Barr-Nunn, Maverick Make Pitch For Drivers in Rough Labor Market

Two truckload fleets are going the extra mile to make their companies attractive places to work.

Barr-Nunn Transportation of Grainger, Iowa, is putting photographs of drivers on the sides of its trailers along with the message “I’m On Barr-Nunn’s Side.”

At Maverick Transportation in Little Rock, Ark., a new training program called “Hooked on Maverick” is being used to promote a more satisfying work environment for its 200 office and shop personnel and 500 drivers.

The Barr-Nunn recruiting campaign, designed to raise awareness throughout the 48 states in which the company transports freight, was launched this month.



“We feel Barr-Nunn has some of the best drivers in the industry,” said Barbara Kennedy, vice president of human resources. “No one sells Barr-Nunn better than our drivers.”

The company also provides drivers with late-model conventional tractors with air ride suspension, mobile satellite communications and a CabCard system that allows drivers to send and receive e-mail text and voice mail messages.

President Robert Sturgeon said the company’s driver turnover rate is 40%, compared to the industry average of 98.2%.

For the full story, see the August 23 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.