SCOTUS rules in truckers favor, must pay for loading and unloading time

Discussion in 'Trucking Industry Regulations' started by drivingmissdaisy, Jul 24, 2020.

  1. ZVar

    ZVar Road Train Member

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    Wrong. There is no difference in the regs on what is on duty for O/O's vs. employees.

    On-duty time means ...
    (2) All time inspecting, servicing, or conditioning any commercial motor vehicle at any time;

    Any time servicing a CMV, which means any time working on it. Doesn't matter who or where.
     
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  3. drivingmissdaisy

    drivingmissdaisy Road Train Member

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    But if you own the truck you are doing it of your own accord. You are not being told by your company to do it. So if you decide on a Saturday morning to change the oil in your truck you're going to go on duty for that? Then you're a moron. They are talking about company drivers servicing company trucks. If you own it you can do what you want to with at your house.

    What if you decide to rebuild the engine? You're going to go on duty for 2 solid weeks? What if you rent a CMV to make money while you're rebuilding the engine in your own truck? What do you do then? You can't drive your rented CMV if you decide to go home and turn wrenches on old smokey? What if you have a project where you are completely rebuilding one from the ground up? You can't drive a CMV for the entire duration of the project because you're always on duty at home when you're working on it? It could take thousands of hours to rebuild one.

    What if you have a side gig where in your off time you service people's CMV's? Oil changes, lubes etc? You can't drive during the week and work part time changing oil in a CMV on the weekends? Really?

    The answer to the above is of course you can do all those things off duty. The regulations CANNOT force you to go on duty at your house when you are not performing work for a company. You have to use your brain with some of this stuff. Especially if you own the truck. You are allowed to work on your own vehicle on your own time. Why? Because YOU OWN THE TRUCK. The gov't can't regulate you servicing your own personal vehicle. They can only make sure it meets DOT regulations. You find me ONE owner operator who logs his time at his house washing his truck or putting air in the tires as on duty. You can't.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2020
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  4. ZVar

    ZVar Road Train Member

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    I don't make the law....
    And to be honest, very few O/O's will ever get caught doing maintenance. But it is what the law states.

    As for a side gig, actually yes.
    It's even worse. I love wood working. Say I build a poker table because it's relaxing. I end up selling it because I don't really like poker, I just like building stuff. All that time would become on-duty as per item 9 in the on duty list.
    "(9) Performing any compensated work for a person who is not a motor carrier."
     
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  5. PoleCrusher

    PoleCrusher Road Train Member

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    You seriously need to go take a class on HOS.
     
  6. drivingmissdaisy

    drivingmissdaisy Road Train Member

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    I did and I passed. You need to read the regulations. Only compensated hours have to be considered. Any volunteer work or personal work where nobody is paying you does not count.

    Thanks for playing.

    This is off topic. Please get back on topic. The thread is not about HOS and working a 2nd job on or off duty. It's about a SCOTUS saying they must pay us for sitting at docks or doing other non-driving tasks.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2020
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  7. TokyoJoe

    TokyoJoe Road Train Member

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    "The US Department of Labor says that "any work which an employee is required to perform while traveling must, of course, be counted as hours worked."

    They also teach this to drivers in orientation at every company yet they don't pay you to do the work.

    Then the company, DOT, etc wonder why drivers log as little on duty time as possible.

    They pay shop personnel hourly wages, guys that spend 1/2 the day drinking coffee and smoking while being PAID, yet drivers get messages on the Qualcomm to take trailers to terminals for maintenance while not being paid, the same trailers sit at terminals for days between loads.

    Take the truck to Blue Beacon a couple times a month, gotta log those 2-4 hours on duty but oops, you aren't going to get paid anything.
     
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  8. drivingmissdaisy

    drivingmissdaisy Road Train Member

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    I have a question about this.

    Just last weekend I spent 4 days in a hotel waiting for a part for my truck to arrive so it could get fixed. I was of course off duty but I was paid break-down pay of 100 a day.

    By definition I was not at work, not being asked to do any work but unable to go home because I was too far away. (ironically I was 1.8 miles from my sisters house but they were gone for the weekend). So does this ruling effect that or will companies just say "Ok, I'll pay you 7 bucks an hour to sit and get loaded, but spend 4 days in a hotel and I won't pay you a dime in breakdown pay"?

    I have a funny feeling companies will find a way around this.
     
  9. PoleCrusher

    PoleCrusher Road Train Member

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    Sorry, but you're wrong. Any time spent servicing, maintaining, or conditioning the truck must be logged as on duty.

    And, this came up, because somebody posted that all time at a shipper or reciever will have to be logged on duty in order to get paid, which you incorrectly disagreed with.

    In fact, all time waiting at a shipper or reciever must be logged as on duty, wether you're paid or not.
     
  10. sirhwy

    sirhwy Medium Load Member

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    The company I am with currently pays us by the hour, after 2 hours at a shipper or receiver. Good companies will take care of their drivers. Others, meh.
     
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  11. Lennythedriver

    Lennythedriver Road Train Member

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    Yeah but see even that, “after two hours“. Why should you have to wait for even those two hours to start getting paid? I mean think about it you’re locked in there, you can’t go do anything else you have to sit there and are responsible for all operations and the safety of that truck and equipment. You can’t drive and earn any money by the mile for those two hours. However, the two hour rule is pretty much what most companies do. Now the company I worked for? They would pay after two hours, or at least it was in their policy to do so somehow it never usually ended up on my paycheck though. Once in a blue moon.
     
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