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Court orders indy truckers reinstated as employees with US$280,822 pay
THE US District Court for Central California has ordered Green Fleet Systems to reinstate two truck drivers and pay them US$280,822 in back wages and penalties, and at the same time ruling that they are employees and not independent owner-operators.
At issue is the status of drivers who are called "independent owner-operators", but in many if not most cases, only lease their truck from the company they work for and earn very little after they pay the monthly rent.
Teamsters union affiliate Justice for Port Drivers, called the case, brought by the National Labour Relations Board, "a tremendous victory".
Judge Philip Gutierrez ordered the two drivers, Amilcar Cardona and Mateo Mares, reinstated to positions they had before they were fired earlier this year.
The judge also granted a temporary injunction ordering the company to cease threatening employees with job loss or other reprisals if they engage in union activities.
Green Fleet has 100 company drivers and 35 independent owner operators.
Barbara Maynard, spokesman for the port driver group said that she is aware of 48 "order decisions and awards" issued by the California Labour Commissioner in favour of drivers, totalling $5.75 million.
The Teamsters have been trying to unionise Green Fleet and other drayage companies around the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach.
A decision last month by another company, the Hub Group, to make its draymen in California employee drivers, is being seen as a watershed event by the union.
Hub said it believed the independent contractor truck drivers it employs are properly classified as independent contractors, but because lawsuits are "expensive, time-consuming, we decided to make settlement offers without admitting liability".
Hub also said it was "changing our business model in California from independent contractor truck drivers to employee drivers."
A Hub spokeswoman told American Shipper that it has over 2,800 drivers of which around 64 per cent are independent contractors and 36 per cent are company drivers."
She said all of the 300 Hub drivers in California are now company drivers.
At issue is the status of drivers who are called "independent owner-operators", but in many if not most cases, only lease their truck from the company they work for and earn very little after they pay the monthly rent.
Teamsters union affiliate Justice for Port Drivers, called the case, brought by the National Labour Relations Board, "a tremendous victory".
Judge Philip Gutierrez ordered the two drivers, Amilcar Cardona and Mateo Mares, reinstated to positions they had before they were fired earlier this year.
The judge also granted a temporary injunction ordering the company to cease threatening employees with job loss or other reprisals if they engage in union activities.
Green Fleet has 100 company drivers and 35 independent owner operators.
Barbara Maynard, spokesman for the port driver group said that she is aware of 48 "order decisions and awards" issued by the California Labour Commissioner in favour of drivers, totalling $5.75 million.
The Teamsters have been trying to unionise Green Fleet and other drayage companies around the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach.
A decision last month by another company, the Hub Group, to make its draymen in California employee drivers, is being seen as a watershed event by the union.
Hub said it believed the independent contractor truck drivers it employs are properly classified as independent contractors, but because lawsuits are "expensive, time-consuming, we decided to make settlement offers without admitting liability".
Hub also said it was "changing our business model in California from independent contractor truck drivers to employee drivers."
A Hub spokeswoman told American Shipper that it has over 2,800 drivers of which around 64 per cent are independent contractors and 36 per cent are company drivers."
She said all of the 300 Hub drivers in California are now company drivers.
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