J.B. Hunt has been fighting back against a class action lawsuit against it for over ten years. It went through appeals and was even petitioned to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, finally, the megacarrier agreed to settle the lawsuit concerning driver pay for $15 million.
The lawsuit was first brought against them in 2007. It alleged that J.B. Hunt had been failing to pay its drivers correctly under California state labor laws. California has some of the strictest labor laws in the country. Those laws require some of workers’ meal and rest breaks to be paid, and require drivers to be paid for required activities like detention time, filling out paperwork, and performing pre- and post-trip inspections.
Large carriers have been pushing back against these laws for years now, arguing that the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act prevents individual states from regulating interstate trucking. In fact, the so-called Denham Amendment has been offered up multiple times in the past few years. That amendment would change the FAA language to prevent states including California from giving interstate truck drivers the same protections as all other workers receive under state law.
Both the American Trucking Association and the Truckload Carrier’s Association support the Denham amendment. Pro-trucker groups including OOIDA oppose the amendment, and it was removed from the final FAA re-authorization bill again this year. Find addition coverage on the Denham Amendment here.
Initially, a district court ruled in favor of J.B. Hunt. Later an appeals court sided with the drivers. At the urging of the ATA, J.B. Hunt appealed the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, but they declined to hear the case. The carrier caught a lucky break when a federal judge decertified the class of around 11,000 current and former J.B. Hunt drivers back in August… just six weeks before the case was set to go to trial.
As a result, J.B. Hunt was able to settle for just $15 million out of court. The settlement still must be approved by a judge before being finalized.
Source: truckinginfo, supplychaindive, ccj, freightwaves, law360, FMCSA, truckersreport
I hate the name ata when they are clearly anti trucker. They should change their name to unAmerican Trucking companies Association
ATCA. American Trucking Company Association. I agree, they’re a useless organization. Outside of corporate america, owner operators are about the only independents left that support them but that’s because they have been sold on the belief that they’re going to be able to start their own “mega” carrier someday, so they support these laws thinking it may apply to them some day, when literally over 99 percent of owner operators leave the trucking industry and never attaining anything more than a one man operation. Yet the rest of us are getting screwed because they continue to pay those dues to support the ATA.
Owner operators do not support ATA….are you nuts?
NO JOHN they are not a useless organization, they have saved medium and large carriers literally Billions of dollars and the majority of that was at the expense of their drivers and so called safety initiative’s !
Oh no, they clearly stand for the trucking companies. The major ones. Not the driver and not the o/o. I have never liked ATA.
I worked for JB
I did as well, but not in Cali.
😆 LOL, WHO HASN’T?
I am former JB Hunt Driver through 2006 can I be kept informed. Thank you.
Is there any other companies
Involved in this law suit
Use your eyes
Or you could simply not say anything at all if you have literally nothing intelligent to add…jerk.
From what I could tell from looking online, JB is the main company in this suit. It doesn’t seem any other Megas are in on it yet. Knowing Cali though you never know who they will hammer down next lol.
And the way that read, to me anyway, they’re likely only going to be on the hook for paying California drivers. Of course $15 million isn’t really a lot of money. The law firm that took the case is going to get 50 percent right off the top. So that leaves 7, maybe 8 million and this is the trucking industry. It’s quite literally possible that a million drivers could have passed through JB Hunts doors in ten years. So we’re talking $7 per driver? Now lets throw more of a realistic number out there, say 100,000 drivers in ten years from California. So $70 per driver. Then they’re going to tax the shit. So enjoy your $40.
That’s SO not right! They should have to pay each driver what’s owed and be on the hook for the attorney’s fefeefefees on top of it! They are the ones who chose to fight it this whole time!
Lol! *FEES
Each carrier has to be sued individually. I have a case on a company out of ST.LOUIS. same as swift case,stealing mileage from drivers,non driving time plus dentention…fraud ALL TRUCKERS NEED TO SUE A CARRIER…all of them lie,cheat and steal…
I drove for JB.back then also.Should I not also receive some sorts of a part of that settlement?I know I worked way over my legal hours just to get the load there on time.But I was never to tell anyone or to log it as over hours.Would be nice to be able to finely get pay for all that extra work, especially after I’ve had my heart attack with 4 bypass open heart surgery,thanks to the many days @hours working for no pay for companies like JB.@ several others.Thanks.
U get 5 bucks and a free happy meal
This is exactly what’s wrong with our country, or one of the many things. People are allowed to sue over anything and everything. Then eventually the cost of fighting a lawsuit like this becomes ridiculous and companies chose to settle because of the expense. I have no faith in our justice system and people that see dollar signs when it comes to a big trucking company should be ashamed.
We should get paid fairly like every other American.
Call Donny, trucking is unskilled labor drivers really don’t do anything
If you worked for free, you might begin to understand.
You have obviously never worked as a truck driver or known one. My husband worked for CR England for about a year and a half and then switched to Martin, which was a much better company. I road with my husband for about a year and saw unbelievable abuse of the drivers. The trainees at CR England’s Center in Salt Lake were so poor they were trying to exist on Ramen noodles. Won’t go into details, but if drivers were paid by the hour would be lucky if was a couple of dollars an hour. On top of that the companies find numerous ways to cheat them out of what little they did make. Most abused job, long hours, have to fight to find a place to sleep in many states.
Cr rip off live on 260 a week
Nope they just hire more drivers pay off the lawsuit the fire the drivers after they screw the newbe drivers that just walked through the freaking door!
Am currently looking for a local job.
One company recruiter refuses to put anything in writing. Wants my number so’s we can talk on the phone and I can conveniently “misunderstand” what he “said”.
Recruiters are worse than politicians.
They’ll say ANYTHING to get you into their truck.
I had one “local” company put me in a day cab for a week going OTR.
I was told I had better do as I was told.
They got my keys that day. Its the only thing they understand….
First of all, the lawyers definitely made out even if nobody else does dragging the case out for yrs & yrs. They alway$ do.
I agree RJ, been there done that too…several times over my 19ish yrs. It’s the nature of the beast in the trucking business, always has been. No other occupation/service business/certified professional (I use that last one loosely) like the trucking industry is, doesn’t pay their employees fairly for EVERYTHING they do while on the ‘clock’. Not plumbers. Not electricans. Not HVAC. Every blue collar occupation you can likely think of pays their service/certified people for every minute theyre on the job/clock performing something for their employer, or boss. Except trucking. And it’s ‘expected’ the drivers know that when they get into the business. You sacrifice hundreds, even thousands ( 10yr + drivers) of ‘free’ hours for your employer & not get paid a damn thing. Waiting at shippers-receivers-sitting in traffic jams-all that bs that’s a non-compensated time drain in the trucking business that a driver rarely gets paid for even though he/she is technically on the clock under a load. How about those other professions I mentioned above did business that way? Not happening, never has, never will. But it’s ‘acceptable’ in trucking for whatever reason for as long as i was driving. Ive had enough of all the bs & just packed it in Oct 3rd. Enough is enough. 2 million safe driving miles in an industry thats really nose dived & this grasshopper has seen the writing on the wall. Im a slow learner i guess, it took me awhile but im changing gears & got the hell out of trucking last week & staying the hell out. For good! Plus Im in my 50s, the job market is rocking & i don’t have the patience anymore to deal with all the idiots on the roads, all the bs, all the ‘it is what it is’ attitudes anymore in trucking. Its become a cesspool, sadly, and it sure as hell isnt gonna turn around for the better anytime soon. I had fun in trucking in the 80s & 90s, it hasnt been fun since then & its only gonna get worse from those of us ‘old-schoolers’ perspective. No thanks. Ive donated enough free labor over the 19-20 yrs ive been in trucking & im tired of it. Its just the way the system is & always has been in trucking. When I recently started keeping track of ALL the hours i was dealing with the truck in some capacity, and the hours I wasnt getting compensated for, i wasnt a happy camper. I was actually pretty pissed off. Multiple that by a dozen years or more & you get the idea. Its a crock of bs & why I slammed on the breaks, turning around in a completely different direction, changing gears & mashing on it. Im looking ahead & not looking back. The trucking business will soon be nothing more than a speck in my rear view mirror that faster I can grab gears.
Whew, this article subject got me riled up…but in a good way. I made a good decision & Im gonna keep the hammer down & not look back.
And amazing decision sir 👍 enjoy 😉 your freedom. I only been driving for two years and I’m ready to leave this way of life. To stressful and not a good pay for it. Take care sir. You just answer all my question about this OTR business 👍🙏.
Wah wah wah then maybe you should have donated all that time to a different career.
Wishing you the best of luck no matter what you will always be a trucker and thank you for putting in your time behind the wheel from another trucker
That’s why they have “dispatch busters” or the tape recorder with little suction cups on it. My cell phone has a record button too but it beeps.
One clear way of knowing your dispatcher is lying is HIS MOUTH WILL BE OPEN.
They are required to go to lying school to become a dispatcher.
Obviously you have never been a dispatcher, Sharon. I have. I never once lied to a driver. There is nobody that can truthfully say I did….
I have over 6 million miles driving, so I kinda know a few things
U take break in the break room no sleeper cab what a bunch of cheese whizz a holes
I know there was something fishy about them JB Hunt and Covenant is hiding behind Christianity they are the next major culprit that recruit drivers they stay in hotels I never get reimbursed
It’s more than just that but great post. They always have those keywords phrases like “we’re a family run company” or “you’re not just a number to us”.
Going over the road, you just lose money. JB Hunt says they have their pass system that will get you right through at the rail yards. This is bull–you might be sitting in line before ever getting to the rail yard and can easily spend 2 hours before you ever get to the fast lane they brag about. I ran Chicago truck rail when I first started driving and if I got paid by the mile, I would have been well under the poverty level and better off working at McDonalds.
If drivers are looking for jobs, what do you see everywhere? JB Hunt has job ads everywhere and all the time. I still get calls from JB Hunt recruiters. Ask yourself why that would be. Do you think it’s because they’re a great employer with great benefits and a chance to earn great money and get home regularly? If you think that, I feel sorry for you.
I’ve listened to their recruiters several times. They don’t promise a thing when you press them on anything. I heard “you can sail right through with our rail yard pass–nobody else has it”. Really?? I know of 2 other companies who have it.
I pressed them on health insurance and how much it costs the driver. I would think that EVERY driver would ask about it since you don’t want to pay $300/month for health insurance that has a $5,000+ deductible when you could work for a company that charges $100/month with a $1,000 deductible and includes Short & long term disability, dental, vision and healthcare savings account.
Do the math on all the details wherever you think you might want to apply, but bottom line, if a company keeps having ads everywhere, they are probably losing drivers right and left because they suck as a company.
Here is the problem and solution to Driver occupation being a bad career taken right from this writing.(prevent states including California from giving interstate truck drivers the same protections as all other workers receive under state law).
Recruiters are nothing but salesman for the company they tell you what they think you want to hear but they’ll never put it in writing or let you record it.
I would like to know, when exactly FAA took over for DOT and FMCSA? If truck drivers all of a sudden became Pilots I would like to talk about a pay increase.
All 3rd party companies do this kind of scam on their drivers!! Detention time being the main problem…. companies offer their customers 2 hours of free time before you can start charing detention time!! So the company wants you to work for free for 2 hours?? Umm NO!! Whatever agreement they worked out with their customers is on them….. not you!! You shouldn’t have to work for free!!
How many drivers get paid to pretrip, posttrip, fuel, sweep out trailers, drop, hook, or do any of the other things we do every day?
Miller Transporters
Jackson, Ms
Be warned though, They are union. BUT THE BUSINESS MANAGER SUCKS. ROLLS OVER ON EVERYTHING.
Wrong.. my brother is a broker. The company truck gets paid regardless.. if that truck sits at the dock for two hours.. the minimum that truck makes is 150 hour. But company want to feed u 50 bucks.. I do the math
That happens all the time. I used to sit 8 hours for Schneider and never got a nickel. Wenger Truck Line, same thing. Then the worst was Air-Land, who had “stand time” which was like $8/hour, but then they’d say, “Oh, that’s not a stand time customer or this customer is one we have a deal where it’s 4 hours free or this customer said they started loading you within 2 hours so we don’t care if you spent 6 hours or I know we told you to get there at noon, but your appt time wasn’t until 4pm and you were loaded by 5pm so you get no delay time.”
Get off that OTR job. You will never get a consistent pay or be home when you want to be.
Actually they want u to work for free all day
Now can trucking companies stop stranding drivers far from home because they want to force unsafe operation of defective equipment. Driver’s motto is always ‘Safety 1st. Companies are sometimes ruthless.
Like Landstar blue star suppository
As you can see ATA “always” takes the side of the company no matter how bad they are..!!
Sure seems that way, doesn’t it. Drivers need to fight back. I doubt that they will but I’d like to see them fight for a union again. The playing field needs to be even. One way to help that is all drivers getting paid by the hour.
TRUCKERS UNIT…THE TRUCKERHOOD.
It doesn’t matter if you have been trucking for some time or new to the field.If the company rules don’t fit your standards Walk away
SO HAPPY TO KNOW THAT JUSTICE PREVAILS.. EVEN THOUGH IT TOOK SO LONG. BUT MAIN PERSON TO TAKE THE BRUNT IS THE DRIVER. WE TOO WERE DENIED DETENTION OF SEVEN HOURS . THE HUMAN CONCERN AND FEELING IS MISSING OUT. I’M SURE THERE ARE A LOT MORE LIKE THEM THAT ARE FLOURISHING ON THESE LINES.. OF NOT GIVING THE HONEST WORKERS THEIR DUES. IN GOD WE TRUST.
Wrong.. my brother is a broker. The company truck gets paid regardless.. if that truck sits at the dock for two hours.. the minimum that truck makes is 150 hour. But company want to feed u 50 bucks.. I do the math
That wouldn’t surprise me a bit. I was talking to a friend who was billing and they billed $150 (years ago) to go across George Washington bridge. Then they paid the driver $50.
I am glad I am out. I had a pretty good set up, but you still have to deal with the morons.
I usually had an escort, so it was given when you arrived or departed somewhere. Still had to suffer with some getting into the trade.
I wish the best for you hands, but from what I see, most companies spend more screwing the drivers, than if they’d paid them what it was worth.
I once had a company tell me I had to take a log class, and I had to log it as “on duty, not driving”, and they did not pay you for it. I told them the DOT said if you were working, not driving, you had to be paid an hourly wage. They said never mind. I was many years ago, but I still wonder how many drivers did what they were told, and lost out.
With the new rules, I really feel for you drivers out there spending your 34 hours along the road, or in truck stops.
Is it any better for owner operators
Does anyone know if it is better to be a owner operator iam ready to own my rig
Bend over ben my man
Drivers affected will see very little money. The lawyers will get 1/3 to 2/3 up front guaranteed. No if and and buts. Then they will tack on expenses prob about 1.2 mil. So left over for payout to drivers about $3.8. Hunt will claim they are cash strapped and negotiate it into several settlements over a period of month. By the second payout they will file a brief Chapter 11 bankruptcy and get to default the drivers portion of their debt.
That’s how Courts and Corporate America works. Go thank an Attorney.
Each carrier has to be sued individually. I have a case on a company out of ST.LOUIS. same as swift case,stealing mileage from drivers,non driving time plus dentention…fraud ALL TRUCKERS NEED TO SUE A CARRIER…all of them lie,cheat and steal…
Simple solution, since we drivers are required to use ELDs anyway, just pay us hourly for all on duty/driving time.
Each carrier has to be sued individually. I have a case on a company out of ST.LOUIS. same as swift case,stealing mileage from drivers,non driving time plus dentention…fraud ALL TRUCKERS NEED TO SUE A CARRIER…all of them lie,cheat and steal…
My solution is if we are going to be regulated like a foundry or a mill or warehouse then pay us as that or shut up and stay out of our way. We don’t get minimum wage and we don’t get over time. Yet we have the weight of the economy on our backs. Without us this country would come to a complete stall and millions could starve too death.
Don’t get minimum wage?? If you get 40 cents/mile in a 67mph truck you make $24 an hour…..quite a bit more than minimum. If you shut up and drive you can make money. I’ve done it for 40 years
Pilot flying j executives going to prison for ripping off drivers and ata members on the fuel scam should be going to prison for fraud and the whole trucking industry are in collusion (ata) to rip off the customer and ultimately we the consumer pay the overcharged grocery bill diesel gasoline these (ata) members collect fuel surcharge and run on free fuel it’s a cut throat industry and in closing you drivers are the ones who should be making the big bucks but guess what the bandits are rip off experts your pay is nowhere near what it should be.Ive had a CDL since 1990 and walked off the face of the Earth broke with no Bennie’s up the creek without a paddle thanks to the rip off trucking industry welcome to the revolving door good bye!
I work for JB Hunt in California so what would be the pay out pre-driver ???
Very company in California try to get over on the Drivers and when Driver get hurt on the job they treat them like crap and throw them to the dogs. And the state taxes the drivers like they own them and we thought slavery was over 200 years ago.
What happens if a former employee of jbhunt is deceased? Is his family lose out on the settlement?
I am I have been for 10 a half years with Jb Stockton California local intermodal.. on normal day I have give Hour and a half detention at two different locations being loaded or unloaded I’ve always felt it was not fair.
Sorry folks but most of you are forgetting the parable of the workers the ones who went into the field in the morning and the ones who went in the field in the afternoon received the same wage each according to as he had agreed with the employer when we agree to a certain wage it is unethical for us to demand another and yes I am an independent driver been most of my life
I just recently got out of the truck and I feel the same way.everybody wants their goods in the stores but they don’t care about how it gets there. It was my bad decision to choose Trucking. It has to be the slave operation of this country .Trucking is the worst occupation to pick.heck we get paid less than immigrants who illegally get into this country. I have gotten out of it and don’t plan on getting back into truck and I’ve been doing it since 1997. I started off of the one of the worst companies Prime Inc.they too are nothing but rip off artists and the government allows him to do this to the American people. We don’t stand up enough together as a unit of a country of the United States of America. To say enough is enough hear your keys kiss my gritts
Amen, Edward!!!
Wow I’m just amazed at the incredible gaslighting that goes on Olin this industry,. You can literally make a driver agree and vote against themselves!
Shame on ATA and JB Hunt! When these drivers start noticing that the years just fly by while they continue to struggle while their neighbors make more money in much less hours to spend with their family, maybe they will research how “ big Corp” has been stealing from the little guy for years and making them believe it’s all in the name of capitalism! It’s just mind blowing!
Demand your WORTH! And stop listening to the idiot babbling and parroting “ Uncle daddy from tree house trailer park”!!
Question EVERYTHING!
Jimmy Haslam owns pilot flying J,He owns Nfl franchise Cleveland browns his brother is outgoing governor of TN part owner of pilot flying j the rich are getting richer as long as you work for the other man you are making these (ata) big companies rich ….salute drivers… At least your making a dollar ….you could be making $20.00