Company wants to change my off duty time to sleeper berth so I can drive after 8

My first thought is you were off duty for 8 hours and 11 minutes. That's time you could have slept. Instead you only slept 4 hours. It seems to me you could've been using the time a little more wisely. Now, if you laid down and couldn't sleep, that's one thing, I think we've all been there. And it is a legit reason, but the only one that would know the truth is you.

So, I gather you slept 4 hours, were off duty for 8, and you say you're not fit to drive. So if you were off duty another 1 hour and 55 minutes, would you have been fit to drive, after only sleeping 5.5 hours?

Being awake in the sleeper and pissed off? Yeah we've all been there. But it's only hurting you. It's not worth getting pissed off over. It's just business. Tomorrow nobody will care.

 

You know what, many of you never had a dot cop that was a prick. I have and so have a few of my drivers, mine was in Colorado. If they see you guys logging off duty, they will ask for proof of a hotel room or relieved of duty and when you tell them you were in the sleeper, it is a falsification violation and they can put you out of service for a 34 hour reset and fine the company. This can also trigger a safety audit, and if the fmcsa finds a pattern, the company can suffer a fine or be shut down - if you don’t believe me, just look into what the fmcsa has done to carriers just in the past few years.

then there is another issue, litigation.

get into an accident, see what you go through.

The lawyers suing you as the driver will have all your logs and they will hand it to a auditor and that auditor will report these false logs and it will begin a focus on your behavior and the carriers accepting falsified logs.

again don’t believe me? Just look at the recent cases and the advertising of these ambulance chasing scum lawyers, a few have what they look at on their own websites.

 

Probably one of those guys who complains about not getting enough miles. Half our fleet can’t hit our 9900 mile monthly goal. After 9900 miles we make over a dollar a mile before accessory pay. Last month we had a guy turn in 17,800 miles (3500 carried over from last month). Same customers, same trucks, some guys can get it done, some can’t.

 

And some, like myself, have no desire to work quite that hard.

 

I always log sleeper when I’m done in a store/shower/etc and in truck for night regardless. Just in case I decide to take advantage of it later. Rarely do

 

Understandable, that 8k dollar bonus goes a long way towards retiring early, at least I will for me. I’m 30 and I don’t see myself working past 50, at least not full time anyway.

 

The law.....
If you don't want to get a citation, or even placed oos for something that stupid then it's best to at least be aware of what is legal and what isn't.

Look I think sleeper should be done away with. After all why is splitting at a hotel any different than splitting in the berth? It's a holdover from the days of the only thing to do in a sleeper is sleep. Now days with satellite tv, game consoles, refrigerators, and microwaves one can spend the full 10 hours off doing something, much less the 7 for a split.

Off should be off, and I can still see the distinction between driving and on duty being valid. Sleeper berth though... Well the sooner gone the better. Heck, it's even easier to remove it now that simply being in a truck is no longer on duty.

 

Exactly my point. There is no real difference between sleeper berth and off duty.

 

Never said there was, other than the legal requirement to log accurately and that FMCSA sees them as different.

 

I have never heard of being put out of service for a 34. It’s a 10 hour penalty, no book or false doesn’t matter. The DOT can’t eat you and won’t take your birthday away. How do you guys treat them to get them to do this to you???

And don’t say you don’t do nothing cause that’s crap. In almost 25 years I promise you I have dealt with all kinds, from a jokester to mad at the world cause a cow hauler porked his ol lady. I have never seen crap like that happen to me or anyone I know. I don’t kiss their ### but I don’t tell them screw off either. The answer to any and all questions is everything you want to know is right there in that log book. Yes some take it personal and get pissy but.......not like the bs been spewed here lmao.



I agree if it coulda been done legal nothing wrong with a phone call to pass it by the driver. It’s easy if the driver doesn’t want to say no then move on every one is happy. I have no clue where all these lazy whiny m’fers come from, or why they thought truckin was for them. I guarantee if there was a problem out on the road and no night dispatch phone number the driver wouldn’t have a problem calling someone at home if he had their contact info. Everyone says they won’t but come on fellas.......you not foolin anyone.