Class Descriptions
DOT Compliance Overview and Audit Survival • What does the DOT (and everyone with a computer) know about my company? • What can we do about this data? • What do we need to do with this data? • Do we need to register with the FMCSA? • Do we need to register with the PHMSA? • Are we required to have MC Authority? • What are the MOST IMPORTANT things we need to understand about DOT compliance? We will teach you every aspect of drug and alcohol testing to include reasonable suspicion testing. Do you know who gets tested for drugs, what drugs they test for or what that allowable Blood Alcohol Content is? Do you know how to recognize a driver who is impaired and what to do? Do you know the rules for conducting a reasonable suspicion test, or how to treat a driver who self-reports? What if a driver sees another driver abusing an illegal substance? Can you afford to not know the answer to these questions? We will teach you every aspect of drug and alcohol testing to include reasonable suspicion testing. Knowledge gained from this session will assist you in developing and maintaining your company’s drug and alcohol testing program, which is required for all companies with trucks greater than 26,000 GVWR. NOTE: Upon completion, you will receive a certificate for your records.
Part A: Introduction to DOT Compliance
This is an overview of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) and what you need to know to maintain compliance. We have condensed the most important performance measures you must make part of your companies safety systems in order to be minimally compliant with the DOT regs. Covered topics include introduction to the USDOT, FMCSA, and PHMSA, and how they affect you. We will use a little-known tool – the MCS-150A – to illustrate and enumerate your regulatory obligations. You will be trained on the MCS-90 and what you need to do to safeguard your company’s safety record. We will provide answers to the following questions and more:
We break down safety controls into the separate systems so you can focus the necessary attention and resources in each area. The big ones are Driver qualification and drug and alcohol testing, Hours of Service management, and maintenance.
Part B: Audit Survival
Everyone is afraid of DOT audits. If you understand the process a bit better, you can prepare properly. With this new knowledge you can put aside fear of the DOT and do the right things to prepare for compliance review, minimize damage during a compliance review, and take the right steps after the fact.
Part C: Understanding and Negotiating Fines
There are thousands of things you are supposed to do. There are certain things that you should focus on because they are critical and acute violations (two or three of these can result in an Out of Service Order – putting you out of business). There are some things you should make a priority because there are fines for not doing the right thing. If you understand what the most important things are and how to do them, you can minimize the violations. Sometimes if you don’t understand the different ways to prioritize your efforts you can do the things you think are important then get fined for the things you didn’t understand or didn’t get around to. We will help you understand what to do 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. Included are some tips and tricks for minimizing fines even after the compliance review. The last part is the list of all the critical and acute violations. Topics addressed in this 3-part overview include, but are not limited to:
• FMCSA, DOT, PHMSA, State enforcement agencies and how these all relate to each other
• Accident register and other documentation, as well as accident countermeasures
• Driver Qualification Files
• DOT Rules for drug and alcohol testing and paperwork that must be maintained
• Hours of service rules, monitoring and auditing procedures
• Maintenance procedures and required documentation
• Required training for drivers and others
Supervisor Drug and Alcohol Training (required per FMCSR §382.603 - Training for Supervisors)
Do you know who gets tested for drugs, what drugs they test for or what the allowable Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) is? Do you know how to recognize a driver who is impaired and what to do? Do you know the rules for conducting a reasonable suspicion test, or how to treat a driver who self-reports? What if a driver sees another driver abusing an illegal substance? Can you afford to not know the answer to these questions?
Driver Qualification Workshop
We will spend the first part of our class explaining all the parts that are required to be included in a driver’s application, then the rest of the DQ file, and provide a sample DQ packet which includes all the current requirements. We encourage attendees to bring 2 – 3 of your driver files with you. We will compare the new packet to your current process and show you how to add the new elements into your current hiring packet or you can just start from scratch when you get back to your office and use the sample driver qualification packet as a guide. The best news is, once your files contain the correct information, they require very little upkeep.
Hours of Service Workshop
We have heard and seen dozens of stories about company safety managers spending all their time auditing driver’s logs, and they still have violations. How do you get out of this trap? We will share with you a tried and proven way to manage drivers logs and decrease (you never eliminate) violations. We invite workshop attendees to bring two months logs for 2 drivers. We will teach you how to organize, audit, perform QC checks, council and educate drivers. We will spend the first part of our class explaining completeness, accuracy, form and manner violations, etc. We will discuss individual considerations and issues with each attendee, as class sizes are small. The time you spend in this workshop will come back to you tenfold in the first month because the time you spend working with drivers logs will now be better spent.
Maintenance Management Workshop
Most people are mystified by this exacting process. You have a couple files for each truck but none for the trailers or you have one file for all your maintenance, or you don’t really have a maintenance file at all. Regardless what your current situation is, We will de-mystify this for you and get you on the way to a maintenance documentation process that is as painless as possible (It’s always going to be something you have to invest time in regularly – We can’t change that ) We invite each attendee to bring a couple of your current maintenance files. We will start with a Step-by-step description of exactly what the USDOT requires. Each attendee will be provided a sample maintenance folder. We will go through each part of this sample file. And, most importantly, we set aside lots of time to discuss each seminar attendee’s particular concerns, questions and unique situations. (We keep class size small to facilitate this). Now that you understand the documentation requirements, we will go over the difference between an annual DOT inspection and a roadside inspection conducted by a CMV enforcement officer, and how your maintenance staff can minimize the number of out-of-service roadside inspections and why that is so important to you. When the seminar is done, you will be better able to prioritize time spent in this important area of DOT Compliance.
Accident Reporting & Prevention Workshop
We start with the accident register: when must you have, maintain, and update a register of DOT-recordable accidents? What else must be included in an accident file? What is the difference between a not-at-fault and not-preventable accident? What is an appeal packet and how can I use DataQs, disposable cameras and even driver’s memories to manage your recordable accident rate?
Once the documentation requirements are fully addressed, we will move into some methods to analyze current and recent past records to predict and prevent future accidents. The DOT requires you to have an accident countermeasures process, but they don’t tell you how to do that. We will go over, step by step, one way to accomplish this important task. Explains why one document the DOT does NOT require is probably the single most important document in your office.
Train the Trainer Workshop
This three-part workshop provides you the tools you need to perform three mandatory compliance-related tasks:
Part A: New Driver Training
The DOT requires you to provide training for all new drivers hired since Feb 2003. Topics include qualification / disqualification of CMV operators, Hours of Service, Driver wellness, and the whistleblower rule(s). It’s not hard, it doesn’t take long, and you will probably have a fine if you have a Compliance Review and it hasn’t been done. We will go over the materials with you, including the training and the required documentation. You will leave with master copies of the materials that you can reproduce when needed.
Part B: Driver Drug and Alcohol Training
Drivers who are subject to drug and alcohol testing must have a one-hour training period covering the DOT-mandated testing process and your company drug and alcohol testing policy. What must be covered and how can I train a group of drivers? How much of the hour should be spent on the DOT drug and alcohol testing regs and how much on our company’s policy? How can I present these complicated processes to our driver staff? Is it OK to just ‘throw the book at them’ and make them sign for it? Or do we actually have to train them?
Part C: Company Drug and Alcohol Policy
How can I train drivers on a policy that was provided by the drug lab? It sounds like it was written in pig-latin by a group of lawyers! If it was written for drivers it would be easier to explain it to drivers, right? We have a sample / example company drug and alcohol policy that is written for drivers to read, and we will go over with you how to read it to them and document the fact the training has taken place, as required by the FMCSA.