Truck Drivers May be Regulated by New Sleep Standards
Injury accidents involving any vehicles, but particularly trucks and tractor trailers driven by drivers who are fatigued due to lack of sleep, are not uncommon. According to a recent study on sleep and American workers conducted by the National Sleep Foundation, American workers are suffering from a serious lack of sleep which is impacting them at work.
Of course, depending on the job duties a person has, the safety risk of a person working while fatigued can vary. For drivers of 18 wheelers, semi trucks and tractor trailers, as they are often called, the risks of working while tired are extremely serious. According to the study, approximately 70 million Americans have problems sleeping. The study reported that almost three in ten workers had come to work very sleepy or even fallen asleep at work within the month prior to the study.
Relevant to the trucking industry and other jobs that require employees to drive, the study found that 36% of the respondents had fallen asleep while they were driving. The study concluded that there are several factors that contribute to this trend of fatigued workers. Employees are working more due to increased pressure from employers. One fourth of the respondents said they work between eight and nine hours a day, and another one fourth of the respondents said they work up to ten hours a day. Notably, the current laws governing the number of hours a tractor trailer driver can drive without a break allow a truck driver to drive ten hours consecutively without a break.
One cause of lack of sleep and the resulting fatigue is sleep apnea which is a condition that causes people to stop breathing while sleeping which in turn forces the person to frequently wake up and prevents them from getting a good night's sleep. Obesity is a common factor that contributes to sleep apnea. Not surprisingly, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) which governs truck drivers and the trucking industry, is reviewing information about sleep apnea and considering requiring drivers of semi trucks/18 wheelers/tractor trailers to undergo a sleep study if their weight exceeds a certain level increasing their risk to sleep apnea. Truck drivers with sleep apnea would have to get treatment and medical certification to be permitted to drive.
The regulations already require these commercial truck drivers to obtain medical certification that they are physically fit to safely drive their vehicles. Sleep apnea does not disqualify a person from driving a tractor trailer for a living. However, since lack of sleep and fatigue are major safety issues that can cause or contribute to injury accidents, it is a good idea that the existence of this condition and its effects are considered when evaluating whether a person should be driving a tractor trailer. It would also likely benefit trucking companies as awake and alert drivers and employees would likely be more productive drivers and employees.
