HOS Reform

The whole point of HOS is to keep over worked drivers from falling asleep. To keep these slave labor companies from over working their drivers.. Actually they want you to take 36 hours off. So Kill the 14 hr clock and leave the 34 hr reset alone.

 

You are not alone in spposing the 34 hour restart provision. A lot of heavy hitters (teamsters, public citizen, etc.) have been trying in the courts to force FMCSA to re-think the 34 hour rule.

 

No driver! Truck management needs that check valve in place or they will run wild. You'll never run out of hours and they will push you til you drop dead!!!

You DON'T need more hours or more miles driver!!! You need more money for what you do run!! Get a new job !

Truck management are idiots, they don't even know why we quit. There's a couple of yahoo's in the trucker mag selling software to carriers so they can figure out just why we quit....... now how stupid is that ??????? You don't know why your employee quits?

Ugh!

 

Kinda like the 70. It makes sure that I get a day off.

All I ever wanted was to stop the 14 hour clock for a couple hours without effecting my next day.

 

I agree with chalupa, we need to get paid more for what we do drive. The only current rule I disagree with is the 14 hr rule. You only have 3 hrs extra to do everything else. This especially sucks when u get a load that's only 400 miles or less, cause that means you pick up and have the ability to deliver the same day. And the problem with that is that we all know it's rare when a customer loads or unloads in half an hour. So where is my time to eat? Where's my time to get a quick break? I don't get one. The problem is the ppl fighting the government on these rules r fighting for the wrong reason, as with all politics. I know many of times when I only drove 8 or 9 hrs, pure daylight out, 14 was up and I still could go more...

 

I agree with the OP, get rid of the 70 hour rule and many problems for drivers and industry are solved. If you want a day off, take it, if you need to work, work. The 11/14's keep you safe and well rested. This notion "we need more pay" is a childish attitude that makes it impossible to work out meaningful reforms that satisfy drivers ALL ACROSS the industry. Furthermore, there is no way anyone can come up with a "fair" wage increase that would apply ALL ACROSS the industry. What, you really think all carriers are going to give all drivers a 20% gross pay increase???? And would that make you happy??? VERY doubtful. Within a year, you'd be looking for something else to be upset about and would be hollering to take more money from your carrier. The sooner you people get real, the sooner we can begin to deal with the issues in a meaningful way.

"Will push you till you drop dead" ... really? If you work for a company that would do that, leave. You're such a valuable asset in your mind, so leave and find any one of hundreds of other carriers who value your skill set and attitude and will hire you on "at any cost". I live in reality. In the business world of trucking in a permanently depressed economy with unemployeds flooding the workplace monthly, you have to prove yourself, work when there is work provided and available, make yourself as valuable as possible with your work ethic and skills, and take your skills to the carrier who most values those skills and your right to a family life.

 

There should be a bit of leeway for truckers , we get it from all sides ,maybe some of these lawmakers should come ride with us to see what we go through instead of making crazy laws and regulations to adhere to.

 

Yep it's more pay and not more miles. Many OTR drivers make less than $10 an hour when you do the math. A lot less when you count all the free work. More like $8 an hour.

Then local drivers are making $14-$23 an hour depending on where they live.

If an OTR driver was on a clock and made $14 an hour which he well deserves, he would gross about $1600 a week or $83,000 a year.

This is why we are paid by the mile. This is why we are exempt from many labor laws. Plus by the mile they know exactly what the transportation costs are.

CPM would be okay if it was like 55 cpm.

Tell the new recruits the big money they'll make. Don't tell them all the hours they have to put in to get it.

 

Feel free in the next set of listening sessions to make your feelings about the 70 known. Plenty did it during the last round of insipid lawsuits from Grain Valley, ATA, Teamsters, Public Citizen, and the TCA. More listening sessions will be held after the next round.

While I agree the 70 needs to go much like the 40 hours rule imposed on most industries I doubt you'll see a repeal before the fall.