Oregon Trucking Association, Inc. Oregon Truck Dispatch 2 Evan Oneto OTA Chair THE ROAD AHEAD IS A BUSY ONE FOR OTA AS I SIT down to write this column, my final one as Chair of OTA, I struggle to find the words to summarize all of the things that I have learned about our association during my tenure as Chair in order to try and convey those insights to our membership, so that future leaders can take up the mantle to continue to lead our association down a successful path. I suppose the old refrain is true as it relates to positions like the one I now leave behind: “About the time you start to learn what you need to know; it is about time to leave.” Having been thrust into the weeds of trucking policy and politics in the state, as well as the daily operations of our association for the past two years, there is so much that leaves me interested, curious, and at times worried, but also passionate about our industry and association that I wish to convey to all of you. But in the interest of brevity, clarity and readability, I think what may be most helpful is to turn to an old tool I first picked up in my college years—a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis of our association. Here goes: Strengths: First and foremost, it is our membership. We have a compelling story to tell, are vital to Oregon’s economy and job market, have incredible expertise in our respective sectors, and we live and work in every community in Oregon. But we are also small enough as a state and as an association that we know each other personally, and we can pull together to fight for a common goal. We have proved this one more than once—whether it’s advocating in halls of the Capitol to defend our industry or coming together to address something that needs fixing in our association. When Oregon truckers get together, we can make stuff happen. That is followed by a close second in our staff. I represent FedEx in a dozen state trucking associations, and I can say we have top-notch staff at OTA who are truly invested in our industry and our membership. Our advocacy, safety training, and regulatory expertise, as well as event planning, is first in class, just to name a few services they provide. Weaknesses: Time, resources, and participation. While we have a superb membership and staff—we could use more of both to fight for our industry. Since deregulation, the average trucking association on average only represents about 10% of the number of registered carriers in their state. And while, of course, many of those registrations belong to owner-operators, the fact is that there are still many sizable carriers that simply do not participate in our association. If you’re an active member of OTA, you already know the many benefits of membership, but communicating that value to non-members is a continual challenge. OTA is fighting hard every day on issues critical to our industry—but the problem of free riders benefitting from the efforts of dues-paying members is real, and we must all do our part to get these carriers off of the sidelines and join in helping to defend and promote our livelihood. I know truckers are busy and budgets are tight—but I can tell you this, our opponents do not seem to lack for want of membership participation. As a member whose largest base of operations is in the Portland area, I suppose I consider myself a “Portland member” of OTA. We in Portland also face the most regulation and taxation of any carriers in the state. And being the state’s main population base, we of course have the largest number of carriers based in the city, and yet Portland is often where we struggle to get more members to join OTA and get current members more involved. I have noticed this trend throughout my region—the same paradox is true in Boise, Seattle, Los Angeles, etc. It is my hope that with everyone’s help we will get more carriers from the state’s most populous (and politically influential) region to join OTA and make their voices heard. We are the sleeping As you can plainly see, the road ahead for OTA is a busy one, I hope I will see you on it, driving together to achieve a common victory. As the world saw during the COVID pandemic, together, there isn’t anything truckers can’t do.
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