The truckers are planning a strike in January?

Question

This is what i heard today. is it true, and what does it mean if they do?

Answer 1

Another reason for considering a strike revolves around incredibly high Diesel fuel costs. The current Diesel fuel prices are abnormally high and appear unregulated, and certainly unjustified.

More information on the strike is here:

http://www.myspace.com/truckerstrike08

Additional information on strike tactics is available here:

http://www.highdiesel.com/goal.html

Answer 2

We are asking all truckers to join with us January 3-8, 2008 at noon Central time. We are requesting all commercial trucks to shut down in protest of the outrageous fuel costs and the ridiculously low freight rates. We are the only ones that can make an impact in our profession. If we continue to wait for “someone else” to do it, it will never happen. In other professions, they join together in a strike to get their point across. I propose we, as truckers, do the same thing. The trucking community can have higher paying wages for both owner operators and company drivers, but it will take all of us working together to achieve this goal. As long as we keep allowing the oil companies to control us they will continue to do so. If we take a stand and fight for our “piece of the pie,” we will succeed in making this profession profitable again. In closing, I request that you ask everyone you come in contact with for his or her help and support. Remember January 3-8, 2008 can be a great day of change for all of us. Are you willing to lose a few days wages for a lifetime of more profit? Please support our efforts in doing so.

Answer 3

Hopefully better legislation and better pay. There are too many truckers out there that charge too little and destabilized the haulage of goods. There are too many accidents even though there are rules in place 1 of 100 will follow them just because got take what ever there is some times. There are truckers that drive over 18 hours a day when they can only drive 10 by law. The rookies are the only ones that don't care about doing this but as they age bad habits remain and most cause accidents or because of been tired cannot avoid one. Also about the destabilization there are truckers that work for so little and cause other truckers to loose their truck or jobs and when the same trucker that charge too little also goes bankrupt or broke because they were not charging accordingly. Now the companies that need goods move will pay whatever is necessary raising the price of goods for the consumer. Then the cycle starts again because there will be another trucker that charges too little and so on. Also about the hours of work especially in Canada the idiots in parliament have adopted a 60 hour week it accommodates for truckers but does not merit in 99% of other industry. While is fine to drive for ten hours it does not make sense to have a welder breath fumes for ten hours a day. Anyone will agree that 40 hours a week is more than enough and truckers should make it clear that the 60 hour week only would apply to their line of work, and make the idiots in parliament understand that. Boy do I wish the Teamsters where here in Canada, they will set things right for everyone.

Answer 4

As a trucker, i understand we are in a bad position.  On one hand most of us dont make enough money for the amount of hours we put in.  Also we have TWO sets of bosses, the companies we drive for and the federal government.  Both of which have different agendas, Companies want to make money, and the only way they do is to keep trucks moving.  Federal government wants trucks to be safe and they do that by restricting how many hours a truckdriver can drive (also thinking of laws to regulate how fast we can go, by governing our trucks).  Leaving the Driver in the middle.  If we fight for better pay, it really doesnt help.  If ALL drivers got a pay raise then the cost of everything we haul goes up to cover the raise.  So us getting a raise is really counter productive.

However, IF we do strike in January (doubt that will happen), it will be to change fuel prices and lighten regulations.  Probally

cost Americans LOTS of money, due to shortages of everything around the country.  Afterall EVERYTHING you own, need, want, have has at one point or another been delivered on a TRUCK!

Answer 5

they will quit hauling goods.

Answer 6

To start this off I do want to say I know that this is a problem that needs be taken care of, but I don't feel a strike will do the trick. In this country there is a lot of drives don't know how many but I'm guessing there is more than 1 million or so.. And trying to get that many people to do one thing would be impossible.

I'm not saying I am against the strike but come get real people it will not change any thing. And here is way;

* One reason is that there are too many of the large companies that will keep running.

* This would make their business even better. More freight for the big guys. And who wants that........ I know I don't..

* If a company driver does strike he or she will be fired on the spot. How are they going to get home.

* Once fired from their jobs a company driver will have a hard time going to work for another company.

* Does everyone really think that a companies the size of Swift, J B Hunt, England and others will strike.

* These companies are in with the government. Swift was one of the companies trying to get ALL the truck in the USA to be governed at 68 mph. This way they would not have to fight with the small companies that can run any speed.. and get the loads on time....

* The owner operators might lose the contract that they are in for breach of contract.

* It wont do anything for the regulations. If anything it will make them worse. The government has a way about punishing trucking industry just for thinking about thing like this.

* The price of fuel. The oil companies will just raise the price because they think that they are being punished. So they will punish the drivers for it.

I could go on about this but I know that people will not like what I have already wrote.