Fleet Assures Drivers Friday the 13th Will Be 'Business as Usual,' Which Is Exactly What They Were Afraid Of
Management says there is no reason for superstition, citing a load that is 'basically ready' and a shipper who 'should' have the paperwork.
A trucking fleet tried to calm nerves this week with a company-wide message promising that Friday the 13th would be "business as usual," a phrase drivers immediately recognized as the scariest thing anyone could have said.
"We don't believe in bad luck here," the memo read. "Every load will be handled the way we always handle them." Several drivers reportedly read that line twice, then quietly checked their emergency kits.
A day like any other
According to the memo, Friday's schedule includes a pickup that is "basically ready," a receiver whose dock appointment "should be fine," and a reefer unit that has been "making that noise for weeks without any real problems."
"That's the whole problem," said one driver, who asked not to be named because he still needs the miles. "On a normal Friday, the load isn't ready, the dock is backed up and the reefer is screaming. If they're promising normal, they're promising all of that. At least a black cat would be a change of pace."
Precautions taken
To show it takes safety seriously, the fleet said it has replaced the broken mirror in the drivers' lounge, which had been cracked since 2019, and moved the yard's only ladder so that nobody has to walk under it on the way to the fuel island.
Dispatch also confirmed that no driver will be given truck 13. That truck has been in the shop since March, so nobody was going to get it anyway.
Management stays positive
"Statistically, Friday the 13th is no worse than any other day," a fleet spokesperson said. "Our data show that every day here goes about the same."
Drivers said they found that statistic deeply reassuring, in the same way that a weather forecast of "about the same as yesterday" is reassuring during a blizzard.
What's next
The fleet said it will review how the day went at Monday's safety meeting, which has been moved twice, rescheduled for 6 a.m. and will be held in the lounge with the new mirror.