There are all sorts of arguments that people use to defend their use of cell phones behind the wheel. Some simply argue that it's their personal freedom to talk and drive. Some argue that their driving isn't affected by the distraction and that they are at no great risk of a car accident. And some argue that they have to use the phone for business reasons, meaning that an all-around ban would hurt their pockets.

But a recent report on the topic of distracted driving, safety and business suggests that the pro-business argument for using cell phones while driving is faulty. Some businesses throughout the country have taken the proactive safety move to ban workers from using phones while driving, and many of them have not seen productivity decrease with the increase in safety.

According to the National Safety Council, employers who implemented distracted driving bans saw the following trends:

  • A decrease in the rate of crashes involving employees and the damage of property
  • A widespread increase in productivity among employees

Supporters of banning workers from multi-tasking behind the wheel argue that the work conversations had while driving are not very productive in the first place. Points are forgotten, and employees will often have to confirm certain aspects of the conversation at a later time when they aren't driving. An ineffective meeting is especially risky when it's with a client over the phone. Customers should have employees 100 percent attention.

Prohibiting talking and texting in the car during the work day protects workers, unsuspecting drivers and the workers' families from the damages of car accidents. Also, it can protect a company from facing negligence lawsuits on behalf of any potential victims who are injured due to a distracted driving accident while a driver was on a work call.

What do you thing about this matter? Does your employer have strict policies in place? Do you think they should?

Source

Daily Herald: "Employers who ban cellphones while driving find productivity doesn't suffer," Marni Pyke, Dec. 27, 2011