Orlando Tractor-Trailer Driver Achieves Remarkable Safe Driving Milestone
On Friday, when UPS® (NYSE:UPS) tractor-trailer driver Ginny Odom completed her usual 650-mile route towing twin 28-foot trailers from Orlando to Unadilla, Georgia, and back, she achieved a remarkable safe driving milestone - becoming the first female UPS driver in history to drive 40 years and more than 4 million miles without so much as a fender bender.
Odom was 23 and working at a boat store in Orlando when she applied for a driver job at UPS in 1973. She was the first female employee at UPS's Orlando hub, and drove the company's brown delivery trucks for nine years before moving to tractor trailers.
Odom is the top female driver in UPS's elite Circle of Honor, which recognizes drivers who have avoided accidents for 25 years or more. She's one of only 42 active UPS drivers to reach 40 years without an accident, out of the company's 102,000 drivers worldwide. Not bad for a farm kid from Rutledge, Tennessee, who mastered the clutch on a John Deere tractor when she was 12.
"We're so proud of Ginny and her commitment to safety for four decades behind the wheel," said John McDevitt, UPS senior vice president of human resources and labor relations. "Outstanding Circle of Honor drivers like Ginny draw on their extensive safety training and attention to details to help keep all of us safe on the roads."
Virginia Hooper of Atmoore, Alabama, is UPS's next safest female driver, with 36 years of safe driving.
Globally, 7,221 active UPS drivers are members of the Circle of Honor. Collectively they've racked up over 198,000 years and more than 5.3 billion safe miles during their careers. That's enough miles to travel to Mars and back 19 times.
UPS invested $175 million in 2013 on safety training and employs its own comprehensive driving course called "Space and Visibility." All UPS drivers are taught safe driving methods beginning the first day of classroom training through the company's defensive driving platform. The training continues throughout their careers.
Founded in 1907, UPS has a rich history of safety and training. The company issued its first driver handbook in 1917 and began recognizing safe drivers in 1923. In 1928, UPS recognized its first five-year safe driver, Ray McCue, with UPS founder Jim Casey presenting him a gold and platinum watch. UPS formally established its safe driving honor program in 1928.
On Friday, when UPS® (NYSE:UPS) tractor-trailer driver Ginny Odom completed her usual 650-mile route towing twin 28-foot trailers from Orlando to Unadilla, Georgia, and back, she achieved a remarkable safe driving milestone - becoming the first female UPS driver in history to drive 40 years and more than 4 million miles without so much as a fender bender.
Odom was 23 and working at a boat store in Orlando when she applied for a driver job at UPS in 1973. She was the first female employee at UPS's Orlando hub, and drove the company's brown delivery trucks for nine years before moving to tractor trailers.
Odom is the top female driver in UPS's elite Circle of Honor, which recognizes drivers who have avoided accidents for 25 years or more. She's one of only 42 active UPS drivers to reach 40 years without an accident, out of the company's 102,000 drivers worldwide. Not bad for a farm kid from Rutledge, Tennessee, who mastered the clutch on a John Deere tractor when she was 12.
"We're so proud of Ginny and her commitment to safety for four decades behind the wheel," said John McDevitt, UPS senior vice president of human resources and labor relations. "Outstanding Circle of Honor drivers like Ginny draw on their extensive safety training and attention to details to help keep all of us safe on the roads."
Virginia Hooper of Atmoore, Alabama, is UPS's next safest female driver, with 36 years of safe driving.
Globally, 7,221 active UPS drivers are members of the Circle of Honor. Collectively they've racked up over 198,000 years and more than 5.3 billion safe miles during their careers. That's enough miles to travel to Mars and back 19 times.
UPS invested $175 million in 2013 on safety training and employs its own comprehensive driving course called "Space and Visibility." All UPS drivers are taught safe driving methods beginning the first day of classroom training through the company's defensive driving platform. The training continues throughout their careers.
Founded in 1907, UPS has a rich history of safety and training. The company issued its first driver handbook in 1917 and began recognizing safe drivers in 1923. In 1928, UPS recognized its first five-year safe driver, Ray McCue, with UPS founder Jim Casey presenting him a gold and platinum watch. UPS formally established its safe driving honor program in 1928.
