Long-haul trucks have been described as sweatshops on wheels. The typical long-haul trucker works the equivalent of two full-time jobs, often for little more than minimum wage. But it wasn’t always this way. Trucking used to be one of the best working-class jobs in the United States. The Big Rig explains how this massive degradation in the quality of work has occurred, and how companies achieve a compliant and dedicated workforce despite it. Drawing on more than 100 in-depth interviews and years of extensive observation, including six months training and working as a long-haul trucker, Viscelli explains in detail how labor is recruited, trained, and used in the industry. He then shows how inexperienced workers are convinced to lease a truck and to work as independent contractors. He explains how deregulation and collective action by employers transformed trucking’s labor markets--once dominated by the largest and most powerful union in US history--into an important example of the costs of contemporary labor markets for workers and the general public.
Long-haul trucking is linked to almost every industry in America, yet somehow the working-class drivers behind big rigs remain largely hidden from public view. Gritty, inspiring, and often devastating oral histories of gay, transsexual, and minority truck drivers allow award-winning author Anne Balay to shed new light on the harsh realities of truckers' lives behind the wheel. A licensed commercial truck driver herself, Balay discovers that, for people routinely subjected to prejudice, hatred, and violence in their hometowns and in the job market, trucking can provide an opportunity for safety, welcome isolation, and a chance to be themselves--even as the low-wage work is fraught with tightening regulations, constant surveillance, danger, and exploitation. The narratives of minority and queer truckers underscore the working-class struggle to earn a living while preserving one's safety, dignity, and selfhood. Through the voices of drivers from marginalized communities who spend eleven- to fourteen-hour days hauling America's commodities in treacherous weather and across mountain passes, Semi Queer reveals the stark differences between the trucking industry's crushing labor practices and the perseverance of its most at-risk workers.
If you want to learn the basics of having a trucking company business, then get "How To Start a Trucking Company" which is written by a person with real life experience starting a trucking company business. How To Start a Trucking Company is a guide designed to help anyone who is interested in starting a trucking business. In this guide you will learn how to operate your company the right way. This guide will take you step by step through the whole process, from start to finish. Whether you decide to start with one truck or 150 trucks, you can use the information in this guide to put you on the right path. This guide discusses the first step to take after you have made the decision to open a trucking company. You will learn how to obtain the paperwork needed to apply for your company name as well as Employer Identification Number. You will be given tips on how to advertise your company and advertise for drivers. New rules for the trucking industry are in a section called CSA 2010, giving you the new information from FMCSA and how it will affect the way most companies are operated. Information pertaining to driver qualifications, physicals, and experience will be discussed. In this guide, you will find out how trucking software helps your company with dispatching, inventory control, personnel time sheets, drivers and equipment. This guide will show you how to obtain freight, the contract with certain customers and how to write a proposal to a company to haul their freight. Analyzing your competition is a great section that tells you how to search for the freight you want to haul and see what other companies are also moving freight for that customer. Before you do all that is mentioned above, you must first write a business plan and calculate you start up costs. This will be discussed in detail in the first section of this guide. You will find out what the differences between S Corp, C Corp, and LLC, which will be the best for your type of business. There will information on how to apply for financing from SBA and grants from other government agencies and private financing. By the time you get to the end of this guide, you should be able to follow each step and have your company ready to open within a month, if not sooner. Good luck! About the Expert Marilyn Coleman is a former professional truck driver. She started out as an administrative assistant, but felt like something was missing. She followed her dreams of becoming a professional truck driver and became an owner-operator. After talking with her father, who drove for 25 years himself, she took the step and has been driving for 17 years. During her long career as a truck driver, Marilyn traveled all over the U.S., met some interesting people, visited some interesting places, and learned a lot about the industry. As an owner-operator, she ran a small business with just one truck. She learned how to dispatch and deal with brokers, shippers, receivers, and other drivers. She no longer drives, but still keeps up with changes in rules and regulations in the trucking industry so she can inform her friends about those changes. HowExpert publishes quick 'how to' guides on all topics from A to Z by everyday experts.
Career profile on road transport occupations and employment opportunities in trucking in the USA - reviews industrial aspects of American trucking, lists job descriptions for drivers, mechanics and related occupations, and includes a directory of the American trucking associations. Bibliography pp. 71 and 72, glossary (incl. Jargon), and illustrations.
Long hours, low wages, and unsafe workplaces characterized sweatshops a hundred years ago. These same conditions plague American trucking today. Sweatshops on Wheels: Winners and Losers in Trucking Deregulation exposes the dark side of government deregulation in America's interstate trucking industry. In the years since deregulation in 1980, median earnings have dropped 30% and most long-haul truckers earn less than half of pre-regulation wages. Work weeks average more than sixty hours. Today, America's long-haul truckers are working harder and earning less than at any time during the last four decades. Written by a former long-haul trucker who now teaches industrial relations at Wayne State University, Sweatshops on Wheels raises crucial questions about the legacy of trucking deregulation in America and casts provocative new light on the issue of government deregulation in general.
Long-haul trucks have been described as sweatshops on wheels. The typical long-haul trucker works the equivalent of two full-time jobs, often for little more than minimum wage. But it wasn’t always this way. Trucking used to be one of the best working-class jobs in the United States. The Big Rig explains how this massive degradation in the quality of work has occurred, and how companies achieve a compliant and dedicated workforce despite it. Drawing on more than 100 in-depth interviews and years of extensive observation, including six months training and working as a long-haul trucker, Viscelli explains in detail how labor is recruited, trained, and used in the industry. He then shows how inexperienced workers are convinced to lease a truck and to work as independent contractors. He explains how deregulation and collective action by employers transformed trucking’s labor markets--once dominated by the largest and most powerful union in US history--into an important example of the costs of contemporary labor markets for workers and the general public.
