Truckers today are making their plight known as the ongoing supply chain crisis continues applying more pressure to those holding the system up with their deliveries.
Unfortunately, the very employers that keep these truckers in business can actually contribute to the struggles they face, even making the job dangerous for truckers and other motorists alike.
Coercion and threats from companies
USA Today discusses the exploitative practices of the trucking industry. The trucking industry itself tends to either coerce or threaten its employees into going above and beyond reasonable limits when it comes to delivery expectations.
For example, one company may offer extra incentives in order to encourage truckers to cram as many stops into a day as possible. This could include exclusive benefits or just extra pay. Another company may instead force its employees to work ridiculously demanding hours, threatening them with probation or other disciplinary measures if they fail to meet these demands.
Lack of regard for employees
There seems a general lack of regard for the well-being and health of truckers. They do not seem to notice or care that many skimp out on a good night’s sleep in order to maximize the amount of distance they travel in a day.
Unfortunately, one missed night of sleep can result in a potentially deadly scenario. This is because truck drivers cannot combat exhaustion with wakefulness tips and tricks, which only work for a short period of time.
Thus, getting overworked can lead to exhaustion they cannot combat. In turn, this can up a trucker’s chance of getting into a crash due to sleep deprivation. Unfortunately, with the size and weight of a truck, these crashes often end up serious or deadly more often than not. This makes the abuse of the trucking industry everyone’s problem.