What People Think
50% For, 50% Against
2 votes cast
Take Action
| Vote on this Bill | |
 |
For |
 |
Against |
| Speak Out | |
 |
Comment on this Bill |
 |
Alert Your Friends and Colleagues |
 |
Write Your Representative in Congress |
| Organize | |
|
Start A Petition |
| Save & Share | |
 |
del.icio.us |
 |
Digg |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Yahoo! |
S. 1977, The Driver Fatigue Prevention Act (16 comments ↓)
S. 1977 would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide that over-the-road bus drivers are covered under the maximum hours requirements.
()
[16 views]
Costs: $ per
and increases their $ share of the national debt by $.
(source: National Taxpayers Union Foundation)
Learn More
RSS Feeds for This Bill
Keep yourself updated on user contributions and debates about this bill! (Learn more about RSS.)
Visitor Comments
Allen Smith
December 25, 2011, 8:04pm (report abuse)This bill should include ALL Over the Road drivers, including the 3.5 million professional truck drivers who are currently over regulated, further limiting their ability to make decent wages. These drivers are also only paid according to the miles their runs, no sick time or overtime, as well now having more pending regulations which would further reduce their income by limiting their weekly miles.
Many drivers actually earn less money than they did 20 years ago, while the cost of living has gone up dramatically.
Since this is a bill address truck driver fatigue, let it be known that many of the shippers and receivers also keep drivers waiting hours at the loading docks, cutting into their drive and rest time and further reducing their income.
The safety advocacy groups continually push for more regulations, when in actuality, drivers need to be able to perform their jobs, receive the appropriate wages, and not have to drive 70 hours/week in order to average $38,000.00/yr
Milton Chapman
December 25, 2011, 8:19pm (report abuse)We need to change the job class so we can be paid for the service we provide. As A driver I took a different type job where I am home more but still put in many hours required by law that are not paid . Inspections of the truck not paid for . Waiting time to unload not paid for . Break down time not paid for . All of the above must be logged as on duty time but for most it is not compensated time just FREE WORK for no pay and by law if enough of this time passes I must spend a night away from home again BY LAW. Lets see how many others show up for work 30 mins. early waits a couple hours during the day and then when you get back to the yard and have to work another period that not paid for. With in one day alone we may work on average 3 hours that are not compensated but BY LAW it counts against the time we may work with in the week.
Charles Baker
December 26, 2011, 1:25am (report abuse)To understand the many causes of driver fatigue you need to have a few hundred thousand miles of experience.Driver fatigue cannot be legislated away.
Damian Weiss
December 26, 2011, 11:43am (report abuse)To prevent fatigue, why not mandate 30 hrs/wk of paid on duty time at the drivers Cents per Mile rate times 60mph ? Now drivers would log this time, & reach their 70 hrs faster & get more rest, instead of running longer, to make up unpaid time.
Often drivers loan their companies money for this unpaid work for cat scales, truck washes, tolls & lumpers to unload trucks, minor purchases for truck. (repairs use company CC).
Other unpaid work , includes poor fueling practices; sliding tandems & 5th wheel; company required educational classes; light repairs & maintenance to truck eg changing lights; trip planning&mapping; numerous Qualcomm macro form messages- 1 to 2 hrs a day; keeping two log books-one paper-one electronic; waiting time just to get the dispatch; 2 truck inspections a day documented 5 times on paper & elogs-qcomm-macro; looking for empty trailers after we drop a loaded trailer, taking truck to repair shop & etc.
Tanya Bons
December 26, 2011, 3:28pm (report abuse)We have to be careful on who we're punishing here. All these regulations put on the working man and none on the companies.
If you want to make the roads safer you need to start with the companies. The trucker isn't paid what he's worth now, he's just trying to make a living - he will do what it takes to bring home the wages.
Trucking companies need to be regulated so they pay drivers for the work done, not for the miles achieved.
If you regulate the little guy and not his "master" the little guy will eventually just leave the industry.
We are already in a the midst of a driver shortage; more regulation will increase the shortage and eventually we might all have to haul our own stuff.
Hit the companies and corporations that create this environment and we'll all be better off.
Drive safe!
Jeff Head
December 26, 2011, 3:48pm (report abuse)FMCSA in it's wisdom believes that in a industry where guidlines imposed only on drivers,will create a safer highway. The real world that us truck drivers have to live in, we must choose between following the FMCSA that will kick us out of the industry if we run as the industy dictates, as opposed to being kicked out by the industry because we choose to run as the FMCSA dictated. Whichever we choose, we lose. Only by allowing us the freedom to decide by ourselves on a daily basis will driver fatige go away. To believe that one can sit on capitol hill and make one rule that dictates whem millions of drivers are tired is in my opinion quite the feat. Allow drivers a certian amount of hours to work each day and the freedom to decide for themselves when they need to sleep and when they need to run. Only in this way will drivers that are not computer get the rest they need when they need it. No legistration can dictate that I will be tired at six thirty pm and need to take a ten hour break,
Roy Byrd
December 26, 2011, 4:55pm (report abuse)I think all drivers should be paid hourly wages rather than the common practice of pay by the mile. I agree wholeheartedly with the comments of Allen Smith above.nr5nc
Gerda Harder
December 27, 2011, 2:50am (report abuse)Everyone’s comment above has valid points. I agree with Allen Smith, shippers and receivers waiting hours are big issues. Furthermore; drivers need to be able to perform their jobs, and if drivers have proper training and given the respect they deserve (similar to a pilot) a driver would make choices based on safety not on calculating mile to add on the paycheck. Like Charles Baker mentioned above “Driver fatigue cannot be legislated away”.
Becky Berry
December 28, 2011, 8:58pm (report abuse)Trucj=k Drivers should get overtime just like any other worker. 40 hours regular time and then overtimne after that. Stop cheating the people who haul all our goods! Thank You for your time
David W. Kohley
January 6, 2012, 4:28pm (report abuse)All CDL drivers should recieve OT pay after 40 hours!! Why should they be any different than a janitor? or clerk? In fact it would make the industry safer!!!
Eliorah Mitchell
January 22, 2012, 7:03pm (report abuse)It appears that the governmental agencies and the transportation industry are connected at the hip. Rather than government playing the role of protecting its citizen's interests and companies providing products and services for the citizenry we now seem to have a fascist system that only functions in the best interest of themselves, i.e. the regulators and the industry leaders. It is clear to anyone that no one should be expected to work over 40 hours per week without overtime pay, and that pay should not be based upon miles driven, but upon hours worked. All of this points to the possibility that both government and industry are working together against the citizenry rather than for the citizens. Please regulators consider that you too are citizens and that the decisions and regulations that you create for those you regulate will eventually affect you.
Tyland Gaines
January 24, 2012, 11:43am (report abuse)If over-the-road bus drivers can be considered for exemption from the overtime provision, then over-the-road truck drivers should be included as well.
An over-the-road bus driver has the same duties to their passengers as we truck drivers have to the safety of others when hauling freight of any sort to its final destinations
Lonny L. Neiman Jr.
January 28, 2012, 8:37am (report abuse)The FMCSA continues to try to fix a safety problem by adding regulations to an already, over-regulated industry, while ignoring the true problem. The entire industry is set-up for a non-safety standard.
As long as motor carriers are allowed to push their drivers beyond the hours of service rule; as long as shippers and receivers are allowed to force drivers to sit for hours on end at the docks; as long as there is no true CDL training standards set for the industry; and most importantly, as long as drivers are forced to work 70 hour workweeks without receiving overtime pay for any time over forty hours . . . drivers will continue to run as hard and long as possible in order to earn as much of a paycheck as possible to pay their bills and support their families.
Lonny L. Neiman Jr
January 28, 2012, 8:59am (report abuse)Over the road drivers need to be included in Bill S 1977 along with bus drivers. Over the road drivers or any other drivers should not be exempt from FLSA for obvious safety reasons.I can have hundreds of thousands of drivers sign a petition if necessary. This safety concern has been ignored far too long. Hopefully, our elected officials will take care of this issues. It is beyond my comprehension how such a morally and ethically bankrupt law was enacted. One would think that the safety and welfare of our citizens on the road would be a top priority among our elected officials. If the goverment officials or members of "Corporate America" (or their families) that supported the exemption of professional truck drivers from FLSA were injured by a fatigued driver,i'm sure their vote would have been no!
Barb Sutherland
January 28, 2012, 11:03am (report abuse)There is great power in numbers. There are many more OTR drivers than there are suits in Washington. I have always marveled at the illogical process we have, which charges inexperienced suits with writing laws & regulations for industries that they know nothing about. Our system is so very imbalanced & by allowing well paid lobbyists, who's loyalty is to the corporations they represent, to assist in this process, will almost always assure that the common working stiff's interests will be ignored and the corporations wishes and desires to squeeze as many dollars out of the system, while putting as few as possible into the system, i.e; paying drivers fair wages and benefits and allowing proper rest cycles, will prevail! We, the people, need to demand that our laws & regulations are made based on accurate information coming from those individuals who actually do the work that the regulations control. Join forces! Speak up and show up on the floor of Congress! Only then we will be heard!
Chad Anderson
May 9, 2012, 8:51am (report abuse)This bill was obviously put in place with the use of "special interest" money. Washington corruption went on back in 1935 just as it does today. TAKE AWAY THE STINKING EXEMPTION AND ALLOW FAIR PAY FOR EVERYBODY.