Waste Management driver Steve Wegener was a finalist for Driver of the Year out of 26,000 drivers company-wide.

His co-workers and managers nominated Wegener for the program for the third year in a row.

A driver in the Kirkland area, Wegener recently traveled to Houston for a celebration, along with four other finalists.

Wegener has been with Waste Management for 23 years and co-workers and even customers know him as an inspiration.

“Steve does his work with precision, professionalism and a smile,” one Kirkland customer said in a statement.

“He is the guy who would give you the shirt off his back; he comes to work every day with a smile even when it is stressful,” said a co-worker who nominated Wegener.

Others say Wegener is dedicated to his customers, always fixing their problems.

Co-workers and managers submit nominations for the program, and then a selection committee in each category selects finalists, without identifying the nominees’ names or locations.

There are strict criteria and scoring requirements, with co-worker and customer statements weighed in the final scoring.

The program is intended to:

• Recognize drivers/operators who exemplify a commitment to safety

• Identify and honor employees who have displayed a high degree of excellence during the previous year in their day-to-day duties

• Honor those drivers/operators who have gone above and beyond in customer service and dedication

• Recognize these employees for doing something very special and out of the ordinary to help other WM employees

Driver of the Year finalists must:

• Be a full time WM employee• Have a minimum of four years of experience with WM

• Be incident/injury free for the past two years

• Have no unexcused absences in the previous 12 months

• Have no Life Critical Rules violations in the previous 12 months

• Have a clean MVR, with no moving violations in the previous three years