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Copyright 2026 J. J. Keller & Associate, Inc. For re-use options please contact copyright@jjkeller.com or call 800-558-5011.
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FEATURED NEWS
2026-06-12T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsFleet SafetyExpert InsightsBusiness policies and procedures - Motor CarrierBusiness planning - Motor CarrierFocus AreaFleet OperationsEnglishTransportationBusiness planning - Motor CarrierUSA
Expert Insights: Motus — FMCSA's forward momentum
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has rolled out the first phase of Motus, a new USDOT registration system designed to streamline compliance and modernize the way motor carriers, brokers, and supporting companies manage their regulatory obligations. Motus, which is Latin for movement/motion, represents a significant shift from the current systems and will involve consolidating USDOT numbers, biennial updates, hazmat registrations, and other filings into one secure, user friendly platform.
The initiative aims to simplify processes, enhance fraud prevention, and provide registrants with intuitive tools such as auto population, real time data validation, and mobile accessibility.
Troubleshooting Motus issues
Many carriers are running into obstacles when registering for Motus. The most frequent issue is not being able to claim DOT numbers, and the most common reason for this is that the carrier didn’t update its information before the deadline.
For example, only the company official can claim your USDOT number. This means that if your company official left earlier this year and you didn’t update this information in your portal, then you won’t be able to claim your USDOT number.
If you’re struggling to get your Motus account set up or claim your USDOT number, you must contact FMCSA at 800-832-5660. FMCSA will only work directly with the motor carrier at this point. Once you have set up your account, you can then grant permissions to other individuals — both within and outside of your organization.
Motus watchouts
Motus gives you more control over your registration, but it also puts more responsibility on you. For example, Motus has simplified applying for operating authority, but knowing which authority your company needs remains unclear. Obtaining the incorrect authority type can be costly, and making mistakes on your application can lead to long delays.
Without the correct authority in place, you may run into:
- A delay in approval, which would lead to a delay in beginning operations.
- Additional application fees, as you may need to reapply.
- Compliance issues, which could lead to expensive fees, audits, or even being placed out of service.
Key to remember: FMCSA has rolled out the first phase of Motus, which aims to streamline and simplify compliance, but it also comes with a few additional challenges for motor carriers.
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RECENT INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS
2026-06-12T05:00:00Z
NewsEmergency Planning - OSHAIndustry NewsIndustry NewsSafety & HealthWeather and Natural DisastersEmergency PreparednessEmergency Planning (OSHA)General Industry SafetyU.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB)EnglishFocus AreaUSA
CSB urges chemical companies to prepare for hurricane season
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) urges chemical companies to prepare for extreme weather conditions, as the Atlantic Hurricane season is officially underway. Proactive planning and preparation by chemical facilities helps ensure the safety of workers, emergency responders, and surrounding communities from the dangers of chemical releases. According to the CSB, top priorities for limiting severe weather impacts are:
- Securing hazardous materials,
- Ensuring backup power for critical safety systems,
- Training personnel on emergency protocols, and
- Coordinating with local emergency management authorities.
The CSB encourages facilities to review its hurricane preparation resources and implement applicable recommendations.
2026-06-12T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsEnglishAssociate RelationsTraining & DevelopmentHR GeneralistIn-Depth ArticleEmployee Mental HealthHR ManagementWellnessUSAFocus AreaHuman Resources
Joy to the workplace
If you look around your office and see happy people, it’s likely that you and other coworkers have a hand in making this happen. New research from Wiley Workplace Intelligence shows that colleagues are a major influence on happiness in the workplace.
Both work and the people we work with can lead to an upbeat feeling. More than 75 percent of the employees surveyed said they feel joy in their work, according to the report. Most also said they:
- Feel motivated to do their best work,
- Feel connected to the people they work with (85 percent), and
- Understand how their role contributes to organizational success (93 percent).
Many employees (39 percent) cited their team as a major influence on their happiness at work. Another 19 percent said they shape their own joy, while only 6 percent credited senior leadership.
This research indicates that the team level is where workplace joy is won or lost. Specifically, it says that "Joy is local.” It’s found in:
- Daily interactions,
- Moments of collaboration, and
- The small but consistent experience of feeling seen by the people you work alongside.
On the other hand, efforts to build joy company-wide through announcements, campaigns, or top-down culture initiatives, may miss the mark.
The research points to these five practical interventions that can help increase joy:
- Focusing on capacity, not just commitment. Even when motivation is high, a shortage of time and resources can cause a frustrating bottleneck. Organizations that want to strengthen hope and joy should ask hard questions about workload, support structures, and whether employees have what they genuinely need to succeed, not just survive.
- Aiming for clarity at every level. Direction doesn’t flow automatically through organizations. It must be actively communicated and reinforced at every level.
- Support managers as a primary intervention. The road to greater hope and joy in an organization runs directly through its managers. Manager well-being should be a priority, not an afterthought. When managers receive clear direction, adequate resources, and more time to accomplish goals, those conditions extend to the people they lead.
- Investing at the team level. Factors that strengthen the relationships of team members, such as everyday recognition and true psychological safety, are investments in the actual source of workplace joy. Joy lives closest to coworkers, not leadership.
- Being intentional about development. Viewing a role as a starting point and working to help people thrive in roles that fit their strengths adds value to their workplace goals. This is an area where intentional development conversations and role design can make a real difference.
Key to remember: Joy in the workplace starts at the team level. Strengthening relationships at the team level can influence overall happiness in the workplace.
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2026-06-12T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsSafety and Health Programs and TrainingSafety & HealthConstruction SafetyGeneral Industry SafetyExpert InsightsSafety and Health Programs and TrainingEnglishFocus AreaUSA
Expert Insights: Coaching safety on the front line
Frontline managers play one of the most critical roles in workplace safety, yet they often face the greatest challenges. Positioned between senior leadership expectations and frontline realities, they are responsible for translating and coordinating safety from a written policy into everyday practice.
Whether safety becomes proactive and sustainable or reactive and compliance driven often depends on how well these leaders are supported and equipped to lead.
Reactive or proactive…that is the question
A key shift many organizations must make is moving from a “safety cop” mindset to a “safety coach” approach. Reactive leadership tends to emerge only after an incident occurs, focusing on enforcement and documentation. Proactive leadership intervenes before someone gets hurt by asking questions, listening to employees, identifying hazards early, and working together to fix issues. When safety happens with employees instead of to them, engagement and accountability increase.
That shift begins with upper management who sets the tone, provides resources, and signals what truly matters. True commitment is demonstrated by where leaders focus their time, how visible they are, and how they behave day to day. When safety is linked to business goals such as productivity, quality, and cost control, it becomes part of how decisions are made rather than a competing priority.
Actionable goals for upper management include:
- Link safety to business performance by tying injury trends, near miss data, and hazard correction rates to cost savings and productivity.
- Include safety in leadership key performance indicators and reviews, so leaders are held accountable for participation and results.
- Be visibly involved in safety walks, toolbox talks, audits, and frontline conversations.
- Shift focus to leading indicators such as training participation, near miss reporting, and corrective action closure.
- Recognize proactive safety success, not just react to incidents after they occur.
When senior leaders consistently show these behaviors, they give frontline managers the confidence and support to focus on preventing problems instead of reacting to them.
Safety culture improves when employees help shape it
Safety culture is realized at the employee level. Frontline managers are the bridge between leadership intent and workforce action. Employees are far more likely to engage when they see leaders listen, follow through, and set clear expectations.
Actionable goals for engaging employees include:
- Lead by example every day by consistently following safety rules, procedures, and PPE requirements.
- Involve employees early in hazard assessments, process changes, equipment trials, and pilot programs.
- Define specific, observable safe behaviors for each role instead of using blanket safe work practices and vague messages like “be careful.” •Integrate safety into daily routines such as shift huddles, job planning, and production meetings.
- Make reporting easy and safe with simple tools, anonymous options if needed, and zero tolerance for retaliation.
- Recognize and reinforce safe behaviors through immediate verbal feedback and formal recognition programs.
- Empower stop work authority and openly support employees who speak up when something isn’t safe.
Training reinforces these efforts when it is practical, hands on, and continuous. Adults learn best through real world application, discussion, and reinforcement, not annual check the box training alone. Short toolbox talks, demonstrations, and regular reminders keep safety relevant and actionable.
As you consider your organization’s safety leadership, remember that when leaders support frontline managers who stay connected to their teams, safety is built into how work gets done.
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2026-06-11T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsSafety and Health Programs and TrainingSafety & HealthBehavior Based SafetyConstruction SafetyGeneral Industry SafetyIn-Depth ArticleEnglishFocus AreaUSA
Shortcuts that cut too deep
In 2026, a worker was killed in a warehouse forklift incident after basic safety procedures were skipped. OSHA investigations continue to show the same pattern of workers with serious injury or fatalities when controls are ignored.
Most workplaces are always looking for ways to work smarter and faster. Finding safer, more efficient ways to do a job is often part of good process improvement. The problem starts when a “shortcut” is not really an improvement at all, but a step that skips a check, bypasses a control, or ignores a hazard just to save a few seconds. That kind of shortcut may improve speed, but it also increases exposure to serious risk.
The shortcut mindset
The shortcut mindset is the habit of choosing speed or convenience over the steps that keep work controlled and safe, often without realizing that anything has changed. Shortcuts don’t usually feel dangerous, they just feel faster and easier. It might be stepping over a hose instead of moving it, using the top step “just for a second,” squeezing through a tight aisle, or brushing off a quick inspection.
On their own, these choices seem harmless. However, over time, they change how work is done. They remove the steps that were keeping the task under control, increasing the chance of slips, falls, contact with equipment, or other common injuries.
A big part of this mindset is familiarity. People rely on how things looked earlier to assume it’s still safe. Shortcuts make that gap even bigger, because they eliminate the moment when people would stop and check. What felt safe an hour ago may not be safe now.
What’s driving cutting corners?
These decisions aren’t random, they’re usually driven by real conditions in the workplace. Heat drains energy, cold makes everything feel slower, and long shifts wear people down. Throw in deadlines or the push to get the task done and move on to the next, and it’s easy to start cutting corners without even realizing it. In those moments, workers are more likely to skip steps, overlook hazards, or rely on routine instead of checking the conditions in front of them.
Control beats convenience
Shortcuts trade control for speed, and that trade rarely works out. In many of the incidents that OSHA investigates, the issue isn’t a new hazard, it’s a step that was skipped, a condition that wasn’t checked, or a control that wasn’t used. Preventing dangerous shortcut behavior starts with reinforcing habits that keep critical safety steps from being skipped in the first place:
- Keep work areas clear before starting the task, so there’s no reason to step over hoses, materials, or obstacles instead of removing them;
- Use tools and equipment the way they’re designed, rather than improvising or taking a quicker route that bypasses built-in protections;
- Pause and check conditions each time you start a task, even if you’ve done it before, instead of relying on how things looked earlier;
- Watch for small changes during the shift, like tighter aisles, slick floors, or moved materials that can turn a routine task into a hazard; and
- Stop and speak up when something feels off, instead of pushing through just to keep things moving.
Key to remember: Shortcuts can remove the steps that keep routine work safe. Taking a few extra seconds to check conditions, follow the process, and stay aware of changes can prevent a shortcut from becoming an injury.
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2026-06-11T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsIndustry NewsElectronic logging device (ELD)Electronic logging device (ELD)Focus AreaFleet OperationsEnglishTransportationUSA
Last chance to replace your ELDs: 12 total removed from FMCSA’s list
A total of 12 devices were recently removed from the FMCSA’s list of registered electronic logging devices (ELDs).
On May 20, 2026, the following ELDs were removed for not meeting the minimum requirements in 49 CFR 395, Subpart B, Appendix A:
- 888 ELD
- DRAGON E
- ACTION ELD
- Mondo ELD HOS
- FIRST ELD
- FIRST ELD V2.0
- MTL ELD
- USPower ELD
- Sam Freight ELD
- DSGELOGS
- COBRA ELD
- GT USA ELOGS
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has moved these devices to its “revoked devices” list.
Carriers and drivers have until toward the end of next month on July 20, 2026, to replace them with compliant ELDs.
Many ELD providers remove their devices from the list voluntarily, but the FMCSA has the authority to remove any ELD that does not comply with regulations.
Next steps for commercial carriers
Commercial carriers and drivers who use the above-listed devices must stop using the devices and switch to paper logs or logging software to record their hours of service.
In addition, they must replace the devices with ELDs listed on the FMCSA’s ELD registry and begin using those compliant devices before the posted dates.
ELD providers who correct device deficiencies can be placed back on the list of registered devices. The FMCSA will inform the industry when revoked devices are compliant again.
ELD compliance standards
During the 60-day replacement period, the FMCSA has instructed safety officials to review affected drivers’ hours-of-service data using logging software, paper logs, or the ELD display.
After July 20, respectively, any motor carrier that continues to use the revoked devices will be considered operating without an ELD. Drivers will be placed out of service and cited for “No record of duty status” (395.8(a)(1)).
Review the full list of registered devices at https://eld.fmcsa.dot.gov/List.
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Copyright 2026 J. J. Keller & Associate, Inc. For re-use options please contact copyright@jjkeller.com or call 800-558-5011.