Post by dockworker on Jul 27, 2009 6:38:38 GMT -5
Truckers Endure Frustrating Delays as Port Shrinks Hours During Recession
Posted by Jen DeGregorio
The Times-Picayune July 26, 2009
ELIOT KAMENITZ/THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
Robert Wells Jr., a trucker, waits Tuesday at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. Wells said that with the port's narrower hours, drivers line up to be the first served when the terminals open. Just a few months ago, Wells said he could get his truck in and out of Napoleon Avenue within 45 minutes, a task that now takes hours.
Edward McIntyre woke before dawn Tuesday, ready for a routine day of work behind the wheel.
He drove his truck over to the Dow Chemical plant near his home in Baton Rouge, loaded a heavy container onto the back of the vehicle and set out for the Port of New Orleans, where he hoped to deliver the freight by 8 a.m.
But as McIntyre passed through the port gate toward the Mississippi River, he learned that work would have to wait. Ports America, one of two companies that run the port's container terminal, slashed its operating hours to deal with the recession. The company shaved five hours off of its 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule on Tuesdays and Fridays, closing at noon on those days.
The decision, announced earlier this month, comes on the heels of a similar move by New Orleans Terminal LLC, the company that operates the other half of the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. That firm cut two hours from its daily schedule, opening at 8 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. and closing for lunch between noon and 1 p.m.
"I'm just waiting," said McIntyre, 28, who sat with a group of other truckers passing time inside a small administration building on Tuesday afternoon. Outside, a fleet of 20 trucks filled up the parking lot, their engines grumbling in the afternoon heat. Since the terminal's hours have been curtailed, truckers have been lining up early and trying to compress as many loads as possible into a short time period, causing delays.
"Normally, we'd be back on the road with our second load by now."
In McIntyre's line of work, time is money. He gets paid based on the number of loads he picks up or delivers each day, and his paycheck will shrink with every missed assignment.
"It's really like a hustle with us," said Robert Wells Jr., a truck driver from New Orleans. "You don't come in knowing what you're going to make. It's different every day."
The narrower hours at Napoleon Avenue have proved a drain on Wells' finances. He counts on moving about eight or nine containers during a typical day, driving back and forth between the port and various industrial yards in the New Orleans area. With the new hours, though, Wells is down to about four loads per day, cutting his paycheck in half.
"We want to work, and they are not allowing us to work," said Wells, who has interpreted the changes at Napoleon Avenue as a sign of disrespect to his industry. "It's almost like they are creating a bad economy for us as drivers."
But there is nothing contrived about the state of the economy. Truck drivers -- of which there are more than 5,000 in the New Orleans area -- are the latest victims of a national recession that has put unemployment at a staggering 9.5 percent. In Louisiana, unemployment stands at 6.8 percent.
With consumers spending less, companies are shipping fewer products. The Port of New Orleans had its worst year since 1985 last year, moving just 6 million tons of general cargo. Containers -- giant metal boxes used to move everything from clothing to chemicals -- were down 25 percent during the first quarter of this year.
Containers are the lifeblood of the trucking industry. But the cargo is equally vital to dock operators such as Ports America and New Orleans Terminal, which lease space from the Port of New Orleans. The companies make their money by charging a fee for every container that comes through Napoleon Avenue. Fewer containers mean lower profits, and the companies needed to cut some fat.
"Everyone right now is looking for different ways to eliminate cost in their businesses, and this is one way to do that," said Terry White, senior vice president of Ports America's Gulf of Mexico operations.
Wells pointed out that he has no such opportunity to cut expenses. He owns his own truck, contracting his services to Bridge Terminal Transport. The company has relationships with various retailers and cargo handlers in the area, and pays Wells on a case-by-case basis. And as an independent contractor, Wells said he is not eligible for unemployment benefits when business dries up.
"You have to pretty much take care of everything out of pocket," he said.
White and Jeffrey Hakala, a vice president of Ceres Gulf, one of two companies that comprise New Orleans Terminal, said they have been trying to accommodate the truckers as best they can.
"There is a real focus on efficiency to make sure we're not holding up the truckers when they come through the terminal," White said.
Hakala also pointed out that the truckers could make better use of a scheduling system to ensure a faster turn-around time.
"They don't make the appointments for tomorrow today," Hakala said. "Then we would know that tomorrow would be a heavy day, and we could supply extra labor."
Wells called the appointment system a "moot point," saying that drivers keep similar schedules and tend to move in and out of the terminal throughout the day. Just a few months ago, Wells said he could get his truck in and out of Napoleon Avenue within 45 minutes, a task that now takes hours.
Wells expressed hope that the port's administrators would intervene to provide some relief to the truckers. But as a landlord, the Port of New Orleans has little influence over how its tenants choose to run their terminals, port spokesman Chris Bonura said.
Ports America and New Orleans Terminal may add new hours when the economy improves, White and Hakala said.
But Wells worries that the wait may prove too long for many of his customers, whom he said are frustrated by the long delays at Napoleon Avenue. Wells mused that the companies may try to find a better deal by moving their cargo to nearby ports in Mobile, Ala., or Gulfport, Miss., competitors that are already stealing business from the Port of New Orleans.
"If we can't get the work done, then the company calls somebody else in to get the work done," Wells said. "Everything we don't move, the competition is going to go ahead and take."
Posted by Jen DeGregorio
The Times-Picayune July 26, 2009
ELIOT KAMENITZ/THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
Robert Wells Jr., a trucker, waits Tuesday at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. Wells said that with the port's narrower hours, drivers line up to be the first served when the terminals open. Just a few months ago, Wells said he could get his truck in and out of Napoleon Avenue within 45 minutes, a task that now takes hours.
Edward McIntyre woke before dawn Tuesday, ready for a routine day of work behind the wheel.
He drove his truck over to the Dow Chemical plant near his home in Baton Rouge, loaded a heavy container onto the back of the vehicle and set out for the Port of New Orleans, where he hoped to deliver the freight by 8 a.m.
But as McIntyre passed through the port gate toward the Mississippi River, he learned that work would have to wait. Ports America, one of two companies that run the port's container terminal, slashed its operating hours to deal with the recession. The company shaved five hours off of its 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule on Tuesdays and Fridays, closing at noon on those days.
The decision, announced earlier this month, comes on the heels of a similar move by New Orleans Terminal LLC, the company that operates the other half of the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. That firm cut two hours from its daily schedule, opening at 8 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. and closing for lunch between noon and 1 p.m.
"I'm just waiting," said McIntyre, 28, who sat with a group of other truckers passing time inside a small administration building on Tuesday afternoon. Outside, a fleet of 20 trucks filled up the parking lot, their engines grumbling in the afternoon heat. Since the terminal's hours have been curtailed, truckers have been lining up early and trying to compress as many loads as possible into a short time period, causing delays.
"Normally, we'd be back on the road with our second load by now."
In McIntyre's line of work, time is money. He gets paid based on the number of loads he picks up or delivers each day, and his paycheck will shrink with every missed assignment.
"It's really like a hustle with us," said Robert Wells Jr., a truck driver from New Orleans. "You don't come in knowing what you're going to make. It's different every day."
The narrower hours at Napoleon Avenue have proved a drain on Wells' finances. He counts on moving about eight or nine containers during a typical day, driving back and forth between the port and various industrial yards in the New Orleans area. With the new hours, though, Wells is down to about four loads per day, cutting his paycheck in half.
"We want to work, and they are not allowing us to work," said Wells, who has interpreted the changes at Napoleon Avenue as a sign of disrespect to his industry. "It's almost like they are creating a bad economy for us as drivers."
But there is nothing contrived about the state of the economy. Truck drivers -- of which there are more than 5,000 in the New Orleans area -- are the latest victims of a national recession that has put unemployment at a staggering 9.5 percent. In Louisiana, unemployment stands at 6.8 percent.
With consumers spending less, companies are shipping fewer products. The Port of New Orleans had its worst year since 1985 last year, moving just 6 million tons of general cargo. Containers -- giant metal boxes used to move everything from clothing to chemicals -- were down 25 percent during the first quarter of this year.
Containers are the lifeblood of the trucking industry. But the cargo is equally vital to dock operators such as Ports America and New Orleans Terminal, which lease space from the Port of New Orleans. The companies make their money by charging a fee for every container that comes through Napoleon Avenue. Fewer containers mean lower profits, and the companies needed to cut some fat.
"Everyone right now is looking for different ways to eliminate cost in their businesses, and this is one way to do that," said Terry White, senior vice president of Ports America's Gulf of Mexico operations.
Wells pointed out that he has no such opportunity to cut expenses. He owns his own truck, contracting his services to Bridge Terminal Transport. The company has relationships with various retailers and cargo handlers in the area, and pays Wells on a case-by-case basis. And as an independent contractor, Wells said he is not eligible for unemployment benefits when business dries up.
"You have to pretty much take care of everything out of pocket," he said.
White and Jeffrey Hakala, a vice president of Ceres Gulf, one of two companies that comprise New Orleans Terminal, said they have been trying to accommodate the truckers as best they can.
"There is a real focus on efficiency to make sure we're not holding up the truckers when they come through the terminal," White said.
Hakala also pointed out that the truckers could make better use of a scheduling system to ensure a faster turn-around time.
"They don't make the appointments for tomorrow today," Hakala said. "Then we would know that tomorrow would be a heavy day, and we could supply extra labor."
Wells called the appointment system a "moot point," saying that drivers keep similar schedules and tend to move in and out of the terminal throughout the day. Just a few months ago, Wells said he could get his truck in and out of Napoleon Avenue within 45 minutes, a task that now takes hours.
Wells expressed hope that the port's administrators would intervene to provide some relief to the truckers. But as a landlord, the Port of New Orleans has little influence over how its tenants choose to run their terminals, port spokesman Chris Bonura said.
Ports America and New Orleans Terminal may add new hours when the economy improves, White and Hakala said.
But Wells worries that the wait may prove too long for many of his customers, whom he said are frustrated by the long delays at Napoleon Avenue. Wells mused that the companies may try to find a better deal by moving their cargo to nearby ports in Mobile, Ala., or Gulfport, Miss., competitors that are already stealing business from the Port of New Orleans.
"If we can't get the work done, then the company calls somebody else in to get the work done," Wells said. "Everything we don't move, the competition is going to go ahead and take."
