Fair Labor Standards Act

Logistics companies ordered to pay warehouse workers $1M in back pay

googletag.cmd.push(function() { var gptSlot = googletag.defineSlot(‘/21776187881/FW-Responsive-Main_Content-Slot1’, [[728, 90], [468, 60], [300, 100], [320, 50]], ‘div-gpt-ad-b1-i-fw-ad-1’).defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps.banner1).setCollapseEmptyDiv(true).addService(googletag.pubads());
gptAdSlots.push(gptSlot);
});

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-b1-i-fw-ad-1’); });

In an effort to combat wage theft affecting foreign workers, the Department of Labor has recovered...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/logistics-companies-ordered-to-pay-warehouse-workers-1m-in-back-pay

Broker oversight, truck speed limiters among 2023 policy action items

The Biden administration began 2022 by rolling out its National Roadway Safety Strategy, a U.S. Department of Transportation-wide initiative aimed at addressing rising injuries and deaths involving cars and trucks.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration — and Congress — is expected to advance regulatory and legislative policy that either directly or indirectly attempts to tackle the problem.

Truck parking

With Republicans taking control of the House, a divided government will make it more...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/action-on-broker-oversight-truck-speed-limiters-expected-in-2023

Loaded and Rolling: Independent contractor legal battle; the hidden costs of compliance

Loaded and Rolling Cover ImageLegal battle over trucking independent contractors
(Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves)

The trucking owner-operator business model is getting more legal challenges. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court decision in May 2021 that ruled in favor of Schneider’s contract terms, creating a situation where an owner-operator is effectively an employee based on its interpretation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

The suit, filed in July 2020 by Eric Brant, claimed he was effectively...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/loaded-and-rolling-independent-contractor-legal-battle-the-hidden-costs-of-compliance

Schneider driver ruled an employee in federal court appeal

In the midst of numerous battles regarding independent contractor status, a federal district court has sided with a driver who claimed in a lawsuit against Schneider National that he was effectively an employee rather than an independent owner-operator.

The suit was filed in July 2020 by Eric Brant, who drove for Schneider between December 2018 and August 2019. The decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit comes down almost completely on the side of Brant, whose allegations are...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/schneider-driver-ruled-an-employee-in-federal-court-appeal

Shippers ready to fight driver overtime pay bill in Congress

Truck with depiction of cash following on the road.

Legislation aimed at ensuring overtime pay for truckers is getting close scrutiny from a major shipper group that plans to fight hard against it if the bill starts to gain steam.

The Guaranteeing Overtime for Truckers Act, introduced in April by Rep. Andy Levin, D-Mich., would repeal the motor carrier exemption in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), an exemption that excludes many drivers from overtime pay protections.

“Truck drivers across the country face brutal working conditions marked by...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/shippers-ready-to-fight-driver-overtime-pay-bill-in-congress

DOT vulnerability report highlights truck driver pay, urges ocean shipping reform

Requiring employers to pay truck drivers overtime and supporting legislation boosting shippers’ leverage against ocean carriers are among 62 policy recommendations in a sweeping 140-page supply chain vulnerability report the Biden administration unveiled on Thursday.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s “Supply Chain Assessment of the Transportation Industrial Base: Freight and Logistics,” culminates a yearlong assessment of the U.S. freight transportation system, as required by an executive...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/dot-vulnerability-report-highlights-truck-driver-pay-urges-ocean-shipping-reform

Are driver wait times nullifying carrier pay increases?

As carriers continue to try to attract drivers by enticing them with more pay, delays caused by disruptions in the supply chain that show no signs of letting up could be eating away at those incentives.

The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) points out that while there is no standard definition of “excessive detention” in the trucking industry, it is generally accepted that any delay over two hours is reasonably defined as excessive.

Where carriers are able to negotiate...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/are-driver-wait-times-nullifying-carrier-pay-increases

The Light Load: With ‘wake-up calls’ like this, who needs Ambien?

Maybe a reader smarter than I (one whose attempts at math aren’t a path-smoother to mental health counseling) can point out anything in the following debacle that makes it less dumb-as-a-sack-of-ostriches than it appears.

To wit:

A customs warehouse in San Diego employed 16 Mexican nationals as merchandise checkers. It paid them as little as $3.38 an hour and no overtime even when they worked up to 51 hours per week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

The U.S. District Court for the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/the-light-load-a-snoozefest-of-a-wake-up-call

How does the Fair Labor Standards Act affect truck driver pay?

Included in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is an exemption that applies to interstate trucking allowing employers to avoid paying drivers for overtime work.

The exemption was established in 1935 with the intent of preventing drivers from taking on too many hours, but some in the industry believe the law has evolved into an excuse for keeping driver pay low.

“Simply put, the FLSA exemption makes it the law that a driver’s time is less valued than other professions,” according to Lewie Pugh,...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/how-does-the-fair-labor-standards-act-affect-truck-driver-pay

ATA sees independent contractor battle moving to national platform

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) is expecting the issue of independent contractor status to shift from a state-by-state strategy to a national agenda under a Joe Biden administration.

“I anticipate changes from the regulatory side and executive-order side under a Biden administration, and a U.S. Department of Labor possibly led by Bernie Sanders, who has shown an interest in being secretary of labor,” said Chris Spear, speaking at the ATA’s National Accounting and Finance Council annual...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/ata-sees-independent-contractor-battle-moving-to-national-platform

Join Our Newsletter
Enter your email to receive a weekly round-up of shipping news.
icon
By subscribing, you agree with our privacy policy and our terms of service.