Lumpers - are they needed

Not at my company! My paycheck is deducted for the amount of each and every comcheck immediatley. Only after the scanned receipt for the lumper makes its' way to the proper person, is my paycheck credited for the amount paid to the lumper. If that process takes more time than it should or they "cant read" the reciept , then I get no reimbursement for THEIR expense! the same is true for trailer washouts too or any expense paid for with a comcheck. It's like an interest free loan to my employer, would they do the same for me???

 

In a word,NO! Lumpers are not needed. This whole mess goes to the Tariff Regulations written before most of us were alive. Posters are correct that the product is not the receiver's until it's on the dock(FOB). I guess lumpers are just one of the aggravations in this industry. It's not near as bad now as it was in the 80's and believe me there are some drivers here who could tell some real horror stories about grocery warehouses and frozen storage places. One thing though,the trucking company gets the unload fee back. They aren't losing any money I guarantee you. Is it a hassle for the driver or O/O-#### Right it is but I have seen drivers injured by falling boxes,falling over pallets that shouldn't be there, etc. I always figured it was better to use the lumpers and rest in the sleeper. Used to deliver a load on slip sheets in Lubbock TX that had between 8000 and 9000 cases on it, weighed about 45000k, and took about 8-9 hours to unload on pallets. Quite frankly I wasn't about to unload that thing. Company paid the lumper $150.00 to do it and as far as I'm concerned he earned every dollar of it. When you have loads that require that much breakdown and palletizing let the lumper do it and get some rest. I turned my receipts and got my $ back. If dispatcher authorized it no fee to me. Guess things have changed. Only time I paid the fee is if the com-chek or advance was for me personally.

 

If I end up needing an advance to live on doesn't the company charge me? Or does it cost me to cash a comcheck?

I don't know how that set up works, I was always local or line haul and didn't need advances.

 

SNI doesn't charge for COMCHEKs. Only loss I suffer is minutes on my cell phone plan and my personal time. But working and not being paid is standard for OTR drivers.

 

Paperwork should be turned in on time regardless. And smart people don't live paycheck to paycheck. But those two things have nothing to do with lumpers. The issue is whether the system requiring drivers to pay for lumpers is ethical and fair...and it isn't.

 

Fortunately I don't see lumpers every week. But theoretically what you say could happen.

 

I heard a driver one time say that he went to a dock somewhere and the place wanted him to pay for lumpers and he refused to pay them, so the receiver then refused the load. So the driver got his paper work, went to his truck, pulled up and shut the doors. The dock manager went out and asked what he was doing and he states that he wasnt paying lumpers, so they refused the load so he was leaving, the dock manager said he couldnt do that and the driver replies watch me, and he got in this truck and headed for the gate. When the driver got to the gate the police were coming and stopped the driver to find out what the problem was so the driver told them. Between the police, the driver and the receiver, the receiver unloaded the drivers trailer for free. The driver said no one is going to charge him to unload something they ordered. Thats the way it should be, they ordered it, unload it at no charge.

 

Look, the driver isn't paying the lumper. If your going to a grocery warehouse you know the drill, you simply get a com-chek cashed ahead of time for enough to cover the lumper. I you do it right you will make money on the lumper. The company normally (at least in my experience) left it up to me to debate the rate, call them get approval. I don't see any reason why your going to supervise this lumper for agree. If he get 75.00 then I want 75.00 for me so I make out a receipt to the company for 150.00 not 75.00. The company doe not know everybody is happy. Drivers get smart quit complaining about lumper's, capitalize on them...

Why would you pay for the lumper. Or unload it yourself and pocket the 150.00 entirely.

 

Don't even cash a Com Check ahead of time.

All of the Shippers who pay the LUMPER bills knows the rates! They've sent more than one load there! And the lumper pay STARTS with the SHIPPER who gets the BROKER who sells the load to the CARRIER who takes the load to the RECEIVER! That's for those of you who HAVE NO IDEA how this world of trucking works!

The lumper rate is figured into the cost of the load. When XYZ Trucking Company gets the load from the broker, they are told how much the load pays, the FSC and how much they pay on the lumper! It doesn't come out of YOUR pocket! YEAH it LOOKS that way on your pay receipt and you're not lending anything to the company interest free! GET A LIFE PEOPLE! If you are working for a company that can't keep their paperwork right and pay you properly then it time for a change!

I worked for TransAM for a while and I had to do the Com Check myself AFTER it was approved through dispatch but in the last 15 years I've never had to "negotiate" with a lumper and actually refuse to! I just call whoever I have to or send in the macro and there it is approved and with a PO number.

Most of these lumper services now use their own printed receipts with an actual IRS number on it which was better than the old days of you getting some druggie to try to write up a receipt or you just paying the guy who climbed up the side of the truck the fastest and gave the best price then heading to the truck stop and passing the receipt book around the counter to get drivers to come up with a name and SSN number! Ginning one up on your own for some extra cash in your pocket can get you arse fired! Or you will have unloaded a load for free! There were several good posts about docks and not wanting drivers on them due to libality. Thats the grocery docks rules and you can live with them.

No YOU aren't paying for the lumper, if you're an L/P or O/O and aren't getting this back in your settlement then it's time for a change of bottom feeder you're leased to and if you are an O/O who is getting screwed by a broker then you aren't doing your home work and looking at the brokerage blackball list or checking his credit report! It's up to you to know what's in the rates you signed for but O/O's in the know, KNOW that the fees are in the rate they just don't need to have the broker break it down!

You company drivers QUIT crying and do what the company tells you to do! Pay the guy!

Oh there was a really nice post showing an old law where it's against the "law" to "COERCE" a driver to unload or pay for unloading. The only problem is the poster failed to post the OTHER HALF of that "law" stating that if the shipper or receiver had a signed provision with the carrier about unloading then the carried was responsible for the unloading. And it's always in the contract! They haven't coerced a driver in years as they are to smart for that as they KNOW more about where the pay comes from than most drivers! It's not something taught in that high dollar driving school you over paid for!

Sorry guys but there are 2 sides to that one and they made sure that it was covered! But as I said just pay the guy, quit griping because it's not your money and try as you can it just ain't going away as long as the shipper pays it in the rates, it's a gimme!

A short story:The next thing you should learn about is what the grocery industry calls shelving! THAT will blow your mind if you think the lumper money deal is a crime! As someone stated earlier it's all about the money and it is! Say ABC company comes out with a new product and MNO grocery store chain likes it and says OK we'll take it BUT you need to pay us $50,000 to clear out a space on the shelf for it. Guess what? ABC will JUMP on that deal JUST to get their product on the shelf AND they'll pay thousands more to get it on the center shelves!

If you're going to attempt to whine about something as trivial as lumper pay that's not coming out of your pocket you really need a reality check! The grocery business has been around longer than you so, live with it and just Pay the guy Aunt B! Or go get a job flat bedding or buckets or even tankers! no unloading pay there ...yet! If you are going to haul grocery then .......

And FYI: I'm also an agent when produce is going good and a few of my friends are in need! I'm not lying to you about the money trail!

 

Won't work. COMCHEKS have to be exact amount of lumper fee, and a receipt signed by the lumper has to be submitted for reimbursement. No way to beat the system. Wouldn't be the right thing to do anyway.