WASHINGTON — The American Trucking Associations is commending the U.S. Department of Labor for issuing a notice directing agency investigators to not apply the Biden-era independent contractor rule in enforcement matters.
“We welcome today’s announcement that the Department will no longer use the Biden-era independent contractor rule to determine whether an individual is an employee or contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act,” said Chris Spear, ATA president, CEO. “This is a crucial first step toward returning to the common-sense standard set forth in President Trump’s first term, which protected the freedom of individuals to choose work arrangements that best suit their needs and fulfill their ambitions. We look forward to further progress on this issue and will continue to advocate for the 350,000 truckers nationwide who choose to operate independently for the economic opportunity it creates and flexibility it provides.”
Clarity for Independent Contractors
According to the ATA, this action lays the groundwork for restoring the first Trump Administration’s definition for independent contractors, which brought clarity and order to the law in this area.
The trucking industry has relied on independent contractors since the inception of interstate trucking, and court decisions over the last nine decades have continually reaffirmed the legitimate role independent contractors play in the economy.
“Last year, independent contractors came under fire when the Biden Administration radically rewrote their classification, replacing a straightforward definition with an opaque and deliberately confusing standard designed to fuel frivolous litigation and deny self-employed individuals the freedom of choice to work as independent contractors,” ATA said.
ATA Opposition
“ATA has strongly opposed the independent contractor rule since it was first proposed, joined a broad coalition of organizations filing a lawsuit against it, and backed a legislative effort led by Representative Kevin Kiley (R-California) and Senator Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) to overturn the rule,” the the ATA said. “ATA also released a video featuring the personal stories of independent truckers who have been affected by this rule, and ATA’s Women In Motion Council compiled a booklet of testimonials by women independent contractors, which was used at a hearing by Representative Kiley as the foundation of a powerful line of questioning of then-Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su.”
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
wonder how this new ruling will affect ab5 in California?
This in No Way helps Individual truck drivers. This is the perfect storm for Unscrupulous Companies to be allowed to continue setting up near impossible to outright theft Lease Purchase programs that do not have any clear way to actually own a truck. Then drivers who stay in the program don’t pay into Social Security, the employer doesn’t pay tax on their salary and when the drivers barely scrape by until they are 70 and have a net zero balance in their Social Security and no retirement. Not to mention they can get out of law suits for allowing unsafe equipment on the road that causes accidents and then Forces all of Legit O/O to pay 15k a year despite 32 years w/o an accident.
I haven’t been following the independent contractor rule. But if I’m remembering correctly the original concept was about carriers being detained on extended layovers, and the shippers, brokers, and receivers, didn’t want to pay for the detention??? I believe the thought was to make the companies pay the drivers hourly for the entire detention time. Who knows what the “Biden *error” (*intentional) perverted it to. Usually they spin and delay stuff to the point you don’t know what’s going on. It’s simple, if you delay a truck you pay the truck! It is a national infrastructure issue. If you leave it to the discretion of the shippers, brokers, and receivers, they won’t pay anything, and the carrier will get blacklisted for asking. In the best interest of everyone their should be standard detention rules. The drop trailer scheme to get around detention should be considered detention!
@Mark I’m one month away from 34 years. no accidents, never a freight claim. My insurance in 2023 was and outrageous $9,700, 2024 $12,500, This years renewal was $15,500. This is a crime in progress! I know Trump is a busy man, but something has to happen!