Who Says Nothing was Accomplished?

[HardTimeTrucker]

Georgia truckers shook up the ocean shipping industrys' apple cart staging a three day work action in Savannah over the missing diesel fuel surcharges. News media coverage from around the world is now asking questions about where is all the fuel surcharge money really going to? Truckers have exposed to lawmakers the dirty little secret of how much surcharge money collected from the American consumer is actually being stolen by everyone in the transportation business

Great job to everyone who made this happen

[porttrucker]

I agree that this shutdown was a complete success. I know that a lot of guys don't understand what was accomplished and that is a real shame. I guess they expected that the entire inter modal industry would completely change and they would instantly go from being broke to making a ton of money or that the fuel prices would all of the sudden drop back to .89 a gallon!!!! Wake up dumb*** your not going to fix in three days what took the industry 30 years to mess up!!!! The fact is we got their attention and now we need to keep showing the industry that mean business by continuing to show solidarity and strength in numbers!!! The way i see it we all need to support this assoc. and make stronger than any other entity in this industry!! The only way to do that is by having every driver stick together so we can make this the rewarding career it should be! Great job with the shutdown!!!!

[ilovemypete]

Some folk stand around and talk about it, Some folk take a stand by actions. I would rather act to get the point across.
Remember without trucks, there is no ocean freight!

[pkd5757]

Georgia drivers made a big difference, they started the ball rolling. All of us have to join in and fight now. This is a battle for our rights to make a living. No one is going to do it for us. NY & NJ are planning on something big on May 1st, let's all get involved somehow. Local protests that will coincide with their plans will help our cause.

[lowrider]

Many of these trucking companies in the Savannah area really suck! Of course most are not even trucking companies at all. These freight agentcies who have no investment other than a parking lot and an office trailer are worse than the payday check cashing crooks. Until Georgia drivers decide to unite together scam artist like that little bastard Craig Crawford who operates Horizon Freight and the Payday loan Queen who operates the Evans terminal will continue to exploit owner-operators who work the Savannah port. These people are stealing their way to a fat easy retirement on the backs of every trucker who leases a truck to them. These people are not the only ones in business to rob the drivers or their families blind in Southeast Georgia. Maybe someone should start a list of these winners to warn others of the pitfalls in this business. A few good lawsuits may narrow the playing field a little too.

[porttrucker]

You hit the nail on the head!! I heard what Mr. Crawford is trying to do to the drivers that lease their trucks to him. He has threatened to fire any driver who exercises his civil right of free speech and expression by attending any driver assoc. meetings on their own time!!! What kind of s#*t is that? I for one would love to see someone bust his balls the very same way he thinks he can do to these drivers!!! Seems to me that Mr. Crawford must be a little worried about this new assoc. and what it might do to his agency or meal ticket as I to call it... Once this assoc. gets the support of the majority of drivers in the savannah area and it will. Frieght agents like Mr. Crawford better be ready for a change in the rules!!!! That day is approaching and what a great day that will be!!!

[petedabroker]

Every port has its trucking company owning whores. They seem to spread like weeds in a garden. Years ago in Baltimore, it was the Ed Hale's, Ed Peach's , Fran Smith's, who took a special pride in riping off the owner operating community. How did they continue? Because no driver had the balls to stand up for their rights. I can only blame the drivers, who have the right to walk into a door and accept a load or tell them , to stick the load and they are gone to others for work. Once drivers do just that, the company will fold, those cheap loads they had will become better payers and the good companies will eat them up. Trucking companies have a thousand means of stealing an owner operator's money. Don't let them. Ask and receive the final company billings to the customer. Cross check your loads with those bills. You did not get the money you should of, tell them you want your difference. Protest outside their gates, with a sign. This company will rip off it's owner operators". Just how long do you think they will let you protest before they agree to give you back your funds? Not long, I assure you. God, men what is wrong with you all?? You got every right to see those invoices to the customer and make certain you were paid the correct amount. Once you find an error, then ask them to go all the way back to the beginning. As carriers they must hold their documents 5 years. Yes, five years of bad pays. Just imagine how much money that could be. Won't show you their invoices? Take them to court. This is a business you are in, its not the Howdy Dudee Show. I never took a dime from a driver that did not belong to me. As a matter of fact , I often paid more than the agree to percentage , just to assure the loads movement. If I made a mistake on the quote, the driver did not suffer, I did. So stop being such d**n dummies and speak up for yourselves. Its your God given right to do such. We all know that a FSC should be about 52% if not more right now. So if you are not getting 52% , and I am willing to bet none, yes, none of you are, then don't haul a load unless they agree to a 52% or higher FSC, all coming to you. As Petedabroker, I am going to start a daily FSC amount you can all see on my page. If you use it fine, and if you don't , I can only blame you. Let me tell you a little story , while I got you all here. Back in 1998, I was the first carrier to refuse to allow my drivers to wait at the port of Baltimore for any container load. I told my customers , my driver will give you one hour free and if not out of the terminal in that time, I am pulling my driver, or you will pay me $50/hr. , driver got $35 out of that $50. Remember I have office personell I need to pay also. I started a FSC report. Anything over $1.16/gal got a percentage added to the bill. I lost 42% of my customers in one week. I stayed the road. Never blinked. The third week a driver came in the office and said , did you see this. I said, what. He said BTT has just started a FSC for the drivers. I looked at the paper and it matched my FSC percentages exactly. The next week, another driver said others are charging for waiting time at the terminal. With-in two months all my customers were back, because the new ones they went to all started billing for pier detention and FSC. Ok, say it will not work, and I will call you all stupid. It works. You need to stick together and no give in. Park the trucks and wait it out. Start a pool of money, each week drivers put in $100. The drivers that joined when the work stopage starts can take from that pool, but with the intentions of paying it back when the times do change and they will. Trucking company's keep you poor and hungry. As that result you work when they want you to work and for how much per load. You can change that tide. You own that truck , they don't. You determine who will run and for how much, they don't. For God sakes men , get a set of balls and no matter if the house payment gets paid or not, stick to your guns. You got too mushy. You are a truck driver, an owner operator, the highest form of life that exist on this planet. Don't let some idiot tell you how much you are making. Don't settle for less than so much per mile and you determine the amount. You want the bulls#*t to stop, then stop it yourselves. If that guy Crawford and the load Queen are stealing from you, then shut them down. Picket outside their terminals. You got that right.
Petedabroker wishes you all the best in hopes this whole mess gets straightened out.

[shorthaul]

i work out of the port of Savannah,ga. ther have been many shutdowns at this place over money,waiting times,etc. foryears. i was around for a few of them. i stopped my truck too. nothing much got done ever. i was tired of this but now i think some drivers here have a betterplan now so i will help.

[phantom309]

Hang in there, Let's see what TWIC will bring on Dec 1.

[scooby2]

This is a great site here.
Thanks, to those involved in this for making it happen.
Mrs. D

[twistlock]

Hang in there, Let's see what TWIC will bring on Dec 1.

It will bring chaos to Charleston & Savannah ports the first few days. I won't be working even though I have a TWIC unless they are paying top dollar starting on the 1st. Since we have to provide all these additional ID's just to work the same job it should be worth more money now. Who else are they going to replace us with? Every local move starting the first day we have to show the TWIC card at the gate should be a minmum of $100.00 dollars. If they are paying that I will work Dec 1st, if not you won't see me in the port. Good luck!