That darn 60 hour rule!

[concretejoe]

We've been doing some highway shut down work for the past two weekends. This weekend will be the third and last. Thank you, Jesus! It's been a lot of hours recently, and dispatch didn't have a clue how to prepare for this. I was even told that the 60 hour max or the 16 hours in a day rules didn't matter. At least until you want the hours, then they'll write you up for it. Well, today I got to leave 'em hanging with another 1,000 yards to go. I told them that D.O.T. rules did matter and I didn't care what the boss man said. I wish we could cut it back to 50 hours max, 12 in a day, and 48 hours off instead of 24. Sixty hours in 4 days and 2 hours, and only 24 hours off is too much for me. I let the less senior guys have all the O.T. they want. I'm getting too old for this.

[noslamsam]

I think the 10 hrs. off duty before driving rule might matter to the DOT,also.
Maybe Matt could help us out and post the regulations as they pertain to mixer drivers.
One of our drivers was fired for not wanting to drive after 11 hours on duty.

[sirmixalot]

Im a teamster local 282 nyc area, and the contract says only the driver knows when he is to tired to driver.

[concretejoe]

sirmixalot said:

Im a teamster local 282 nyc area, and the contract says only the driver knows when he is to tired to driver.

I'm going to have to suggest that at the next contract talk.

[Matt]

Here is a posting I found after digging through some paperwork at my plant. It was posted last year, and pertains to the laws in Michigan. State and federal law supersedes any labor agreement. Write what you want in a contract, but it wouldn't hold any water if Johnny Law comes a knocking!

[concretejoe]

I think the point was Matt that if I'm too tired to drive after 9 hours the company should not be allowed to force me. Only I know when I'm too tired to drive. If I'm too tired I'm not safe. Also, could you post the paperwork above to the Hours of Service thread? I think it mirrors what I was saying.

[lafargeslave]

saying your tired doesnt really work for us. since we are pay per load, if you leave the dispatcher without enough trucks, you end up on the poop list and get the slow jobs, killing your paycheck for a few weeks. Its always the " would you take just one more load" that is the responce to saying your too tired to drive. Its not just driving the mixer though. several time I have gone off the road when driving home in my car due to being too tired. The company could care less. They are driven by the production numbers. drivers are replacable.all of the safety managers and even the safety department refuse to see any connection between pay per load and overall safety. It is too much of an enticement to short cut safety for a bigger paycheck. we have had jobs that started in the evening and they went bad (pump broke down) everyone was out of hours, yet the salesman came out and asked what needed to be done to keep us around to finish the job ( which required all of us to make a dump run, reload, and return to the site, plus what for the call back). the answer, cold cash. couse we didnt get cash , prepaid visa cards instead. we have that repution. we have even been contacted by nieghboring competeing plants when their guys went home and we were paid $100 cash to come over and drive their trucks for however long we chose to. that other company knew we would go for it.we are well known "load sleepers"

[jeffintx]

We work 70 hours a week max, no driving after 15 in a day. and 8 hours off between shifts. Run a log book too.