Posts tagged owner-operator
OOIDA makes now-solo case in court that California’s AB5 should exempt trucking
April 23, 2025 // For OOIDA, which is carrying on the lawsuit that was originally filed by the California Trucking Association in 2019, the issue is clear: AB5 “categorically prohibits leased owner operators from operating in California,” OOIDA outside counsel Paul D. Cullen Jr. said in his opening remarks. (CTA last August decided not to pursue the appeal to the 9th Circuit.)
Truckers tell Ninth Circuit that California law unfairly bans independent contractor drivers
April 10, 2025 // Though a business-to-business exemption is available under the law, the association says members can't apply because they have to follow contradictory federal law that says trucking companies need to have exclusive control over trucks involved in interstate commerce. “One of the requirements of the business-to-business exemption is that the worker be free from the control of the business. Leased owner-operators in inter-state commerce must comply with federal regulations called the Truth In Leasing regulations which require the motor carrier to have exclusive possession and control of the vehicle and the operation of that vehicle in inter-state commerce. Whatever the scope of that control is it can’t be squared with the B2B requirement that the worker be free from control. It’s irreconcilable,” Cullen said.
Commentary: Julie Su again headed toward DOL confirmation, trucking still opposed
February 28, 2024 // "No matter how many times she’s renominated, Julie Su’s record remains a huge red flag for our industry and any senator concerned about radical policies from California becoming federal law," said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. "The independent contractor rule she just finalized as acting secretary undermines the livelihoods of 350,000 professional truck drivers across our country who choose to run their own small businesses, and she needs to answer for it."
Trucking groups slam DOL’s new worker classification rule as ‘un-American’
January 10, 2024 // The coordinated release of this rule with the renomination of Julie Su to lead the Department of Labor is proof positive that the Administration is doubling down on destructive policies that eliminate choice and opportunity for our workforce. Had Su actually taken the time to talk to independent contractors, she’d know firsthand what a misguided rule this really is. That is exactly why we opposed her nomination before and why we will continue to oppose it now. Radical California agendas have no place in federal policy.” Spear vowed that the ATA “will work with members of Congress and other stakeholders to defeat this ill-advised rule.” In a statement, the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) called the new requirements “burdensome,” adding that they “significantly limit the use of independent contractors in the trucking industry and threaten to force the reclassification of over 80 percent of intermodal drayage drivers that currently enjoy independent contractor status.”