How are you today? Most Wisconsin people enquire about the health of others when they care. It may be the right time to ask about the health condition of drivers of tractor-trailers and dump trucks. Wisconsin motorists care a lot about truck drivers because they know how crashes with 18-wheelers can inflict terrible injuries and damage. They do not want ailing, tired or weak drivers behind the wheel of a tractor-trailer any more than they want to step into an airplane with a sick pilot in the cockpit.

So, how is the health of Wisconsin truck drivers?

While it would obviously be wrong to generalize, it is clear that there are serious health issues among truck drivers, and that the trend is not pointing towards improvement. The main reasons why truck drivers, more than other professionals, have health issues while working are:

• Truck drivers work irregular hours, switching from daytime to nighttime work, and spend long periods at work without taking a day off in order not to miss any business and make their deadlines;
• Interstate truck drivers spend most of their time away from home, eating mostly at truck stops, or eating sandwiches and drinking soda or coffee while driving;
• Truck drivers are usually paid by the mile, which keeps them under constant pressure to drive the extra mile and to keep on working even if they are ill or tired;
• It is very difficult for truck drivers to work out at the gym, or to go out hiking or biking.

The critical elements at the root of Wisconsin truck drivers’ health issues are the pay-by-the-mile system and the consumption of unhealthy foods and drinks. Very rapidly, truck drivers start putting on weight, and develop a number of ailments like backache, high blood pressure, migraine or fatigue. Truck drivers cannot afford to drive back home to see their doctor, so they lumber on, taking over-the-counter pills to fight pain, drowsiness or depression. Drugs, as is well known, have their own side issues that take an additional toll on the driver’s physical condition.

Truck drivers deserve a better treatment and the right to rest and heal when feeling tired, sick or in pain. It is the responsibility of motor carriers to keep their own workers healthy and our highways safe from Wisconsin tractor-trailer accidents.

If you have been injured in a Wisconsin or Illinois car, truck or motorcycle accident, contact the attorneys of Hupy & Abraham, S.C. today at 800-800-5676 (toll-free) or 414-223-4800 (local) for a free evaluation of your case, or send us an e-mail with your questions. Hupy & Abraham have law offices in Milwaukee, Madison, Appleton in Wisconsin, and Gurnee and Bloomington in Illinois.