Many of you have sent me emails from consulting firms stating that you are required to have your supervisors of CDL drivers trained in Drug and Alcohol Reasonable Suspicion Testing. These emails use “scare” tactics to get you to purchase their supervisor training courses, webinars, etc. While they are correct that your supervisors must meet the requirements set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the good news is that the FMCSA provides this training at NO COST!
Now, let’s look at what the regulations say about the training of your supervisors of CDL drivers.
By the way, this applies to all motor carriers, both intrastate and interstate.
Who is Subject to the Supervisor Training for Reasonable Suspicion Testing?
CFR 382.603
Training for Supervisors
Each employer shall ensure that all persons designated to supervise CDL drivers receive at least 60 minutes of training on alcohol misuse and an additional 60 minutes of training on the use of controlled substances. This training will enable supervisors to determine whether reasonable suspicion exists to require a driver to undergo testing under §382.307. The training shall include the physical, behavioral, speech, and performance indicators of probable alcohol misuse and controlled substances use. Recurrent training for supervisory personnel is not required.
So where can I get training?
The FMCSA offers supervisor training in video format that can be downloaded from their website for FREE!
To access it, go to:
FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Supervisor Training Guidance
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the last link:
Reasonable Suspicion Training
Please note that it may take a while to download due to the length of the video and the quality you choose. You can also check with your D&A Third Party Administrator to see if they provide the training.
Are there any training requirements in the regulations specific to drivers?
Outside of the hazardous materials training requirements for drivers, the following regulation applies to all CDL drivers:
Entry Level Driver Training (ELDT)
ELDT minimum training standards apply to interstate and intrastate drivers who are applying for their initial CDL, upgrading their current CDL, or obtaining a hazardous materials, passenger, or school bus endorsement for the first time.
The prescribed training includes both theory (knowledge) and behind-the-wheel (range and public road) instruction. The ELDT regulation went into effect on February 7, 2022.
CVSA Roadcheck Places 23% of Vehicles Out of Service
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s 2024 Roadcheck took place from May 14-16. Over three days, commercial motor vehicle enforcement personnel in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. conducted 48,761 inspections. Seventy-seven percent of commercial motor vehicles and 95.2% of commercial motor vehicle drivers had no out-of-service (OOS) violations.
Conversely, inspectors discovered 13,567 vehicle violations, 2,714 driver violations, and 163 hazardous materials/dangerous goods (HM/DG) violations, placing 9,345 commercial motor vehicle combinations and 2,290 drivers out of service. The overall vehicle out-of-service rate was 23%, while the driver out-of-service rate was 4.8%.
The top vehicle out-of-service violation recorded was for defective service brakes (25%), followed by tire violations (20.8%), other brake violations (18.3%), lights (11.6%), and cargo securement (9.6%).
The top driver OOS violations included hours of service (32.1%), no license/CDL (25.4%), no medical card (11.2%), false logs (10.9%), and suspended license/CDL (5.1%).
Additionally, a total of 535 safety belt violations were issued during this year’s Roadcheck. According to the FMCSA, 14% of commercial motor vehicle drivers do not wear their safety belts.
