One of my greatest pet peeves in the transportation profession is the idea of forced dispatch.
What precisely does force dispatch entail? This kind of dispatching is used, for example, when a truck driver is unwilling or unable to go on a business trip.
He is unable to or is not able to make a scheduled trip for any reason. The trucking business then starts pressuring the driver to make the journey. According to the firm, the driver must accept the load.
Like it or lump it, you will take it down the road and dump it, as the term goes. Forced dispatch, that.
Teamsters Fight Against Forced Dispatch
In the early years of trucking, dispatchers often pushed truck drivers. That was one of the causes for the early 1900s formation of the Teamsters. They made significant progress in the 1930s, mostly due to Hoffa’s leadership, during which time they waged fierce opposition against forced dispatch.
Teamsters Lose Ground, Wins from Forced Dispatch
Forced dispatch is now starting to return as a result of the teamsters’ fall. The volume-based profit margin is what the big trucking firms use. Especially in severe driver scarcity, they need to get as much labor as possible from the truck driver. Once again, it is beginning to cause issues for truck drivers.
Forced Dispatch in Owner Operator and Corporate Fleets
This idea is mostly used in fleets that are owned by businesses. But it is also starting to be an issue with fleets run by owner-operators.
Owner-operators and the carrier they are leased to are parties to a contract. The owner-operator could be required to accept a cargo when it is sent, according to the contract.
Interestingly enough, the corporation is not ready to guarantee the owner-operator a certain number of kilometers or money from the mandatory dispatch system simultaneously. Undoubtedly, the system has a discrepancy.
No Pushing a Driver on the Road, Says FMCSA
A regulation that prohibits forcing a motorist to drive against his or her will have been introduced by the FMCSA. The refusal to operate a commercial motor vehicle may be due to technical issues, a conflict with the hours of service rules, the driver’s illness or fatigue, or anything else that prevents the safe operation of a commercial motor vehicle.
The FMCSA may punish carriers up to $16,000 for each occurrence if they are found responsible for coercing a driver. Also, they would lose their operational authorization.
If the trucking firm is found guilty of the crime, they are forbidden to retaliate against the offending driver for rejecting a shipment. Everything that impacts the driver’s earnings, work position, or mileage is seen as retaliatory.
The best way to complain about a trucking company
The FMCSA accepts driver coercion allegations. In this situation, emails through ELOGS may be utilized as a backup. Over the satellite network, a driver may message his dispatch explaining why he is rejecting the load.
If the trucking firm replies that the driver must finish the particular journey, they may be held accountable for pressuring a driver to operate a commercial vehicle dangerously.
While driving a truck, the driver is ALWAYS in charge.
If the driver is unfit to drive but accepts the trip, they are responsible. The responsibility for driving while ineligible rests with the motorist if anything goes wrong and there is an accident.
So, it simply makes sense that a professional driver would always decline the load if there was any dispute.
Still Exists Forced Dispatch
It is significantly more challenging for carriers to compel dispatch and adhere to FMCSA regulations now that E-logs are required and being enforced.
Many dishonest businesses will still try it, nevertheless.
One favorite ploy trucking firms use is to take a driver who has just returned from a ten-hour break, put him to work for a few hours, and then put him back to bed while still awake.
They will then attempt to send the driver for work again, this time for the entire 14 hours, once ten hours have passed.
Naturally, the driver has not been able to sleep since he just finished his first break and is now becoming fatigued as his schedule opens up again.
There has been no consideration for the driver’s circadian rhythm or sleep/wake cycles, even though strategies like these may be effective for the carrier in keeping a driver ready with full hours when a load becomes available.
The firm is pressuring a driver to work through his fatigue. A dangerous procedure.
The driver must completely record tricks like this one, and the cargo may be denied the option of reporting the incident to the FMCSA.
Because of the severe scarcity of truck drivers, trucking corporations are less inclined to engage in a fight with a driver or the FMCSA that they can not win.
A Proactive Move Towards Driver Protection
This decision is a significant step towards resolving an issue that has plagued our business for a long time. So just as we truck drivers begin to believe that the government is inattentive and unconcerned with the state of the trucking industry, along comes a decision that is a major step in the right direction.
As a result, they seem to be doing their due diligence and taking proactive measures to stop driver coercion.
Remember
- As a professional driver, protect yourself.
- Use your legal rights.
- Do not let yourself be forced into risky circumstances. Resist taking a forced dispatch.
- It is illegal to send someone forcibly.
- While you are operating a vehicle, you are always in charge.