$1900 Tow Bill

Sorry bud you’re just wrong, you don’t charge an employee for mistakes even stupid ones. Depending on the state it’s illegal too. Purposeful acts are one thing mistakes are another.

 

Not sure how the company can legally charge the driver the cost of that recovery. Even in construction, if you make a million dollar mistake, they just fire you, they never make you pay it.

That truck's chassis rails though.....

 

We used to have a policy sign in the drivers room constantly reminding us that if we dropped the US 340 bridge near Harpers Ferry with a loaded 18 wheeler our estates and generations of children will be paying for a replacement which thankfully has been built not too long ago. The last time i was on it loaded it shook too much for my taste.

 

You are in on the profit with every check that hits your bank account. Back when i had employees i would cover legitimate accidents or tickets. But tickets from things that should of been caught with a proper pre and post trip? Nope. A truck getting stuck going to a muddy job site? Yep. That's the cost of business. Dragging a trailer into the ditch like this guy? (I mean literally this situation or one nearly identical) Well I'm paying for it because i can't leave my truck blocking the road, but he no longer has a job as of that moment. No load him home so he can tear up other stuff. He is fired and the truck is secured at the wrecking companies lot till i can get a driver or myself on a flight out there. Dude can find his own way home. I'm also keeping his last check and doing everything i can to recover the cost, which i will mostly likely at least get a judgement for because this is obviously blatant disregard and intentional damage to company property. gross negligence ay the minimum. Employees can't be charged for normal screw ups, but they can be held accountable for deliberate damage and grid negligence. that's what this is, no one in their right mind would think it was ok to try to drag a trailer through that deep of a ditch. This was either a conscious choice of who cares how much damage i do, or never even looked in the mirror.

 

I won't speak for all states, but in both Ohio and Florida where i have had whole drivers the laws allow me to charge and go after them for intentional damage. This one is bad enough that the pictures will spurt that arguement to a labor panel. Final verdict comes down to the arbitrator's decision but I'd like my chances in this situation.

 

That doesn't apply to this situation. That article is aimed at a different sector of the labor market and different types of scenarios. For example: A check out girl accidentally giving back to much change catering get till to be short type of thing. Or if this guy lost or got his chains stolen they couldn't charge him for them. But that isn't this situation. This isn't a mistake, this is gross negligence at the minimum and quite possibly intentional destruction of company property. Either of those is bad news for the drivers bank account.

 

And I think you’re wrong, tickets are one thing that’s not the same as damages. Firing the guy over this? Absolutely but in Ohio at least you keep my last check you’ll lose after a couple of phone calls trust me.

 

Not if i can successfully argue gross negligence or intentional damage. I've personally been down that road in ohio. Even so far as to get a judgement awarded to me for the balance of damages. Tho obviously judgements do you no good when the other party doesn't have anything of value so can't say I've collected a penny from that judgement. I've also loss one i thought i had a valid case for and had to pay the ####### his last check.

Keep in mind im not talking about a normal screw up, even a bad screw up by a bad driver. running a supp sign and plowing into a car tital my truck... very bad and incompetent but can't claim gross negligence cause it could happen from just a moment of distraction. I'm talking about the kind of things like this one in the pictures. The dude is so far into that ditch that the tires on the opposite side of the trailer are in it! Obviously i can't be certain the arbitrate will decide in my favor, but those pictures paint a pretty strong case for it. Strong enough id risk it cause I'm a spiteful mean s.o.b. when out comes to people so willing to destroy my property.

 

The way it was explained to me was it had to deliberate, stupid like this isn’t deliberate, stupid? Yes, unavoidable? Yes, deliberate? I doubt it. It’s just the cost of doing business, ask Swift. They have more and better lawyers than you or I and the don’t go after damages because they know they’ll lose. It sucks but it’s just part of doing business. I’m in construction and you think you see stupid stuff on the road hang out on a job site.

 

I don’t wanna hear this crap about my pay is my profit, that’s not the same thing. My pay is an agreed upon amount whatever it is, you owe me that regardless of profit and loss. You take the risk you reap the reward that’s the American way. You have a regular customer call with a load and offer extra to get it there because they’re in a bind do you share it? Most people wouldn’t, I wouldn’t. My company gets bonuses for early completion all the time am I entitled to it? Of course not, do I pay liquidated damages when we’re late on a contract when it very well could be the employees fault? Of course not. Like I said I share the risk I share the reward other wise it’s on you. Stupid employees exist and they’re going to cost you money that’s part of doing business.