Opposing view: Tools already exist to deal with bad actors
It is impossible to overstate the important role that America’s truck drivers play in our economy — doubly so at our ports where thousands of drivers work to ensure the smooth flow of goods into and out of our country.
Many of those drivers are entrepreneurs in an industry providing upward mobility and a middle-class lifestyle to millions of hardworking Americans. The trucking industry is made up of roughly 525,000 motor carriers, with some 3.5 million drivers. The vast majority of both follow the many rules in place to keep the public safe and protect drivers — rules that should be enforced against carriers that flout them.
For example, if drivers and carriers are found to be operating in excess of the hours-of-service rules, then they should be found in violation and be taken out of service by law enforcement as per current rules, a task that will get easier this December once truck drivers are required to record their hours electronically. We at American Trucking Associations not only welcome such enforcement activities, we enthusiastically support them.
Trucking is a large and diverse industry which, to be sure, has some bad actors. But the tools to deal with them already exist, making these proposals redundant and burdensome, without addressing the problems they purport to solve.
Many thousands of drivers make the choice to be independent contractors, to try and grasp the American Dream by starting a company. Some of trucking’s biggest names began as one-truck operations. However, it is not the right choice for everyone.
Right now, the trucking industry is short many thousands of drivers. Competition for good drivers with clean safety records is fierce. If drivers feel they are being exploited by a bad actor, there are thousands of fleets looking to fill openings.
If Congress wants to address issues at our ports, it should focus on congestion, efficiency and safety — making it easier for these drivers to do their jobs rather than layering further regulations on the industry.