Open post to the trucking industry

I've been doing a bit of research on trucking companies lately and oh wow, for the most part they seem to be lagging behind on useful content for the drivers. Site after site simply state (paraphrasing here) call for more information.......Guess what, while there are still some luddites in the industry, quite a large percentage of us ARE tech savvy and we wish to do our research online without the bias of a recruiter who is paid bonuses on the number of bodies they get into orientation--quite a few of whom aren't actually qualified which is sussed out within the first day.  So come on, let's get with the program and put at least a little more data on what's required, pay rates, benefits, etc without time and money being wasted on both sides to find out if it's a viable option for either.

Second grumble........the health and fitness issues facing drivers.  Even though this is a major cost it doesn't seem like many trucking companies are doing anything more than superficial "band-aid" lip-service to solving the obesity and inactivity status of their employees/team members/associates/whatever the current human resource term is.

Sure there are a handful that offer fitness centers but usually only in the main headquarters where drivers are not exactly encouraged to utilize them or they are so under-stocked with out-dated equipment that they are nigh on useless.  I'm not hearing many drivers talk about their companies actively offering programs to help lose weight/get healthy/start fitness routines.  And yes, between the social media outlets like facebook, blogs, and twitter I am still in touch with a fair number of drivers.  To go even further, of the drivers I know who are proactive in taking their health and physical fitness very seriously, most of their employers seem to be quite blase in recognizing or even wanting to hear about those achievements they've attained in spite of the challenges of the industry.  This industry needs to get with it and start providing information/support/facilities/motivation to ALL their employees, not just the ones they see every day walking into the office.

Mini-rant over, there are several resources available for truckdrivers who want to take charge of their health, Sparkpeople is a great place to start and there is a Truckin' Runners group on facebook while the Ride and Roll provides info for the cyclists (which is also useful for the runners/walkers).