Even if you could get a large group of owners to strike, I don't see it accomplishing much with this economy. All it will do is take some capacity out of the market. Since there isn't enough freight for all the truck right now, I don't see what you would accomplish. Besides, what are you going on strike about? High fuel, low rates, or some other reason?

 

Ask 10 drivers, get 10 different answers. Last truck show I went to I didn't notice recruiters with guns forcing drivers to sign on, have yet to see a broker or shipper forcing someone to haul cheap, run illegal or what ever the bitch is.

 

The only ones who scream for a strike, are steering wheel holders who are clueless when it comes to running a business.

 

I'll go on strike...against the oversupply of trucks out there chasing freight. I demand that the government step in shut down 20% of the freight-chasers out there.

Other than that, I can't fathom what people would be striking against. Fuel is as cheap as it's been in several years. Maybe the goal is to pressure factories into producing more so we have something to haul. Who cares if there's no market for the stuff, right?

 

Number of THINGS to "strike against" - just NO ONE IN PARTICULAR that would CARE. Not that I'm advocating a union or anything.

1 - Lack of rest areas with states shutting down more and more weekly. They REQUIRE US to stop for 10 hours EVERY DAY, but don't give us enough places that are SAFE or have ADEQUATE FACILITIES. GOVERNMENT AGENCIES want us to shut down, they should make sure we have safe/decent places to DO SO.

2 - Anti-Idling laws. Don't get me wrong, I'm ALL FOR a cleaner environment - but if you forced a DOG to be locked in a truck with no heat/AC for 10 hours, you'd go to JAIL. Try idling to maintain SAFE and comfortable temperatures in order to get the MANDATED REST - and some states have JAIL TIME as a penalty for doing so. Why don't we STRIKE and get Osama/Obama/Barry (whatever his name is today) to BAIL OUT each INDEPENDENT TRUCKER with a coupon for a FREE APU of their choice? He'd save enough OIL in the first year to actually PAY FOR THEM (unlike all his other plans that have no means of getting PAID FOR). While he's at it, he can provide a G.I. Sleep Apnea Machine, as most of us are going to NEED ONE if the BMI recommendation gets ushered in.

3 - Insert your pet beef here...

Low Freight? This is linked to the current economical situation. There are IMPORTANT HEALTH AND WELFARE ISSUES that a "strike" or even a 10 minute shutdown might bring to the PUBLICS ATTENTION. It is the GENERAL PUBLIC we need to wake up - not the government (they KNOW they are screwing us left and right).

While a strike is a nice "sentiment", it would NEVER HAPPEN, for lack of support, for the fact the we ALL have to keep the wheels rolling in order to FEED OUR FAMILIES. I WOULD support a grassroots effort of say, at 12 Noon on 10/26 - everyone just SHUTS THEIR MOTOR OFF FOR 10 MINUTES. Wherever they may happen to be. ENGINE TROUBLE (cough cough). If even a HALF MILLION people would get onboard with that, with ATA & OOIDA holding a press conference in DC to air our grievances - while not getting freight rates boosted - MIGHT - draw some PUBLIC ATTENTION to the issues the hardworking folks that bring EVERY PRODUCT IN THEIR HOMES from where it gets made/imported - to where THEY BUY IT...

/soapbox

Rick

 

Shutting your engine off for 10 minutes won't accomplish anything. that isn't a strike, it is a brief rest period.

 

you better wake up before that, if you wait until it works, you will starve to death

 

Even if I agreed on the reason for the strike there is one thing you need to understand, in the few years I've been on the road there will never be a real strike. The companies with more than a dozen drivers will be glad to have thier drivers bring in thier trucks and fill those seats with other drivers should they choose to strike. I don't know about you but that's incentive enough for me to stay driving.

 

Well, I'll have to bow out on this next strike. I went on strike for the week of Labor Day. Seemed appropriate to do it then. No one joined me. So.... I did my part. Now everyone can do theirs without me. Did I say I went on strike? My bad. I meant to say my truck went on strike. Until I met the demands that it went on strike for, it refused to haul freight. Had no choice but to give in and ante up. Now if we could just get all the trucks to go on strike in a uniform way. Man, if these trucks ever get unionized, we are in deep shinola.