Logbooks Should Be Banned

I was reluctant to use the word education because I don't mean just formal, post-secondary, institutional learning.

 

Personally, I don't have a problem with log books. I use it and it works out just fine. When my hours are up for the day I rest until I am legal to drive again. My boss doesn't say a word.

The only time my log book might get in the way is due to the 14 hour clock. Say I have a migrane or am getting the droopy eye. Need to pull over to take a rest or nap. Boom I end up not making my destination or I am running past the 14 hour clock.

Let us stop the 14 hour clock for a lunch and break and most of these issues will go away. As it is right now, we have to burn through a TS for fuel and some kind of crap to eat and forget about a sit down lunch etc.

 

That won't happen. The 14 hour work period was created in conjunction with the 10 hour rest period, in the hopes it would create a 24 hour day. It was designed that way in the hopes it would force more people to get consistent rest periods, with more people going to sleep and waking up at the same time every day. The studies that the FMCSA did concluded that consistent wake/sleep cycles would promote being "more alert" during the awake period.

They were shortsighted. It's total BS, unless everyone is always working 14 hour days and always waking up at the same time every day.

If they did away with the 14 hour work period, then the 10 hours off-duty wouldn't make sense any more. Then it's back to square one.

 

You should start managing your 14 hour clock better. You have 3 hours before the 14 hour clock starts to conflict with the 11 hour clock, so that's plenty of time to grab a meal at Iron Skillet, take a shower, and take a nap. That is of course if you plan on running a full 11 hour shift, which enough of those will screw up your 70 hour clock. If you're chasing your 70's, then you have more time before the 2 clocks start to conflict.

 

What about the shippers/receivers that suck up time from that 14 hour clock? That can put a real damper on things real quick.

 

Unfortunately, shippers and receivers generally don't operate vehicles and it's the vehicles that are regulated by the DOT and FMCSA. They don't have the authority to regulate shippers and receivers.

Carriers have the right to offer a specific amount of "free time" and charge for standby time after free time is expired. Many do. The problem lies in scheduling. Shippers either operate on a first come, first served basis, or they have appointments. Often shippers will say: "Sure, I'll pay your standby time but your appointment is at 2. If you're 5 minutes late, we'll get to you when we get to you and we're not paying anything.".

 

No kidding the shippers and receivers don't generally operative vehicles, but they can still screw up your 14 hour clock in a big hurry, just by taking forever to get you into a dock, get you loaded, etc even when you are on time for your appointment. That extra 3 hours can get sucked up at a shipper/receiver easily. It's not always just taking care of things like meals, fuel, etc that eat into that 14 hour clock.

 

I usually unload/load the freight myself, unless I'm at a Wal-Mart DC as they charge a flat rate. I cant think of a time when I ran out of drive hours at a shipper or reciever, as I usually have almost a full 14 and 11 hour clock on arrival, and I can unload/load the truck myself within 1 1/2 hours.

I do my trip planning so that I can park as close to the shipper/reciever as possible the night before; that way I don't have this issue as I won't need to drive 500 miles to get there on my last leg of the trip.

 

I hate the ones that don't tell you their done loading/unloading, which makes you sit at the door for no reason.

 

If you are careful about picking an employer, not just assuming all trucking companies are alike, read and know the regs, and follow the rules it is not as hard as the stories would lead one to believe.

Now if you hire on without regard to what the company will ask of you, and dismiss the regs as just some arbitrary rule used to punish "The Working Man", and keep talking to other drivers that also feel sorry for themself you will convince yourself life is one big conspiracy to break you down.

"I'm not working there, they have slow trucks"
"I'm not working there they want me to get a haircut"
"I'm not working there they don't allow beards"
"I'm not working there they don't allow tattoos on the forehead"
"I'm not working there they drive X"

or

"I'm not working there they wan't me driving 18 hours per day."

The good companies usually have more rules because they've decided that employees that willingly follow rules cause fewer problems. When was the last time you heard of a riot at a Boy Scout jamboree? How about a riot at a Hip Hop concert?