Truck drivers to feds: More money, not more hours

WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is receiving early pushback from truck drivers on plans to ease hours-of-service (HOS) rules, with some asserting it will further erode driver compensation.

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FMCSA announced earlier this month two pilot programs aimed at alleviating driver fatigue: a pause in the daily 14-hour driving window by up to three hours – essentially extending the driving window to up to 17 hours – and more rest-period options to fulfill a driver’s 10-hour off duty requirement.

Derek Bowen, who identified as a commercial driver, called the proposed pause provision “dangerous and exploitative,” in comments filed in response to the plan.

“After 18 years driving, I’ve watched every industry problem get blamed on drivers while companies profit from our unpaid labor,” Bowen said. “Late delivery? Driver’s fault. Detention time? Driver’s problem. No parking? Driver’s violation. Corporate inefficiency? Driver pays for it.”

Allowing motor carriers to stretch out the driving window would be reckless, Bowen contends, because it would enable more unpaid work through extended “paused” periods, which would result in more accidents.

“Drivers work for free waiting at docks for hours … companies deliberately operate inefficiently because drivers absorb cost,” he said. “Solution: immediately pay after 30 minutes detention – no exceptions.

“The current 14-hour rule ensures I get home safely to my family. This pause provision will create longer workdays while solving nothing. Companies need to pay drivers for all time on duty.”

Johnny Hendrickson, another commenter, asked, “How about instead of us getting more hours, [you] get us more money that we deserve with less hours?”

A lot of truck drivers are living pay check to pay check, Hendrickson wrote, because they don’t receive a fair wage. “When [you] have warehouse employees making the same amount as us, how does that make sense when we control a missile that travels down the road? Please help us get more money, not more time.”

One commenter noted that while companies advertise detention pay – usually starting after two hours of wait time – from $25 to $50 per hour, many drivers never actually receive it. “It should be mandatory, federally mandated,” the commenter stated.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which generally supports work-rule flexibility, also acknowledges the problem of underpaid drivers.

“If drivers were paid for their time they wouldn’t be delayed 20 to 40 hours every week,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer told FreightWaves in a recent interview.

“Folks would find ways to get them in and out, they could stay on delivery schedules, and probably would work fewer hours but be more productive with the time that they have.”

Safety link needed?

Lobby groups representing brokers and large trucking companies have in the past urged FMCSA to steer clear of the driver pay and related detention time issue, arguing that it is outside the agency’s authority.

“Instead, the agency should remain dedicated to its core mission of ensuring safety rather than dictating commercial provisions,” Transportation Intermediary Association President Chris Burroughs told FreightWaves in 2023, when FMCSA was looking into the effects of detention time on safety.

The American Trucking Associations commented at the time that, while there has been speculation on links between excessive wait times and unsafe driving, “numerous studies have failed to substantiate even a statistically rigorous correlation between detention time and crash risk, much less a causal link.”