Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/993011
20 commercial carrier journal | june 2018 from competition. It's hard to come up with an industry that's under siege as much as the taxi business. You have the option of using your personal vehicle, having someone pick you up, using an app-based ride-sharing service, renting a vehicle or using a shuttle service or bus. ere are at least six different alternatives to hailing a cab, and almost all of them are cheaper or cost-neutral in comparison. Undaunted, taxi companies have drawn their line in the sand, and they haven't backed down. With rates on the rise and more freight than trucks to move it, now is the perfect time to retrain shipper partners and draw a new and better line in the trucking industry's sand. I don't think it's unfair to notify even the best shipping customers that, now more than ever, unplanned and unpaid time sitting idle is a no-win proposition for all concerned — and that it ends now. e biggest hurdle in implementing universal detention pay is that trucking is rarely unified in its beliefs and methods. Even its primary lobbying organi- I f you've never called for a cab, here's some potentially surprising news: ey measure detention by the minute, not the hour. And if the arbitrary number of minutes they have allotted for you to gather your luggage and check out of your hotel ex- pires, they'll leave without you. An Uber experience works similarly, only you're le standing curbside while your im- patient driver rates you poorly as a customer, making it harder for you to get future Uber rides. Once other Uber drivers see that you're a bad load, they'll decline the opportunity to haul you. In the people-transporting business, the relationship between driver and cargo is weighted heavily in the driver's favor. ey set the fare. ey set the terms. If you want a cheaper rate, you can find it yourself while standing on the curb. e only influence the rider has as cargo is where the carrier is dropping you off. In the freight industry, historically, it's been quite the opposite. Shippers have used trucking's competi- tiveness as leverage to dictate better terms. Carriers eager to beat down rates and make concessions have made it harder to establish universally workable terms. However, the taxi industry isn't insulated PRODUCT REVIEWS, OEM & SUPPLIER NEWS AND EQUIPMENT MANAGEMENT TRENDS BY JASON CANNON Drivers don't deserve detention Save it for unruly high-schoolers instead Detention is a punishment some of us received far too often in school, but it shouldn't be an accepted practice in trucking. IT'S TIME: Draw a new and better line in the trucking industry's sand. TRAIN SHIPPERS: Unpaid time sitting idle is a no-win proposition for all. SHOW DRIVERS RESPECT: Value their time and compensate them for it.