Cover Story

Eugene Harrell - Roehl Transport, Inc.

When Eugene Harrell decided to give truck driving a try 11 years ago, he had some life goals clearly in mind and one undiscovered passion that would ultimately become the best part of his job.
     “Initially I joined Roehl Transport because of the benefits,” said Harrell of LaGrange, GA. He and his wife have six boys and two girls, and providing for their family has been the top priority. Harrell hoped for a better life, and that wasn’t going to happen with his previous jobs as a pizzeria manager and lab technician.
     Harrell (who everyone knows as Gene) said he’s always liked being on the move; he didn’t want a position in an office or one that kept him in one place. He decided to drive one of the red Roehl trucks, where the over-the-road job gave him a chance to see the U.S. and be well paid for it.
     With Roehl, Harrell rapidly experienced positive changes. “A few years after joining Roehl, we not only moved into our own house, we actually built it for our family. Before Roehl, I never dreamt that would happen,” Harrell said.
     But financial success is just part of what Roehl drivers can experience, according to Harrell. Being able to provide well for your family is the foundation, but there is more than that to the Power of Red. “The benefits were good,” he remembered, “and they continue to get better.”
     In addition to the pay and comprehensive, affordable benefits program, Harrell said, “Roehl gives you opportunities to find a place for yourself…choices, so you can be successful,” he noted.
     For Harrell, that was as a Roehl driver trainer teaching new drivers the ins and outs of the profession. With his income and benefits secure, the thing he values most about his Roehl career is the ability to instruct. “Helping new drivers become successful is what I really enjoy,” he says. His talent and enthusiasm for teaching is clearly inspirational; several of his students have gone on to become driver trainers themselves.
     “Pay and home time are always the top issues cited by drivers in job satisfaction surveys. Roehl has been, is and always will be an industry leader in both categories,” said Greg Koepel, Roehl Transport’s Vice President of Workforce Development and Administration. Harrell added, “There are trade-offs – I tell all my students that. But Roehl gives drivers choices.”
     Koepel agreed with Harrell. “What Gene says is absolutely true. Today’s drivers are sophisticated professionals. They deserve financial success, but they also want to shape the job to fit their needs and personalities. People need to have meaningful control over their own career; they have options and opportunities with Roehl. That’s real empowerment and that’s part of the Power of Red,” Koepel explained. “That means giving drivers the freedom to make their own decisions,” Harrell added.
     Roehl offers national and regional fleets; van, flatbed, curtainside and refrigerated; the opportunity and support to become an owner operator; plus the broadest range of home-time options in the industry. Additionally, Roehl drivers have the right to make their own safety decisions on the road, and communication is always honest, a point highlighted by Harrell. “Roehl has an open-door policy to top management that reinforces driver input and a commitment to everyone’s success,” he said.
     “I chose to become a driver trainer,” Harrell noted. “The company offered other (office) jobs, but teaching people and being out on the road, that’s the Power of Red to me.”
     The staff of Over the Road and Pro Trucker magazines would like to wish Gene continued success with Roehl Transport. If you would like to learn more about driving opportunities available at Roehl, give one of their recruiters a call at (800) 626-8751, visit their Web site at roehl.net or see their ads on pages 15 and 31 of this issue.