MARTEN TRANSPORT INCREASES DETENTION PAY
Company adds innovative program to compensate for downtime

March 20, 2012 (Mondovi, Wis.) – Marten Transport, a Wisconsin-based certified top paying carrier, is setting itself apart again with initiatives to not only raise its drivers earnings but also keep drivers from losing pay due to detention or maintenance issues.  This week, the carrier instituted an increase to its automatic driver detention pay, in addition to maintenance pay, to offset any negative effects of downtime. These programs are consistent with the company’s unprecedented growth and success as a premium employer and leader in the trucking industry.

“A driver’s time is very valuable. With CSA regulations, hours of service laws and other compliance procedures in place, it’s vital to reduce any unproductive time. We introduced automatic detention pay for drivers in April of 2011 in an effort to compensate our drivers for their time and to hold customers accountable for delays,” says Tim Norlin, director of recruiting for Marten Transport, one of the first carriers to begin charging customers a detention fee if trailers were not loaded or unloaded in a set period of time. “It’s our goal to basically eliminate detention time but if it happens and keeps the driver from rolling, we want them compensated for it.”

August 16, 2011; Mondovi, Wis. – A specially customized Marten Transport trailer will carry metal artifacts from the collapsed World Trade Center twin towers to Hattiesburg, Miss., to become part of a permanent memorial at The University of Southern Mississippi.

A Marten driver will haul the two pieces of twisted steel, secured by the City of Hattiesburg, from New York City to Hattiesburg in time for an official transfer to the university at halftime of Southern Miss’ football season opener against Louisiana Tech on Sept. 3 at M.M. Roberts Stadium. The fragments are described as cut steel wall spandrel measuring 72 inches in length by 12 inches wide and 1-inch thick. Each piece weighs approximately 200 pounds.

About NCS4
Established in 2006, the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security was created to provide an interdisciplinary academic environment to further increase sport security awareness, improve sport security policies and procedures and enhance emergency response through evacuation, recovery operations and crowd management training.

July 6, 2011 - Growth continues at Marten Transport with the opening of an additional terminal facility in Kansas City, Kan., in a prime location for its drivers.

“Beginning in July, Marten will be dispatching from Kansas City throughout the Central Plains region,” says Timothy Norlin, Marten’s director of recruiting. “Our growth and expansion has continued steadily the past few years and is still on track today.  This additional facility will not only improve our operations in the Midwest, but it will also create hundreds of jobs.”

According to Norlin, the facility is expected to be open by early July 2011.  Once the facility is open, more than 250 jobs will be created including opportunities for professional drivers, mechanics, dispatchers, administrative support and more.

“It’s very gratifying to know that Marten is not only providing quality regional and over-the-road opportunities for drivers but also that we’re positively affecting unemployment,” says Norlin.

The new site will open its shop and maintenance facilities later in the summer but currently has a comfortable lounge to accommodate drivers.

 “We’re very excited to be in the Kansas City area,” Norlin says. “This additional location is another indication of Marten’s stability and growth. We want driving professionals to know we have the opportunities they’re looking for and the strength to remain solid in the face of economic challenges.”

For more information on Marten Transport driving opportunities or pay programs, call 800-395-3331.

July 1, 2011 - Detention has been a problem in the trucking industry since the first trucks hit the road but Marten Transport is leading the way to hold customers accountable for delays by compensating drivers for their time with automatic detention pay.

“There have been various attempts in the past to curb detention and to hold customers accountable but we felt more needed to be done,” says Tim Norlin, director of recruiting for Marten Transport, one of the first carriers in 2003 to begin charging customers a detention fee if trailers were not loaded or unloaded in a set period of time. “With new hours of service regulations, CSA, and electronic logs, there is a lot of pressure on driver productivity. We understand that every minute the wheels are not rolling affects earnings for our drivers and the company.”

 To combat this problem and to respond to the input of drivers regarding detention pay, Marten Transport has announced that effective July 1, 2011, drivers who arrive on time and are delayed by a shipper or receiver for more than two hours beyond the scheduled appointment time will automatically receive detention pay. The rate will be $12 per hour for company drivers, $20 per hour for independent contractors for every hour detained beyond the two hour limit, up to 11 hours. “This eliminates waiting to see if the customer will pay for the detention before you are paid,” says Norlin. “You will receive the detention pay automatically no later than the time you are paid for that trip.”
 
With its presence on Facebook and Twitter, Marten Transport has listened and responded to driver comments and concerns regarding detention.  “We understand that certain customer locations have a history of long detention times that our drivers would prefer to avoid,” says Norlin. “We are flagging those customers for follow-up by our sales team to correct the detention issues there.”

Until those issues are resolved, company drivers that are dispatched to flagged locations will earn $20 per hour and independent contractors will earn $30 per hour for detention. Drivers will be notified at time of dispatch if their pickup or delivery location has been flagged for long detention times.

According to Norlin, detention will be calculated in quarter hour increments. “For example, if you arrive on time for an 8 a.m. delivery and the receiver keeps you in the dock until 11:45 a.m., you will receive 1.75 hours of detention pay i.e. 3.75 hours-2 hours allowed = 1.75 hours,” says Norlin. “Remember, to qualify for detention time, you must be on-time for your pick up or delivery and must submit your Macro 20 (arrived at pickup) or Macro 22 (arrived at delivery) shortly after your arrival time.”

Marten’s sales and customer service staffs are working with customers every day to eventually eliminate detention time.  The carrier’s automatic detention pay is now in place to take care of drivers until then.

Marten Transport specializes in transporting food and other consumer packaged goods that require a time and temperature-sensitive or insulated environment.

For more information on Marten Transport driving opportunities or pay programs, call 800-395-3331.

At a banquet to be held on Saturday, April 2, 2011, Marten Transport will honor 15 One Million Mile Club inductees, three Two Million Mile Club inductees and two new Three Million Mile Club inductees.

The inductees are:

TWO MILLION MILE
Barbara Schaub
Bob Schaub
Michael Hubbard

THREE MILLION
Charles Day

New inductees to the One Million Mile Club receive custom jackets prior to the banquet and have their portraits taken to be placed in the Marten Transport Hall of Fame, which features all of Marten’s honorees through the years.  At the banquet, they receive an engraved mantle clock, a million miler hat, truck decals and a certificate of achievement for themselves and a support person of their choice.

Two Million Mile Club inductees receive a custom specialty ring, polo-style shirt, truck decal and certificates.  A group photo is taken for the wall of fame.

At the banquet, the Three Million Mile club inductees will be presented with truck decals as well as a choice of rewards including jewelry or up to $5,000 in vacation money.
 
With the new additions, Marten Transport has 512 members in its Million Mile Clubs including 99 Two Million Milers, and 10 Three Million Milers.  The inductees, their guests and many Marten employees will be treated to a buffet dinner following the awards ceremony.
 

Carrier partners with Fusion Sleep to promote driver health and safety
As part of its efforts to promote driver health and safety, Marten Transport has implemented a fatigue management program in partnership with Fusion Sleep at its Tucker, Ga., terminal with plans to expand in the coming weeks.  The program helps identify risk factors in sleep disorders and apnea and provides immediate treatment at no cost to drivers.

Marten Chief Operating Officer Robert Smith says he is proud to tell his clients that they are leading the industry on safety standards.  “The Transportation Sleep Medicine Program that Fusion Sleep provides is the gold standard of addressing critical sleep and health issues within the driving population of all carriers,” he says.

As newly recruited drivers begin their on-boarding process, Marten and Fusion Sleep have integrated a sleep medical review and sleep testing process within new-hire orientation and DOT physical exams so that the general flow is not interrupted.  “We find it highly efficient and beneficial to our new hire process,” says Smith. “There’s no delay in getting drivers treated as needed and on the road earning.”

The program Marten has implemented is designed to identify problems and conditions that impact sleep quality, quantity and daytime function in the transportation industry and other industries where safety is key to their operations.

According to Dr. Jeffrey Durmer, MD, PhD, chief medical director of Fusion Sleep, many drivers do not realize they have sleep issues until they are tested. “We’ve seen many, many drivers who thought they were fine but were identified as having a sleep issue, received treatment and are amazed at how much better they feel when they’re treated,” says Durmer. “Marten is definitely ahead of the curve in implementing a full sleep disorder program.”

Marten Transport expects to expand to other terminals in January. “First and foremost we want our drivers healthy and safe,” says Smith. “We also take very seriously the safety of the driving public. Those priorities led us to Fusion Sleep to provide the best screening, treatment and monitoring we could while still getting drivers through orientation efficiently and quickly.”

Fusion Sleep’s Sleep4Safety Program is staffed by dedicated board certified sleep medicine physicians, sleep medicine trained nurse practitioners, sleep technologists, respiratory therapists and medical compliance coaches working directly with fleets and their drivers.

“Our sole focus is to continually improve driver services in order to provide long-term therapy resulting in over 95 percent compliance where the industry standard is 50 percent or less,” says Mary Parrish, Fusion’s vice president of transportation safety.  “The key to success for these professional drivers is getting acclimated to sleep therapy and we offer a full support system and staff to get them comfortable, rested and successful.”

About Marten Transport
Marten Transport, headquartered in Mondovi, Wis., specializes in transporting food and other consumer packaged goods that require a time and temperature-sensitive or insulated environment. For more information on services or opportunities at Marten Transport, call 800-395-3331.

About Fusion Sleep
Fusion Sleep is the only comprehensive Sleep Medicine Program that combines professional expertise in the field of Sleep Medicine and multiple treatment options for numerous sleep disorders with a user-friendly follow-up program to ensure enduring and successful outcomes for carrier fleets and drivers.  For more information, www.sleep4safety.com

Company continues to unprecedented growth —Marten Transport continues to move forward with unprecedented growth, most recently proven by breaking ground on a new state-of-the-art facility in Desoto, Texas, in a prime location for its drivers.

“With a combination of careful planning and ambitious goals, Marten Transport has continued growth and expansion during a challenging economic period,” says Adam Phillips, Senior Director of Regional Operations. “This new facility will not only improve our operations in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, but it will also create hundreds of jobs.”

According to Phillips, the facility is expected to be complete by early January 2011.  Once the facility is open, more than 300 jobs will be created including opportunities for professional drivers, mechanics, dispatchers, administrative support and more.

“When we see unemployment at 10 percent or more across the nation, we are extremely proud to be one of the corporate citizens in a position to positively contribute,” says Phillips.

The new site, which represents an $8.4 million investment, will have over 35,000 square feet sitting on a total of about 19 acres.

Phillips says the new facility’s shop will contain a total of eight bays at 116 feet in length—including two drive-through inspection lanes with indoor fueling.  The driver lounge, restroom, and shower facilities will also be very spacious and accommodating. 

Orientation capacity with the new facility is expected to accommodate up to 30 new drivers per week and plentiful parking will be available for large trucks and trailers. 

“We’re just very excited that building on the new facility has started,” Phillips says. “It represents another stepping stone in the future growth of Marten.  We’re very grateful for everyone’s contribution to Marten’s stability and success.”

About Marten Transport
Marten Transport specializes in transporting food and other consumer packaged goods that require a time and temperature-sensitive or insulated environment.

MONDOVI, Wis. — Marten Transport, Ltd. (Nasdaq:MRTN), a leader in the time- and temperature-sensitive transportation industry, has been certified by an independent transportation institute as a top paying carrier.
           
The National Transportation Institute, which provides accurate and authoritative mission critical benchmarks to truckload carriers, recently completed its annual National Driver Wages Survey. As part of the survey, the institute reviewed detailed pay profiles of key truckload carrier company driver and owner-operator compensation plans. The report contains 65 different categories of pay, benefits and driver policies segregated into van, refrigerated and flatbed categories.  Gordon Klemp, President of the National Transportation Institute, said, “We are proud to honor Marten Transport with our elite Top Pay Certification award. Only a small number of carriers nationally qualify for this status. Marten's outstanding driver pay and benefits program, combined with its financial stability, have put the company in a position to qualify to be part of this exclusive group.”   
            
The institute found Marten Transport, listed among Forbes “200 Best Small Companies in America,” as one of the nation’s best for total compensation packages.

Marten Transport has spent the last two years in a growth mode despite an industry downturn. The carrier has opened numerous new terminals and expanded its regional network to better serve customers and accommodate more driver-friendly schedules.
            
“We’ve been very committed to keeping driver pay strong despite economic challenges. Marten has found ways to increase take-home pay when others were cutting, so this acknowledgment from NTI is a validation that we are at the forefront of driver offerings,” said Marten’s Director of Recruiting, Tim Norlin. “It confirms that we’ve been doing things right.  This recognition is the result of our hard-working, committed drivers, contractors, employees and management team who have helped make Marten a success.”

For more information on joining the driving professionals at Marten call 800-395-3331