OOIDA

Any senior members here? One year and four months from now I'll get a cool window sticker that says "Senior Member" that's10+ years membership. Enjoy Landline magazine. Also contribute small amounts to their PAC annually. They've taken on many big issues over the years. Older hands probably fondly recall how they put the state of TN in it's place. I couldn't cause I wasn't driving then but I have read a few stories about it. Actions like that and the current one with MN make them an organization all drivers, co and o/o, should support.

 

AGREED, all drivers should join, not just company drivers, all drivers, we can not protest in D.C. (where driving), that's where OOIDA comes in, they fight for us drivers, now if your a big company that what's drivers pay low and look (like bum's) you go join that other club ATA

 

PAC ? What's that ? I thought they weren't political . They have been very ineffective on important issues like the new sleeper regulations , unpaid detention time , O/O's getting 100% of the fuel charge and more .
There are plenty of services giving better rates on drug test pools , insurance , and other services they provide .

 

For the cost of the yearly fee to join i think its well worth it. They do alot for trucking both o/o and driver. They have bin very successful in many of there fights but they can not be in all of them. They have fought for the fuel surcharge, sleeper berth reg and detension pay but you can not just exspect them to change something over night, especially when there so much resistance to what there trying to fight. They have sent letters for me to slow paying customers to help me collect and that right there is worth the $45.

 

if you can make it to Louisville,KY for the mid American truck show the price is 20 or 25 dollars, Friday march 23 2012 http://truckingshow.com/

 

Highly doubtful any of the other organizations offering those services cheaper care about political issues affecting drivers. You get what you pay for. I know your views on buying from Wal-Mart, think of it in those terms. And that's something their detractors don't consider. An association is by it's very nature purely political. PAC fund. Political action committee. So-called "special interest" groups create a lobby that donates money to congressional members re-election fund, to influence them, or show support in a real way to like minded representatives on our interests. Like it or not PAC contributions mean more to a congressman than letters from constituents That's what shapes the legislative agenda. OOIDA has over a 100,000 me0mbers. If every one of those members voluntarily sent $5 or $10 a year to OOIDA's PAC fund they would have a $500,000 to 1 million $ fund to help them push through many of the issues you say they are a failure on. A PAC fund with 1 million$ in it will do far more to getting congressional member's attention than any letter writing campaign or any drives to inflate membership rolls to 1 million. That money would make OOIDA politically more powerful in Washington and a group whose views will be taken more seriously. Like it or not that's the system we have.

 

I think this is my first post on the forum after hanging around for a long time just reading. I feel like I know the posters on this forum personally.
Thanks to everyone here for a bunch of valuable information.

To the OP. I'm sorry to hear that things are not going so well. I don't know what you are doing or how you are conducting your business but there are probably several ways that OOIDA membership could help you. Some examples have already been given. Here's another. I have not checked my mail or been to the website today but a friend just told me this morning that there is an online business class that's getting started right now that could possibly help you. Not saying that you are doing something wrong,just that you might benefit from some of that information.
It also helps to have a good organization with appr. 160,000 members to represent us in government. Too bad that number is not bigger. Much better than a few guys standing around the truckstop parking lot kicking rocks and complaining about how bad the industry is but doing nothing else to fix it.(Hmm maybe that's how it started to begin with?)

 

Your intent is good but have you seen how much ATA members and the Teamsters donate with their PAC funds ? It was over $2 million from Teamsters that got all this HOS review BS started .

 

That's why they get taken serious and OOIDA doesn't. $20 annual donation from all 160,000 members puts OOIDA PAC and organization on the same playing field as Teamster's and ATA PAC's. Chump change for probably every member.

 

just the discounts you get more than pay for your membership!
http://www.ooida.com/Benefits&Services/Services/index.shtml