Category: Background Checks & Recruitment

Takeaway: Keeping fleet safety is key to keeping drivers safe and reducing costs. Here are 5 ways you can optimize your fleet safety program.

Injuries resulting from vehicle accidents are 9th leading cause of injuries in the workplace. These accidents are also costly. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), motor vehicle accidents cost employers $60 billion annually. On average, each crash costs an employer $16,500. These expenses rise to $74,000 if there is an injury and exceed $500,000 if there is a fatality.

Making a well-rounded safety program for your company can reduce risk and increase driver protection. Implementing safety best practices should start from the hiring process.  Here are some key elements to include in your fleet safety program.

Safety Training in Onboarding

Your fleet safety program should start with your hiring process. If you begin with a solid driver who knows what they’re doing on the road, your fleet is already moving in the right direction. Consider these steps:

1. Prioritize hiring experienced fleet drivers with stellar safety records.
2. Ensure your hiring team takes the time to contact references and previous employers and requests specific information about safety records.
3. Check out a potential employee’s motor vehicle reports (MVRs).
4. Disqualify anyone with serious violations such as driving under the influence (DUI). Look carefully at minor violations if there a more than a few.
5. Consider including a road test with the vehicle the applicant will be operating as part of your hiring process.
6. Onboard your new drivers with an eye to safe driving practices as well as your protocols for inspections and maintenance.
7. Emphasize the need for defensive driving, the dangers of distracted driving and the signs of driver fatigue.

All of these are leading causes of accidents among both commercial and non-commercial drivers. If you’re a Department of Transportation (DOT) monitored company, you will also need to provide DOT-mandated training to your drivers.

Training Programs

Training should also be conducted in policies, reporting, and inspection requirements that are specific to your company. If and when these requirements change, all employees should receive new training.

In addition to onboarding new drivers, your training program should deliver ongoing driver education to your existing drivers. Provide refresher courses in defensive and distracted driving as well as in monitoring driver fatigue. It’s also good practice to include health-related education for your drivers, especially long haulers who may be facing additional health risks.

Clear Communications

Establishing clear company policies regarding fleet safety and ensuring they are communicated widely and often to your employees is a critical component of strengthening your fleet safety program. Formally document all of your fleet safety program elements and include responsibilities, expectations, and, of course, consequences. There should also be a framework for evaluating and amending the fleet safety program and benchmarks for assessing what is working and what isn’t. Additionally, these policies can, and should, include the following:

• A mobile device use policy that outlines when and where drivers can use electronic devices in your vehicle.
• Alcohol use and drug use policies, as well as alcohol testing and drug testing procedures, which should adhere to DOT requirements.
• Policies on the use of seat belts, other safety features and the required use of specific fleet safety technologies make it clear that safety is a priority.
• Information about training should also include remedial training and when it may be required.
• Procedures for dealing with vehicle crashes. Who should be called and when? Provide these in a step-by-step format that clearly outlines what drivers should and should not do in the event of a crash.
• Accident and other reporting requirements should include templates for accident and maintenance reporting.
• Vehicle maintenance and inspection procedures should include a safety checklist for drivers to complete before leaving the yard and policies for routine maintenance by a mechanic.

Technology and Driver Protection

Technology for fleet safety management has developed at a rapid pace over the last few years. Investing in these new technologies can keep your drivers safe and secure your assets. While the key priority is to make sure your drivers are well trained and alert on the road, technological advances can help address any areas for human error and increase the overall safety of your fleet.

Maintenance Checks for Vehicles

Simply put, well-maintained vehicles are safe vehicles. Preventative maintenance can save money over the long term by reducing breakdowns and expensive repairs. Have a set schedule in place for light routine maintenance such as oil changes and more comprehensive inspections of the vehicle by a licensed mechanic.

Strictly enforce daily driver inspections of their vehicles. Before they set out, this should include lights, horn, turn signals, brake lights, oil and coolant levels, tire pressure and rear-view mirrors. Regular maintenance should be logged and kept in the vehicle, and drivers should conduct an end-of-day inspection and report any defects immediately.

Conclusion

Accidents happen, but ongoing issues might point to the need for remedial training or even termination. Safety violations should be logged and monitored on an ongoing basis by management. Conversely, though, companies should reward safe drivers. Consider implementing safety bonuses, additional vacation days, updated equipment, or other incentives for your safe drivers.

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Takeaway: SureHire takes cybersecurity extremely seriously. Given the size of the recent RockYou2021 cyberattack, which saw 800+ million passwords leaked on the dark web, SureHire wants to help you protect your online accounts immediately. We also want to let you know more about the systems, technology, and important security protocols we’re implementing to protect our client information.

The cybercriminals behind the RockYou2021 password dump are responsible for 800+ million passwords leaked on the dark web — the largest collection of stolen passwords to date. The leak includes usernames, email addresses, and passwords for hundreds of millions of people who use services like Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Twitter, and many more popular sites.

According to author, Edvardas Mikalauskas, “A forum user posted a massive 100GB TXT file that contains 8.4 billion entries of passwords, which have presumably been combined from previous data leaks and breaches.” (Cybernews.com, 2021)

Given the size of this cyberattack, SureHire wants to help you protect your online information immediately (personal and work). We also want to let you know more about our systems, technology, and important security protocols we use to protect our client information.

Leaked Passwords: How to protect yourself from cyberattacks.

You have to be on your guard when it comes password leaks and other forms of cyberattacks. You may think you’re safe, but there are a number of things that can happen without warning. If you think your information may have been breached, here’s what you can do to protect yourself.

1. Find out if your data has been leaked. First things first, you’ll want to know if your information has been leaked. You can use this Personal Data Leak Checker to check if your personal and work email accounts are secure.
2. Change Your Passwords. If any of your personal information is at risk, change your passwords immediately! There are many tools and resources to help you generate secure passwords. Keeper is a great tool that not only helps with password generation but also allows you to store passwords securely and share them with teams. Learn more about Keeper.
3. Enable 2FA. Ensure 2FA is enabled on all sites where the service is offered. 2FA (two-factor authentication) is an account access feature that requires users to provide two different types of information: (1) a password and (2) another way to prove your identity some other way to gain access. This convinces a computer system or online service that you are who say you are so the system can determine if you have the rights to access the data services you’re trying to get access to. SureHires uses 2FA internally across all systems.
4. Enable Password Expiration. Enable password expiration on all of your accounts to help protect you from these types of attacks, which can result in account takeovers and other malicious activity if the attacker has access to a long-term, inactive account with an unchanged password.
5. Avoid Reusing Your Passwords. Since most people reuse their passwords across multiple apps and websites, the number of accounts affected by credential stuffing and password spraying attacks in the wake of this leak can potentially reach millions, if not billions. Setting up unique, high-quality passwords will help keep your information safe.

SureHire’s Cybersecurity Protocols

Safe. Secure. Simple.

SureLink is your exclusive hub for online bookings and results, giving you instant access to the information you need anytime; anywhere. This innovative, secure solution offers peace of mind and a seamless user experience.

SureLink is our secure online client bookings and results portal. This system is unique to SureHire and gives clients instant access to information regarding their employees’ pending, upcoming, and past appointments.

We take a number of security measures to ensure all client data is secure.

• All users are required to have a complex passwords that are required to be reset at set time intervals.       
• SureLink is secured using todays most advanced security technology.
• We use data encryption to ensure your files and data are secure.
• We perform regular system audits to ensure there is no unauthorized access to your SureLink account.

If you’re a current client, you know about the SureLink advantage. If not,click here to learn more about our exclusive client bookings and results portal.

SureLink Client Portal Cybersecurity Protocol

In addition to our current systems and measures for SureLink account security, Two Factor Authentication (2FA) is mandatory for all user logins.

If you are a current SureHire client, don’t forget to verify your email address with us and check your dashboard notifications for details.

Questions? Contact us—that’s what we’re here for after all!

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Key Takeaway: Getting ready to hire for the holiday rush? Here are 5 things to consider before holiday hiring that will help you reduce risk and maximize success.

While the Covid-19 pandemic has brought devastation to an unthinkable number of industries, this does not hold true to all. There are roughly 7.8 billion people in the world and about 26% of them are online shoppers (Sleeknote). As a result, e-commerce sales are expected to reach $4.2 trillion by the end of 2020 (Statista), and UPS announced earlier this year that it expects to hire over 100,000 seasonal employees [in the U.S. alone] to support the anticipated annual increase (UPS Pressroom).

5 Holiday Hiring Risk Reduction Measures

1. Pre-Employment Background Checks. A thorough background check prior to hiring can save an organization an enormous amount of grief and expense down the road. In addition, completing background checks on potential candidates accelerates the recruiting process and dramatically improves the quality of information that is necessary to make well-informed hiring decisions. SureHire offers an easy, cost-effective solution to pre-employment background checks. The information we deliver is accurate, timely, and secure, accessible through our exclusive client portal. Contact us to learn more.
2. Drug & Alcohol Testing. Drinking and driving is one of the main causes of road crashes worldwide. In high-income countries, about 20% of fatally injured drivers have excess alcohol in their blood, while in some low- and middle-income countries these figures may be up to 69% (UN Road Safety Collaboration). The implementation of pre-employment, pre-access, post-incident, and reasonable cause testing is a great mitigation tool to decrease the risk of substance abuse in the workplace. SureHire offers a range of drug & alcohol testing services. With an extensive network of facilities across North America, certified technicians, and same-day results notifications, we make it easy to be sure you’ve got the right hire for the job. Contact us to learn more.
3. Mobile Occupational Testing. When getting your workers into a facility isn’t convenient, mobile testing can be a great solution, offering reduced downtime, fewer missed or delayed tests, reduced possibility of compromised tests, higher participation, reduced liability, and increased flexibility. SureHire’s mobile fleet provisions a range of occupational tests, including breath alcohol testing, oral fluid drug testing, audiometric screening, respirator fitting, temperature screening, and more. Contact us to learn more. 
4. Fitness-to-Work Testing. Many jobs require employees to be able to perform work tasks that are critical to their role (otherwise known as bona fide occupational requirements, or BFORs for short). These work tasks may include lifting, carrying, crouching, bending, reaching, and long periods of time spent moving without rest. Despite how common these job-related activities are, employers often overlook the importance of evaluating these activities and comparing them against a job candidate’s physical capabilities. Contact us to learn more.
5. Education & Training. According to the National Safety Council (NSC), 43% of employees admit they may be too tired to function safely at work. In addition, collision with a vehicle in transport was the first harmful event (the first event during a crash that resulted in injury or property damage) in 73 percent of fatal crashes involving large trucks, 84 percent of injury crashes involving large trucks, and 76 percent of property damage only crashes involving large trucks (FMCSA). SureHire offers a range of education and training programs to support informed decision-making in the workplace. Contact us to learn more.

Before you set out to hire this holiday season, consider the risks, and be sure you’ve got the right hire for the job. Learn more about our services and work with us to keep our workforces and communities safe, healthy, and productive.