Cliff Abbott

WASHINGTON — Naysayers had been at it since before the start of the May 1 “mayday” protest by small trucking business owner-operators. It seemed that no one, perhaps not even the protesters themselves, thought the protest would result in much change. Many thought that, like the “slow rolls” that happened in Houston, Los Angeles and Phoenix earlier, and even like past trucker demonstrations in the capital, truckers would do their thing and then go home, claiming victory for raising awareness of the truckers’ plight while accomplishing little, if anything. This protest was different. The movement of owner-operator trucks to parking places along Constitution Avenue almost didn’t resemble a protest at all. Horns were blown at specific intervals, but when is Washington ever without the din of traffic noise? In the COVID-19 pandemic environment, traffic was already severely reduced, and the usual throng of tourists was gone. Well-mannered trucking-protest participants made friends of Metro and Park Police and Secret Service agents. Local residents and workers made signs for their cars and vans, mirroring the messages they had seen on protester trucks and blowing their horns, too. Smells wafted from charcoal grills as people gathered under waving American flags to share the dinner sizzling on the coals. When the protest was over after three weeks, the giant piles of litter left after most protests weren’t there. The polite protesters left the area cleaner than it was when they arrived. Still, the criticism continued. Some said the truckers were fighting for the wrong things. Others said they shouldn’t be protesting at all. Names were called. People were banned from social-media sites because of their ugly verbiage. And now that it’s over, some people question what was really accomplished. A grassroots protest, however, isn’t a labor negotiation. It doesn’t end with a signed contract between union and management. And, under the United States’ form of government, there are no royal decrees to instantly settle disputes. There are channels to follow, agencies to involve. Tangible results take time, but they are results, just the same. So, what results did the polite protesters achieve? They got their White House meeting. They didn’t always agree on the issues, but they never wavered from their desire to be heard. Presidential tweets and soundbites favoring their cause were welcomed, but not enough. Even when their cause made national news due to the sound of air horns during a Rose Garden press conference, they weren’t done. They said they were staying until they got their meeting — and they did. The Department of Justice reversed its decision not to investigate brokers for collusion and for price gouging during a time of crisis. In fact, the one time that protesters blocked Constitution Avenue was in response to a DOJ announcement that it was not investigating. That decision changed, quickly. Although some of the protesters’ demands were already being worked on by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), things were proceeding rather slowly. During, or perhaps because of the protest, OOIDA increased the urgency of its campaign. The organization sent a call to action to its members, sent letters to all members of Congress and then sent another letter to House and Senate Leadership, filed a petition with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and issued numerous press releases and articles through its own in-house publication. The protest generated presidential interest in the application and enforcement of 49 CFR 371.3, the regulation that requires brokers to share load information, including the amount paid by the shipper, to all parties involved in the transaction who request it. Encouraged by broker organizations such as Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), brokers commonly ignore the requirements of the regulation by forcing carriers to waive their rights of access to the information in order to do business, or by making the information available under conditions that most carriers cannot meet. In the White House meeting, Chief of Staff Mark Meadows was clear that the issue needs to be fixed. The protest woke the public as well as many government officials to the idea that small business trucking carriers are underrepresented when changes to regulations are discussed. As pointed out by United States Transportation Alliance (USTA) CEO Mike Landis, nearly 90% of all registered carriers have 10 or fewer trucks and are too small to join the industry giant American Trucking Associations (ATA). Yet, when changes are discussed, ATA often has a seat at the table — while small trucking business don’t. Brokers now know the spotlight is aimed squarely at them. The protesters acknowledge the free-market system and, except for a scant few, aren’t calling for limits on broker revenues. But the protests shined a light on those shadowy parts of the brokerage business, such as demanding large payments from customers while only spending a small percentage for the actual service performed. There are more arguments and, perhaps, litigation to come, but brokers are on notice that they are being watched and questioned. The protesters earned the admiration of many among the millions of truckers who weren’t at the protest with their display of unity and their perseverance. Many doubted they would get anything done. They were wrong. A group of people who, as Jeremy Johnson, administrator of the Facebook Group The Disrespected Trucker, said “couldn’t agree on a free cup of coffee” stood together with the Eastern European group, the Hispanic contingent, the Sikh business owners and the rest, a diverse group of ethnicities and genders. They weren’t sure who would speak for them, and demands varied from group to group, but they were determined to be heard. So, while concrete results are still to come, the protest has achieved more than anyone expected it to. Wheels are turning at DOJ and FMCSA, under the watchful eye of President Trump and his staff. Voices have been heard. More importantly, the protest has brought together more truckers than any in recent memory. While it’s doubtful that the number of trucks in Washington ever exceeded 200 at one time, many participants rotated in and out, trying to devote time to the cause while dealing with personal and family matters and maintaining at least a partial revenue stream for their businesses. Estimates range from 500 to 1,000 total truckers spending at least some time at the protest. One group, The Disrespected Truckers, had less than 3,000 members prior to the protest. In less than three weeks, that number swelled to more than 9,000. The usual complaints about the business of trucking were replaced by discussion of the protest and its goals. Other Facebook groups have seen similar results. Even as the protest was winding down, some truckers were still on their way to Washington to join in. The protesters know there are remaining issues to resolve, and the fight isn’t over. In trucking, there will always be more issues to resolve. If needed, one strong and growing group of owner-operators is ready to return to Washington to politely resume the fight.

WASHINGTON — On the 20th day of protest along Constitution Avenue in Washington D.C., more than 100 small business truckers got what they’ve been waiting for — a meeting at the White House. Two representatives of the protesters, Michael Landis, CEO of United States Transportation Alliance and Sergey “C.J.” Karman, CEO of Ezlogz and admin of the Ezlogz Slavic Community group on Facebook, were ushered into the West Wing just before 9:30 a.m. Eastern time on May 20 for the meeting. From the government side, President Trump’s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, was joined by Acting FMCSA Administrator Jim Mullen and Staff Secretary Derek Lyons. As Landis and Karman exited the White House after the meeting, group spokesperson Janet Sanchez went live with a Facebook video. “Our boys just got out of the White House,” she announced. “They were in there for over an hour, and they came out with smiles.” A crowd of protesters and onlookers quickly gathered as Karman and Landis stepped up to a small public address system. Karman took the microphone first. He thanked the administration for hosting the event and for the opportunity to speak. “We answered a lot of questions,” he said. “We told them about price gouging, collusion, and anti-trust. We told them about the hard-working Americans who are driving and have no money, because the money has already been divided.” Next, Landis spoke. “We were tested, I can promise you that,” he said. He related that Mullen had peppered the pair with questions as the meeting commenced, but they held their ground. “What we can back up with truth and our experience, they can’t touch,” he said. Landis spoke to the administration officials about the lack of representation of the small business truckers. He pointed out that organizations such as the American Trucking Associations (ATA) often have the ear of government agencies despite representing only a small percentage of carriers. “That has to change,” Landis told officials. The previous evening, Landis outlined his position in an exclusive interview with The Trucker. “The ATA (American Trucking Associations) represents trucking to the government, but little guys like us can’t be members,” he said. “The interests of the people with money are overriding the concerns of the little guy.” Landis continued, “If you think that 89.7% of for-hire carriers are little guys, (with) 10 trucks or less, and ATA does the talking, that means that 89.7% of us aren’t represented.” Landis conceded that the percentage he quoted was a year or more old and might have changed, but, he said, the number wouldn’t have changed by much. Preparing for this morning’s White House meeting, he said, “We have a chance to be a true voice of what we’re doing on the road, and the truth behind it. We need to have active truck drivers that can have a say in things,” adding, “I want to use this as a way to create that open line of communication, from now on.” One of the high points of the meeting occurred when the pair explained that brokers were not complying with the requirements of 49 CFR 371.3, which requires disclosure of information for each load hauled to all parties who participated, upon request. Karman related that Meadows then asked Mullen, “Is that a rule?” Mullen responded in the affirmative. “Then why aren’t you enforcing it?” Meadows asked. As Mullen explained issues with authority and jurisdiction, Meadows asked for five “setup” packets from brokerage firms and the names of five brokerage CEOs. Landis and Karman explained how brokers were asking carriers to waive their rights to information in their contracts, refusing to do business with those who refused. “Is that true?” Meadows asked Mullen. When Mullen answered affirmatively, Meadows told him, according to Karman, “You need to fix that.” The topic of the petition filed yesterday by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) asking the FMCSA to require brokers to provide load information within 48 hours was discussed. Karman made it plain that the protesters don’t think the proposal goes far enough. “We need that information up front, while we are negotiating the load,” he said. Karman further called on truckers to report claims of broker gouging to the Department of Justice, which Meadows said would be investigated. Landis went on to explain how he had discussed his claim that small business truckers are not represented at government agencies and committees, using the same argument he had given to The Trucker the previous evening. “For us, this is a pretty good step in the right direction. I’m not going to call ‘victory,’ but they understand that we have no representation except for ourselves,” Landis said. “It’s a ‘sort of’ victory,” Karman interjected. “They understand the issues and they understand that we, as Americans, want this fixed, that as Americans, for Americans, we want a voice,” Landis continued. Karman added that when the pair asked if President Trump would be joining the meeting, they were told by Lyons that Trump couldn’t attend but was, in fact, listening to the live feed. Karmen related that Meadows had expressed thanks to the protesters for sticking together throughout the protest and that the chief of staff said, “It’s time to go home.” Karmen then recommended the protesters stay one more day, “to see what happens and to celebrate.” Landis concluded, “The president is on our side. He wants us to succeed, and he doesn’t want us to be overrun. We won the battle, but we’re still in a war.” To wild cheering, he said, “Let’s go celebrate.” Satisfied that, after 20 days of protest, they had finally achieved their goal of a White House meeting, the group gathered for a photo with the Washington Monument in the background. The feeling was that their voices, as well as their air horns, had finally been heard. Lisa and Lee Schmitt, co-hosts of the “Trucking With the Schmitts” Internet radio show (www.blogtalkradio.com/truckingwiththeschmitts) that airs every Monday at 7 p.m. Central time, were excited about the meeting results. “We just watched the video,” Lisa Schmitt said, “and we’re going to watch it a few more times to make sure we get it all.” Schmitt, who said the couple had been in Washington at the start of the protest, marveled at the unity shown by the protesters. “People say the brotherhood of truckers is gone,” she said. “But we saw it — the brotherhood is alive. I wish there could have been 1,000 trucks,” she added. Correction: This article originally stated incorrectly that Trump Senior Adviser Jared Kushner was present at the meeting. Kushner was not in attendance. 

WASHINGTON — As protesting truckers wind down Day 19 of their Washington D.C. protest on May 19, they are on the cusp of realizing their biggest protest goal — a meeting at the White House. Selected individuals have been invited to a West Wing meeting on Wednesday, May 20. It has not been confirmed that President Trump will attend; however, the meeting should satisfy trucker demands to meet. Exactly who will represent the truckers is as yet unannounced. United States Transportation Alliance (USTA) CEO Michael Landis will almost certainly be among the participants, but no official announcement has been made. Reports that a representative of the Eastern European trucking group will attend, along with an attorney, are unconfirmed. Another area of speculation is the list of demands the group will bring to the meeting. Broker transparency is a term commonly used by protesters, but many want the government to regulate the percentage of load revenue that brokers can keep. While transparency is already written into the regulations in 49 CFR 371.3, brokers often evade the disclosure requirements by requiring carriers to waive their rights to the information or making access to the information so difficult as to strongly discourage carrier review. Revising the transparency requirements would certainly be easier than forcing a revenue percentage cap on brokers, which some would see as interference with the free market. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) today filed a petition with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) asking for a rulemaking that would require brokers to automatically provide a copy of the transaction record within 48 hours of the completion of a load. The proposed rule would prohibit brokers from including any provision in contracts that would waive the carrier’s right to access this information. Yesterday Washington protesters got a huge boost in morale when President Trump made them a part of the agenda at a May 18 roundtable discussion with restaurant industry leaders at the White House. As Eugene Scalia, secretary of labor, delivered comments on reopening the U.S. economy, Trump interrupted with, “And Gene, you have to help the truckers, also.” Scalia assured the president that his department has been talking about the topic, and Trump continued, “And I’ll tell you, they’re, they work hard, and they have brokers that take a lot of their business away. They (brokers) don’t work so hard. They sit in an office someplace, it’s not good. So, I’d like to help the truckers. All right?” There was immediate criticism of the labor secretary for laughing and smiling before responding to the president. Whether the laughter expressed a lack of concern for truckers, as some claimed on social media sites, or a lighthearted acknowledgement of the horn-blowing protesters that have disrupted outdoor events at the White House wasn’t clear. Protest organizers and spokespersons talked nearly continuously throughout the day Tuesday, polling protest participants and solidifying the requests they will make at the meeting.

The problem with a grass-roots movement is often determining which blade of “grass” will speak for the group. That’s been a visible issue with the small trucking business protest, now in its third week in Washington. A review of the signs posted on the 100 or so parked trucks along Constitution Avenue reveals demands for respect; broker investigation, regulation or transparency; elimination of electronic logging devices (ELDs); repeal of hours-of-service (HOS) regulations; and a few other causes thrown in for good measure. Reading through thousands of social-media comments by protesters and supporters only muddies the water further. One can imagine a make-believe scenario where the proverbial genie appears to the protesters to grant them three wishes … and sets off a weeklong argument about what those wishes should be. Enter the United States Transportation Alliance (ustransportationalliance.org). Conceived in the notion that the organizations with lobbying power in government exist to serve everyone except small business truckers, USTA, a 501c6 nonprofit, gives voice to the “little guy.” The hundreds of “little guys” protesting in Washington have need for such a voice. As Mark Meadows, President Donald Trump’s chief of staff addressed an assembled group of protesters on May 14, he asked, “So, you like Mike?” The crowd erupted in cheering and applause. They were cheering Michael Landis, CEO and founder of USTA. No vote was taken to elect him spokesperson, but the trust he has garnered among the protesters makes him an obvious choice. In an exclusive interview with The Trucker, USTA’s president and co-founder Kevin Steichen, along with Ingrid Brown, chairperson of the organization’s corporate relations and safety education, spoke about the protest, the FMCSA’s recent final ruling on HOS regulations, and the purpose of USTA. The FMCSA ruling wasn’t entirely a surprise. “We’re working hand in hand with the FMCSA,” Steichen said. “We attend meetings with them monthly.” Although USTA has input into FMCSA decisions, the organization must wait for the final outcome, just like everyone else. Steichen advised patience with the new rules. “Third-party ‘interpretation’ sucks,” he said.” That’s why we want to read every work and then read it again, so that when we do comment, we’re commenting on facts and not what someone thinks.” Reading the 232-page ruling takes time and could result in communication with the FMCSA for explanation of some of the provisions included. The latest HOS revision is only one of the things the USTA board has been working on. “We are partners and stakeholders in the ‘Our Roads, Our Safety’ campaign at FMCSA,” Brown said. “They brought us in around April of last year and we’ve been a part of it ever since.” More recently, USTA became concerned about personal protective equipment not being available to most truck drivers. “USTA was instrumental in putting together the $75,000 in PPE that is being distributed to drivers, free,” Brown said. “Now we’re working on the next $50,000.” While progress on individual issues is important, USTA’s primary mission is to represent the driver. There are no products or services, save for a hat or T-shirt, to sell to the organization’s membership. Membership dues and donations don’t come close to covering the costs of travel, lodging, food, parking and other expenses incurred on each trip to Washington to meet with lawmakers or the FMCSA. “Being that they don’t drive (a truck), sometimes they don’t understand what we do. We don’t just throw emails at them; we sit at the table and discuss the issues. That’s who we are,” Brown explained. “It can be frustrating to work with FMCSA, but I’ve been doing it for two years,” Steichen added. “We have a love-hate relationship with those guys, but we make it work. Our role is to bridge the gap between FMCSA and the drivers in our industry.” Persistence has been key to the organization’s success in gaining a seat at the table. Larger organizations such as American Trucking Associations, Truckload Carriers Association and Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association have more available funding and can hire representatives in Washington to speak for them. USTA members must park their trucks, shutting down their own businesses, in order to be present at those meetings. Patience helps too, since everyone at the table comes from a different place. “With frustration comes irrational action,” Steichen said. “You’ve got to look into the future when you decide what you’re going to do.” Steichen has learned that demanding too much at once can damage the chances of a future win, as well as the relationships needed to gain agreements in the future. “We don’t always agree, but that’s life,” Brown added. Despite living in different areas of the country and spending time on the road, the team makes every attempt to present a united front. “We spend hours on the phone with each other, meeting to decide our position on every issue before we take it to the FMCSA,” Steichen said. “When we do issue a statement of position about something, we validify it with FMCSA so that we can give our membership a solid, confident answer.” Between meetings, the group stays in contact with FMCSA management, including Joseph DeLorenzo, director of the office of enforcement and compliance, and Bill Mahorney, chief of the enforcement division. “They do listen,” Brown said. “I sent an email with a question on Saturday and had a response in 17 minutes. It’s not that I’m important or anything; they are responsive to questions and concerns.” The USTA group was initially undecided about joining the Washington protest, wondering if the action might harm the group’s efforts to communicate directly with the FMCSA and other Washington contacts. It didn’t take long to realize that a common voice was needed if the protest was to be effective, and CEO Landis headed for the nation’s capital. While other groups can be credited with organizing the protest, USTA could well be the organization that provides a key to ending it. Questions about USTA can be addressed to [email protected].

WASHINGTON — Air horns could clearly be heard in the background as President Donald Trump spoke to the nation about the Administration’s latest work on the COVID-19 pandemic today (Friday, May 15). Hours earlier, the president incensed protesters when he claimed in a FOX News interview, “They’re not protesting. They’re there to support me. They love their president.” Trump made similar comments during today’s press conference, which were quickly fact-checked by news outlets. CNN, which has, for the most part, ignored the Washington protest, decided it was newsworthy after all once the truckers’ protest provided an opportunity to criticize Trump. The organization — one that Trump has repeatedly referred to as “fake news” — posted a clip that began with the president saying, “And you hear that outside, that beautiful sound? Those are truckers that are with us all the way. They’re protesting in favor of President Trump as opposed to against. There’s hundreds of trucks out there, and that’s the sign of love, not the sign of your typical protest. So, I want to thank our great truckers. They like me and I like them. We’re working on something together.” CNN co-host Brianna Keilar announced that she wanted to “fact-check” the president’s remarks, saying, “That’s not actually true. Anyone who’s gone down on Constitution Avenue will see that truckers are protesting for a myriad of reasons, but basically they’ve really taken a hit financially.” She went on to explain that truckers have not been recipients of government assistance, saying, “I expect that could change, though, if the president doesn’t want to continue having press events that sound like soccer games.” Janet Sanchez, spokesperson for The Disrespected Trucker Facebook group, posted a live video in which she said, “We’re not here to support anyone.” She urged owner-operators across the nation to come to Washington to join the protest, or to at least shut down their trucks in sympathy. In her video, Sanchez showed trucks “slow rolling” side by side down Constitution Avenue, horns blaring. Other protesters stood in the street or on sidewalks holding signs in protest of “cheap freight” or calling for “broker regulation.” The protest in the capital is noticeably smaller since Trump’s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows addressed the group on Wednesday. After hearing from Meadows, some owner-operators felt the protest had made enough progress to continue without their presence, while others left to return to work after two unpaid weeks of protest. In the photo above, President Donald Trump delivers remarks on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine while air horns can be heard in the background.  

Social-media websites lit up this morning (May 8) with the news that President Donald Trump had discussed the protest in a call-in appearance on the FOX News network’s “Fox and Friends” show. During a discussion about COVID-19 and other topics with the president, co-host Ainsley Earhardt prompted the comments by asking, “Everything in front of us, our paper, our water bottles, our pencils, our phones, delivered on a truck, and you tweeted about American truckers being price gouged. What are you going to do about that?” The president responded “Oh, they are price gouged.” He then acknowledging the protest near the White House, saying, “it looked like a thousand trucks.” Trump continued, “All they want is to be treated fairly, and we’re going to treat them fairly. You know, what they’re asking is almost nothing in many cases.” After claiming that the truckers are “great, great people,” the president concluded his answer by saying, “We’re going to take care of them.” While the protesters gathered in Washington haven’t given up on their demand for a meeting with Trump or at least administration officials, there was plenty of discussion on social-media platforms. Many feel the president’s comments are a sign that the protest is having an effect. Others cautioned that positive comments are no guarantee of action and that Trump’s statements could simply be lip service. A number of commenters speculated on what Trump might have meant when he said the protesters would be taken care of. The protesters moved their trucks from Constitution Avenue yesterday (Thursday, May 7) in response to a request by the National Park Service; parking was prohibited for 24 hours in the protest area due to a planned “special event.” While the nature of the event wasn’t specified, the president appeared at nearby the World War II memorial to place a wreath this morning, commemorating the end of World War II. With the parking restriction to be lifted at noon, protesters wondered if the park police would honor their promise to allow the protest trucks to return. Tensions were heightened when dozens of orange-painted dump trucks were parked in the former protest area. At noon, however, a police escort was provided for the returning protesters, who paraded back to the Constitution Avenue parking area with American flags waving from most of the vehicles. The protest, originally scheduled to last three days, is now in its eighth day. Protesters vow to remain until a meeting with the president or his administration is granted. Rick Santiago, one of the original protest organizers, posted a Facebook video in which he said the protest had accomplished its purpose and the trucks should leave Washington and pursue broker reform through filing complaints. Truck driver and protester Janet Sanchez, however, posted a video of her own, vowing that the protesters are staying. A few trucks have left the capital for various reasons, but others are on the way to Washington, and the ranks of the protest are expected to grow. The coming days will determine what actions the president will take and how the protesters will respond. Photo of Washington protesters courtesy of Rebecca Doty.

Day 5 of the owner-operator protest dawned in Washington on May 5, with rain on the way. That won’t be enough to deter protesters, who have resolved to remain in place on Constitution Avenue until they get their meeting at the White House. “I’m full of energy and ready to keep going,” said protester Janet Sanchez in an exclusive interview with The Trucker. “I came here to get a job done, and I’m staying until it’s finished.” In another interview, Jeremy Johnson, another member of the protest, said, “We’re standing strong.” Both Johnson and Sanchez are administrators and members of The Disrespected Trucker group on Facebook. The group, started in late July 2019, currently boasts more than 7,000 members. Many of those members joined the group in the past two weeks as the current protest unfolded. The protest continues to grow. “We had another six or seven more trucks join us today, and there are more on the way,” Sanchez said. “We’re not leaving until we get our meeting.” Protests involving large numbers of trucks are often at odds with the local population and government. That isn’t happening here, and protesters say they are surprised at the local support they have received. “Right here, where we are, the police, the Secret Service, the park police — they’ve all been nothing short of supportive,” Johnson said. “At noon they come in with 15 pizzas and another 20 at suppertime. We ask who is sending them, and it’s always ‘concerned citizens of Washington D.C.’” Sanchez agreed. “They’re great! We have police officers that come by and have dinner with us,” she explained, adding that even some of the local motorists are getting involved. “Some of the motorists are making ‘#MakeTruckingGreat’ signs and putting them on their cars; then they honk as they go by.” Protest participants are working hard to keep relations good, Johnson said. “You walk up and down the street past all of these trucks, and you don’t see a piece of trash anywhere,” he said.” We’re doing our best to protest peacefully, within the law.” The protest has achieved results. So far, the White House has acknowledged the group’s presence with the gift of a bag full of hats. Names have been recorded for the process of security clearance for a potential meeting. And President Trump himself thrilled participants with a Saturday-night tweet that began, “I’m with the TRUCKERS all the way.” However, the demonstrators are looking for more than attention from government or media. Being noticed is a first step, but action must follow. They want a meeting with the president, or at least with members of his administration who will hear their complaints. One of the first questions that must be answered if a meeting is granted is who will go to the meeting. “I’m on the list, but obviously, all of us can’t go to the White House,” Sanchez said. Johnson was a little more specific. “Janet Sanchez will definitely go,” he said. “Either me or Shawn (McIntosh, another member of The Disrespected Trucker), if we get the chance. And Mike Landis, CEO of the U.S. Transportation Alliance.” Johnson understands that the size of the delegation is important, too. “We have to be careful who goes,” he said. “Everyone has to pass a background check, and we don’t want the meeting to turn into a three-ring circus.” Once it is determined who will attend the meeting, if it happens, the question of what issues will be presented is critical to the cause. It’s also where Sanchez and Johnson differ — for now. “You can’t just walk in and demand regulation of brokers. What happens when someone else wants to regulate how much truckers are paid?” said Johnson, adding that that hours-of-service (HOS) reform is No. 1 on his list. “They lifted the HOS restrictions because we (truckers) were deemed ‘essential’ during the COVID-19 crisis,” he explained. “News flash: We’re essential 365 days of the year.” Johnson also thinks too many regulations are put in place without considering the input of drivers and small-business owner-operators. “We want immediate suspension of all HOS regulations until we get a seat at the table,” he said, explaining that the 14-hour rule is the first target. Sanchez, on the other hand, wants to target income. “The big issue is money,” she said. “I’d like to see the broker percentage (of load revenue) brought down to 10 to 20%, with at least 80% to the trucker. Trucking is a high-risk job, away from home, and the trucker bears all the expense.” Her reasoning looks to volume. A brokerage has multiple employees, and each one might book 10 to 15 loads a day, while the trucker can only book one, she explained. She also wants more transparency in broker-trucker dealings. “A lot of truckers would like to see the full amount the broker is paid before the load is accepted,” she said. “That way, everything is transparent, and the trucker knows if the broker is keeping too much.” Sanchez listed hours of service as the next item to be addressed, followed by the treatment of drivers. “We also want to see drivers protected,” Johnson said. “Too often, detention isn’t paid. Our time should be paid, too.” He listed access to restroom facilities at shipper and receiver locations as another issue. “It always seems everyone is protected except the trucker,” he concluded. While the protest continues, the group’s de facto leadership plans to continue polling the participants to make sure everyone is on the same page. “We’re trying to take opinions from the drivers, then the more experienced drivers are working to narrow it to the two or three main points,” Sanchez said. Keeping the demonstration peaceful is an important goal, too. “Janet, me and Shawn, wherever we can keep things calm and moving forward, we want to be there,” Johnson said, adding that it’s important that the group is together. “My message is one of unity between all of us,” Sanchez said. “Really, we can accomplish a lot of things if we’re all together.” Both Johnson and Sanchez are confident that persistence and unity are keys to achieving their objectives, and they’re asking for public support. “Truckers move America,” Sanchez said. “America needs to stand up for its truckers.” [Photo courtesy of Rebecca Doty via Facebook]

On a news-filled day when protests erupted across the country to protest COVID-19 “shelter in place” restrictions, about 100 independent owner-operators accomplished something that other protesters routinely fail to do. They got the direct attention of a sitting U.S. president. At 9:42 p.m. on Sunday, May 3, President Donald Trump tweeted, “I’m with the TRUCKERS all the way. Thanks for the meeting at the White House with my representatives from the Administration. It is all going to work out well!” Earlier in the day, White House representatives showed up at the demonstration site bearing gifts — a cloth bag emblazoned with the presidential seal and filled with hats bearing the messages “USA Strong” and “Keep America Great.” The Trump tweet was the first official public acknowledgement from the government of awareness of the “mayday” protest that began May 1. The ruckus attracted the attention of 160,000-member OOIDA (Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association), which weighed in on Saturday with an informational letter from Lewie Pugh, the association’s executive vice president, to its membership that acknowledged historically low freight rates and provided a link to report broker abuse. Social media erupted with responses to the protest. Some people were jubilant at the movement’s success in attracting the attention of The Washington Post and other media outlets, culminating with a tweet from Trump himself. Others cautioned that the attention was only a first step and that the issue that could take more time, and more protest, to resolve. Still others cautioned participants to be careful what they wish for. Mark Rasmussen commented on The Trucker’s website, “I want to be an owner-operator and own my own business, but I want the government to take care of me. You can’t have it both ways.” A common sentiment expressed was that owner-operators who haul cheap freight are helping keep rates low for everyone. Brandon Montgomery, who posted that he’s been parked for seven weeks now, said, “If you haul cheap freight YOU are the problem. PARK THOSE RIGS.” The issue facing protest organizers and participants now is what they’ll do with the newfound attention, especially if, as expected, the result is a meeting with Trump himself — or at least with administration officials. The protest has been centered around low freight rates, but opinions diverge quickly from there. Should organizers ask for federal regulation of brokers with, perhaps, a mandated percentage of revenue brokers are allowed to keep? And, if so, what is a reasonable percentage? Another potential avenue is increased transparency. Brokers are already required to provide rate information to every party that participates in each load. Truckers are entitled to know how much the broker was paid by the shipper, any additional services the broker provided and more. All that is required is that the owner-operator ask for the information. The majority of owner-operators believe, however, that asking for this information will result in being “blacklisted” by that broker and being unable to conduct further business. A federal mandate that brokers must provide this information at the time of settlement with the trucker wouldn’t necessarily increase the percentage of revenue to the carrier, but it would increase broker transparency by eliminating the trucker’s responsibility to request it. Broker retribution would also be greatly reduced, since they would be providing the information to every carrier they contract with. OOIDA expressed support for this position April 28 when Norita Taylor, media spokesperson for the group, told The Trucker that OOIDA would like to require brokers to provide electronic records as soon as a haul is complete. A meeting with the Trump administration might be an opportune time to discuss financial assistance for owner-operators, too. As self-employed business owners, most don’t qualify for unemployment benefits in their home states. The U.S. Small Business Administration has been instructed to make an additional $50 million available for low-interest loans to small businesses. The funds, however, are distributed to the states, which then work with financial institutions to provide funding to small businesses. The process for obtaining the cash isn’t clear, and there’s a question of whether small trucking businesses would qualify for the loans since they aren’t officially “shut down” by government mandate. Suspending operation due to unprofitable freight rates may not be looked upon in the same light as a mandated closing. Some owner-operators may not be able to put together an application package to satisfy lenders, which depend heavily on business plans, profit-and-loss statements, and creditworthiness to decide who gets the money. Other complaints that have been made include elimination of the requirement for electronic logging devices (ELDs), regulations addressing detention conditions and pay, access to restrooms and break areas at shippers’ and receivers’ facilities, and even a ruling by the FMCSA that would allow interstate truckers to carry loaded firearms in all jurisdictions. A video posted on Facebook today (May 4) by one of the protest organizers, Rick Santiago, demands that the FMCSA be “eradicated” and antitrust laws be eliminated, although an explanation of how either action would come about — or how it would benefit owner-operators — was not provided. Hopefully, organizers will remain focused on a small number of key issues as they remain in Washington to continue pursuing their cause. [Photo courtesy of Rebecca Doty via Facebook]

The stories from owner-operators about low freight rates abound. Tony Filla commented on The Trucker’s Facebook page, “The bottom dropped out. They’re (carrier customers) not shipping, so there went 60% of my long-distance freight out the window.” Filla usually hauls rebar and other fabricated products on a flatbed trailer. Due to the reduction in loads, he’s now working in his carrier’s local fleet making shorter regional runs. Under normal operating conditions, he would use load boards to pick up a return load from a broker, but the rates are so low that he is deadheading back, adding that he is “surviving for now” and has no desire to haul freight for “free.” Kevin Kocmich is doing a little better. “I’m not going backwards,” he said. “Times are tough now, but my income hasn’t dropped too much.” In March, Kocmich was named the 2019 Owner-Operator of the Year by the Truckload Carriers Association. He is leased to Diamond Transportation System (DTS), which assigns oversize loads received from its contract customers. Kocmich depends on brokers to supplement the loads he receives from DTS. “Rates are down, but so is fuel, at least 25%,” Kocmich said. His advice to struggling owner-operators is to know their costs of doing business. “You gotta know the numbers of your business,” he said. “How can you protest when you don’t even know your own numbers?” Kocmich isn’t planning to join any organized protests. “I stay kind of neutral,” he said. “I agree on some stuff and disagree on some.” He was clear about how protests should be conducted, however. “I don’t think they should be slowing traffic and getting the police involved,” he stated. Norita Taylor, media spokesperson for OOIDA, talked numbers, too. “Know your cost of operations. Know your customers,” she said. “And, always, safety first.” While Taylor did not express support for any particular protest, she was supportive of the rights of the participants. “Our general take on any protest is that everybody has the right to legally protest,” she explained. “We wouldn’t support blocking roads and that sort of activity, but we support their right to protest so long as they do it legally and safely.” OOIDA, Taylor explained, doesn’t take an official position on broker rates paid to carriers, but the organization does support brokers providing electronic records to owner-operators as soon as the haul is completed. The group also supports waiving both Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (HVUT) and Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) fees for 2020. Jeff Hopper, vice president and chief marketing officer at DAT, recommended that owner-operators pay particular attention to rates. “Rates are negotiated between broker or shipper and the carrier,” he said. “The best time to address rates is in the negotiation process.” Hopper vehemently denied recent publicity that claimed DAT sets broker rates. “DAT does not set rates. All rates are negotiated between the parties involved,” he said. “We believe the DAT load board is the largest public marketplace for loads in the country.” That status as “the largest public marketplace” provides lots of data that can be useful. “We use anonymized data to identify trends in rates, regional activity and other factors,” Hopper continued. “We use past data to report on what’s happening in the market currently and also to forecast what we think will happen in the future.” Owner-operators and brokers who are subscribers to DAT can use the information found there, including summary reports produced by DAT, to determine average rates that they can then apply to their own loads. Hopper was clear, however. “We do not take a percentage of revenue and we certainly don’t set rates,” he said. Responding to suggestions that owner-operators cancel their subscriptions to DAT, Hopper said, “It’s everyone’s right to do so, but they’ll lose access to a lot of loads as well as information that helps them make good business decisions.” Good business decisions are especially critical when freight rates are down. “We should remember that we’ve never really seen an event with such an economic impact,” Hopper said. “There’s just not enough loads. After an initial surge for groceries, shippers aren’t shipping.” The general malaise that has impacted the trucking industry is worldwide, and other industries are also feeling the pain. On April 29, the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) announced an adjustment in the First Quarter 2020 U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to -4.8%. Most economists define a recession as two or more consecutive quarters of negative growth. Considering that major business closures didn’t take place until April, the beginning of the second quarter, it’s very likely that second-quarter GDP statistics will fit solidly into negative territory. Personal income has also declined, according to BEA, falling 3.1% in March alone. With skyrocketing unemployment, the April numbers aren’t expected to improve. FTR’s “Monday Morning Coffee” blog for April 27 presented some dire numbers. Orders for Advance Durable Goods such as cars, computers and other products dropped 14.4% in March and are expected to fall again in April. Total shipments fell 4.5%. FTR predicted that business investment will likely be weak for the rest of 2020, harming productivity. There’s little doubt in anyone’s mind that it is difficult to do business in the current economy. Companies of all sizes are struggling to stay in operation. A sad reality is that recessionary conditions can cause weaker players to drop out of the market. Most carriers, including owner-operators, benefited from the plentiful freight and higher rates of 2018 and the first half of 2019. The market is tougher now. Some trucking businesses, especially smaller ones, will not survive this economy. Claims of broker malfeasance — and plans to physically protest it — can be debated. Are economic problems faced by independent owner-operators caused, at least in part, by broker profiteering, as protest organizers claim? Are current conditions, the supply and demand that governs trucking and every other market, entirely to blame? What share of the blame, if any, do the small-business owners who chose to invest in trucking deserve? And, what can be done to increase each carrier’s chances to survive what is now generally accepted to be an economic recession? We’ll address some of those questions in tomorrow’s series wrap-up. Editor’s note: This story is the second installment of a series. Check TheTrucker.com tomorrow for another installment about the owner-operators’ issues and upcoming protests.