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Hook hands, fair wages, and funeral processions all present in this week’s top trucking news

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November 10, 2018

A trucker got his speeding ticket revoked, a court rules in favor of paying truckers a fairer wage, and an unexpected truck driver impressed us all, plus more in this week’s top trucking news.

1. TRUCKERS MUST BE PAID FOR ALL TIME SPENT IN TRUCK EXCLUDING SLEEPING, COURT RULES

A judge ruled in favor of truck drivers and denied PAM Transport’s request to dismiss a lawsuit accusing the company of violating federal labor and minimum wage laws last month, ruling that drivers deserve to be paid at least minimum wage for all hours spent in the truck except for the designated eight hours of sleep time.

“An employer must count as hours worked the time that an employee spends riding in a commercial truck while neither sleeping nor eating… and ‘any work’ performed while traveling must… be counted as hours worked,” stated District Court Judge Timothy Brooks

The lawsuit is not yet over but the lawyer representing the truckers in the case, Justin Swindler, says that “the decision may have national implications.”

2. TERMINAL TRUCKER TAKES LAST RIDE SURROUNDED BY FAMILY AND FRIENDS

69-year-old trucker Ron Gunson was told by doctors he had only two weeks to live after being diagnosed with stomach and intestinal cancer earlier this month, so his family stepped up to organize a final ride he would never forget.

Gunson, his truck driving son, brothers, and nephews, and many of his friends all showed up and joined in on a convoy that took them through town center, around the block, and to Gunson’s truck repair shop where 500 people were waiting to honor the long-time trucker.
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“I was jokin’, I get to attend my own funeral,” Gunson said. “It was amazing. It was kind of overwhelming, knowing what was going on. You know, it was for me….. It’s just kinda nice to have family and friends when you’re in a position like that.”

3. GRIEVING FAMILY REACHES OUT TO TRUCKER WHO STOPPED FOR THE FUNERAL

Mallory Rogers and her family laid their grandfather to rest earlier this month but during the funeral she noticed something unusual – a trucker on his way to a delivery stopped his rig and waited half an hour for the funeral to be over before driving past just so that he would not interrupt the grieving family.

“I’d like to take some time to thank whoever this truck driver is,” Rogers wrote on Facebook. “Though I’m sure he had loads to carry and places to be he sat and waited for 20-30 minutes so he wouldn’t interrupt the funeral. Whoever you are thank you for restoring my faith in humanity.”

The post was able to reach the truck driver’s daughter who says that her father, Tim Puckett, just wanted to do the right thing.

“It was no inconvenience for him. It was the right thing to do in his eyes.”

4. COPS RETRACT CDL DRIVER’S SPEEDING TICKET AFTER WATCHING DASH CAM FOOTAGE

CDL holder Chris Hylander was driving his work truck back from a plumbing job when a police officer pulled him over and issued him a ticket for going 90 mph in a 70 mph zone.

Hylander says he knew he was not going that fast and knew a ticket could cost him his job, so he turned to his dash cam, and sure enough, the footage delivered.

In the clip, the dash cam lists the vehicle as traveling at 74 mph, nowhere close to the 90 mph he was accused of.

After reviewing the tape, the police department “determined that the ticket was issued in error” and dismissed it from Hylander’s record.

5. ARMLESS TRUCKER PROVES YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE TO HAVE HANDS TO BE MORE THAN JUST A ‘STEERING WHEEL HOLDER’

Armless trucker Chris Blass went viral this week after his nephew posted a video of him driving a big rig using his prosthetic, hook capped arms.

In the video, Blass, who has been a truck driver for decades, smiles as he easily clicks on his seatbelt, shifts gears, and steers the wheel, all using his “cable operated” limbs complete with hooks for hands.

Blass’ nephew, Josh, says that Blass is one of the hardest working people he knows and that, on top of trucking, he also runs his own farm and even rides motorcycles.