A Collective Effort

Sometimes I think there are more tales of woe in this trucking business than there are trucks on the road. I hear from drivers who say they’ve been abused by unscrupulous carriers who force them to pull unsafe trailers with smoking wheel bearings. If they complain, they’re out. From owner-operators who say they’ve never seen a penny of the fuel surcharge they know their company is getting from its customers. They tell me their carriers fudge their statements, keep their holdbacks, and commit countless other crimes against trucking humanity.

And of course I hear from carriers who say they can’t put people behind the wheel, even in the oil patch where guys can make $100,000 a year. They tell me about drivers who couldn’t care less about getting anywhere on time, who have no work ethic at all, who abuse the equipment or even disappear with it, who… Well, that list goes on and on as well.

None of that is new, as you all know, and to paraphrase something I recently wrote in our sister magazine, highwaySTAR, for every lousy relationship between driver and carrier, I can find 100 good ones.

Still, there’s a gap between the two sides, sometimes a sizeable one, and I think we should do something about it. Better yet, I think we can.

Here’s my idea: I want carriers themselves to create and fund a new organization-independent of any existing trucking association-that would do at least two things to help drivers and especially owner-operators stay on the straight and narrow, stay productive, stay happy. One, it would offer legal assistance and financial advice to people who find themselves battling one of those unscrupulous trucking outfits. And two, it would help prevent some of those situations by offering training and skills-development opportunities in things like operating a small business or managing conflict. In a way, I guess, this organization would also act as an internal, collective ombudsman.

Now, before you dismiss this as idiocy, here’s the logic:

1) The best and the biggest carriers already offer some of this assistance, but the little 14-truck outfit in Brandon can’t even dream about it.

2) Much of the conflict in this industry, maybe even including that which leads to shutdowns, is based on honest ignorance and simple misunderstanding on both sides.

3) Carriers have much to gain by demonstrating in a loud and public way-as an industry-that they support their own, something which is not always clear to drivers even when they’re hauling for one of the good guys.

4) Drivers and owner-operators can’t organize themselves for love nor money.

5) They don’t trust the trucking associations and wouldn’t join even if they could. And 6) they need help.

Let’s look at the third item there, what carriers would gain. First, the cost could be written off in the name of driver retention because one of the gains ought to be a more stable workforce, possibly even a bigger one. Second, it’s a way to defeat the unscrupulous carriers who give everyone a bad name both internally and publicly. And third, at a time when fuel prices are soaring and frustration is high among the steering-wheel crowd, it would help people mellow out a bit and show solidarity in the face of shippers who refuse to acknowledge the need for compensatory rates. You’ll see a bunch of other likely benefits if you think about this for a minute.

The objections? I can envision a situation in which a carrier contributing to this organization would be on the receiving end of a complaint of some sort. So be it. The good ones won’t let it happen in the first place, and maybe this would keep them honest, but otherwise I think they should just be big enough to take it.

If this organization were truly independent, as it would have to be, free of any political taint, and supported by a broad base of carriers large and small, it would gain the trust of everyone involved. Once well established, maybe carriers could gradually back out.

The cost? Frankly, who knows? This organization would need an office, a small staff, and professional people on retainers or at least on call across the country. They exist in substantial numbers, and I know they’re willing. I’d propose that carriers should pay the bulk of the cost, but drivers throw something into the pot, too.

And who organizes it? Again, who knows? I’m just floating another idea, but if people are interested, I’ll help put them together and we’ll take it from there.