years

Average tenure all employees = 8.9 years

> 50% have six or more years of service

22% with 11-23 years

How we approached problem Acknowledged we must be the problem.

Stopped attributing problem to new generations of workers or the general decline of quality applicants.

Stopped rationalizing that turnover didn’t cost much if it happened early.

Decided to come at problem from every angle.

Every Angle Sourcing Screening Interviewing Selection Orientation Training Rewards Recognition Discipline

The only thing we did not changePay (and benefits)

Yes, Western has always paid above what we determine to be “market average”.

But that didn’t keep us from having 80% turnover in 1999.

Nor do we think it was a factor in our achieving just 8% turnover in 2006. That happened without change to pay and benefits structure or strategy.

Sourcing Before and since 1999, employee referrals

have been our #1 source of candidates.

But our culture didn’t always reinforce that referrals should be of high quality.

Starting 2000, we explicitly communicated this to employees as part of the highly-visible changes to the hiring process. It worked.

We opted not to use referral bonuses, wanting pride, not money, to drive referrals.

More on Employee Referrals Applicants get most information about Western and

culture from their employee contacts.

Our employees communicate that Western is a no-nonsense, high control culture with high expectations.

But if you make the grade, you get a lot in return.

Since 2000, only 2 post-offer positive drug screens. No failures in employment eligibility vetting.

Other Sourcing When using ads, we’ve recently concluded

the following: Use both internet and print ads

Some excellent recent new hires have come from internet

But there is still a subset of applicant pool that is not computer savvy and prefers print ads

We would not have some good people if we restricted ourselves

Helter-skelter -- Applications used to go to HR or any one of 5 route supervisors depending on how it came in the door.

With 2000 hiring improvement initiative, all applications came through HR, no exceptions.

HR carefully screened and kept pool of “most qualified” or “pre-qualified” applicants.

Often turned away applications for incompleteness or asked that it be redone.

Any checking that could legally be done pre offer was done (MVRs in particular).

Screening

Interviewing/Selection Interview Drivers like Executives

Before: Interviews were briefer, more casual Incomplete applications were accepted One person (usually route supervisor) interviewed and

made the hiring decision Sometimes made hiring decision after just 1 acceptable

interview After:

3 interviews (HR and 2 route supervisors) More formal, each person asks specific questions Interview 2-4 candidates whenever possible 3 interviewers make hiring decision together (face-to-face)

Setting Expectations Human Resources interview in particular stressed

culture and expectations.

In addition to questions about candidate’s work behaviors, very clear communications about our high expectations.

Supervisors cover culture in interviews too, but this us mainly an HR job. We (myself and another HR staff person who speaks decent Spanish) ten to err on side of overstating what may be fit issues.

Under sell; over deliver. Happier employees.

Vetting Post-offer drug screen (D.O.T. physical and drug screen

timing depend on starting job)

Criminal background checks

Reference checks – past two positions driver or not (plus D.O.T. reference check where applicable)

Social Security and Basic Pilot Program verification within 72 hours of hire

Orientation and Training 1st days and weeks, employees get a lot of

face time route supervisor relief driver other senior driver

Also, training videos and safety sessions... hands on exposure

In past, almost always hired as Helpers (even experienced drivers) and internally trained before promoting to driving positions.

Automation has made this more difficult (only 2 Helper positions), but we still adhere to philosophy.

Even most highly experienced Drivers must go through our training program before taking wheel of Western vehicle.

Orientation and Training

Safety As turnover declined, frequency and severity of

injuries and vehicular accidents also declined.

This also happened as we converted more routes to automation but retention considered equal contributor.

Increased automation allows workers to stay in driving positions longer.

Drivers attend pre-shift safety training meetings every other week.

Operations DepartmentAccident Statistics2000 - 2005

40 38

26

1915 13

0

10

20

30

40

50

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Accidents per Million Miles

Operations DepartmentInjury Statistics2000-2005

65

31 3021

33

110

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Injuries per 200,000 Hours

Driver Tools and Resources Western invested heavily in technology in

early 2000’s. Giving Drivers tools that made their jobs easier contributed to reduced turnover. Bar-code scanners Symbol vs. word maps GIS and GPS technology

Western’s investment in technology has paid off both in terms of retention and profitability.

Incentive Pay – Carrot or Stick? Incentive Pay

Probably a stick... but we present as a carrot.

Huge success - greatly reduced absenteeism and tardiness.

Base Rate plus two $1.00 per hour incentives. Incentives are automatically earned unless infraction occurs:

Any instance of absence or tardiness for which 7-day advance notice is not given

Non-judgmental way to curb attendance issues... simply a consequence

Someone who is absent or tardy without 7-day notice earns $2 less per hour up to 40 hours and $3 less per overtime hour. A powerful incentive.

Incentive Pay Other infractions that result in loss of one or both incentives

Customer complaints

Misses

Equipment abuse

Route check violation

any number if things from non-use of PPE to not following manifest and map, etc...

On average only 4 (range: 0 –15) route employees lose one or both incentives each week

Virtually no complaints about application of incentive pay system

Discipline in General All policies are written with consistency in mind but

language that allows variation when needed

When ______ happens, Western will generally respond by ______ ...

However, response will always be decided on case-by-case basis with consideration of circumstances. No single decision will serve as precedent other decisions.

We strive for consistency but make full use of case-by-case management discretion. We don’t try to fit all cases to single policy. Rather apply common sense as much as possible.

High Expectations... new employee

Keep communicating and reinforcing high expectations... especially early on

Quick to end it if it looks like there is not a fit... be sure, document the facts, but also trust the intuitive judgment of our highly experienced supervisors

Be tough and consistent but also empathetic in real times of employee need (thus the case-by-case decisions in all policy enforcement)

Expect a lot and when it is earned give a lot back

Rewards Employee Favorite Employee Appreciation lunches – simple and for no

particular reason. 4 – 5 per year

Annual Safety Kickoff BreakfastRoute Supervisors Prepare and Serve Food

Rewards Safe Driver Award

Awarded to employees in driving position from January 1 through December 31 who have NO accidents.

An accident is anytime a vehicle makes contact with another object or vehicle. We make no exceptions... backing into a mailbox... it could be a child on a bike.

Award = $100 (net) for each consecutive year of safe driving.

largest award ever given $1,700 for 17 consecutive years of safe driving

last year – 38 safe drivers, award ranged from $100 to $1,300

Awards given at banquet with spouses attending. Gifts of clothing, watches, etc. are also given.

It is a big deal.

Safe Driver

2007

KIKO SALOMON 13

FRED FLORES 10

JOEY WOMBOLDT 10

MARIO PINEDA 9

PHIL WEBER 8

DIMAS SILVA 7

EMILIO RIVERA 6

JORGE ESTRADA 6

PEDRO PARGAS 6

ANTONIO DELAHOYA 6

ADOLFO HERRERA 5

ALEX PAREDES 5

DANIEL NIETO 5

JEFF ROMERO 5

PEPE DESANTIAGO 5

SCOTT DAWSON 5

JOSE OLGUIN 4

ALVARO DELACRUZ 3

TROY HOLMES 3

LUIS ORONA SR 2

LUKE BEAM 2

RUDY DELGADO 2

RALPH ESCOBAR 2

LORENZO CHAVIRA 1

LUIS DIAZ 1

FERNANDO DOMINGUEZ 1

CYP MALDONADO 1

VICENTE MARTINEZ 1

DANIEL SARABIA 1

MIKE TURNER 1

SIMON URIBE 1

CLEMENTE VALENCIA 1

ALAN SARTIAGUIN 1

What leads

to happy

Drivers?

In Conclusion:

Review of Key Points Pay is less important than we all tend to think in attraction

and retention

Adherence to a detailed screening, interviewing and orientation process is critical

Identify your culture and values and communicate it in everything you do

Clarify your expectations and keep them high

Apply policies and discipline consistently... but be open to case-by-case variations

Consider incentive pay

Reward – the simple things go a long way