Independent Contract Truck Drivers Can form Labor Unions

(3/21/2014) The lifestyle of truck driver in the U.S. is long-hour and stressful, especially for those long-haul drivers. To work independently and gain flexibility on their working schedule, some truck drivers become "owner operators" as a self employed (or free-lanced) commercial truck drivers and hired by carriers. It supposes that owner operators have more freedom and take more controls about their assignment and working schedules. But these independent contracted truck drives normally have to pay higher insurance for themselves. Some trucking carriers intentionally use independent contractors to take drivers of their employees to avoid payroll taxes and compensations. A positive side-effect of using independent contractors for the carriers is that the contractors cannot form a union since they are not employees.

Now it can be changed. A carrier from California now accepts an agreement with their "independent contractors" and allows them to form a labor union and cannot ask contractors whether they belong to a union or take retaliation. Now the independent contractors can take collective actions against the carrier if they think the working conditions violates their labor right.