Mercer Transportation and Other Trucking Companies Suspected of Underpaying Drivers

Trucking companies like Mercer Transportation, are suspected of misclassifying or underpaying truck drivers and violating labor laws as a result.

With 2,300 independent contractors, according to its website, Kentucky-based Mercer Transportation touts itself as “one of the largest, safest and most successful fleets in North America.” But it remains to be seen whether Mercer is underpaying or misclassifying its drivers.

Working as an owner/operator truck driver can be expensive, and involves a slew of expenses like fuel, the purchase or lease of a truck, insurance, taxes, and more. After these expenses, and taking into account the long hours that truck drivers work, some truckers may not even make minimum wage.

Additionally, many truckers for Mercer Transportation and other companies frequently spend hours waiting at warehouses for their trucks to be loaded and unloaded. This time is referred to as “detention time,” and is often not compensated by their employers. 

Detention time may occur when shipping docks or warehouses have not scheduled adequate time for loading and unloading vehicles, or have not planned ahead for receiving or sending out deliveries. According to one recent study, truckers may spend an average of two and a half hours waiting for their trucks to be loaded or unloaded. Additionally, more than 60 percent of truckers surveyed reported waiting at least 3 hours every time they were at a shipping dock.

In 2018, nearly 10 percent of truckers who waited at shipping docks reported waiting more than six hours on at least one occasion. This is an increase of around 2 percent from 2014, indicating that wait times may only be getting longer. While many of these retailers offer truckers free drinks or snacks while they wait, these uncompensated hours may add up to thousands in lost income every year for drivers. 

Some truckers may not even realize that they should qualify to be paid for this detention time. Other truckers have reported being aware of their legal right to be paid for time spent waiting, but are too afraid to harm relationships with their employers or clients to ask for payment. As around 20 percent of truck drivers work for small companies, they may fear retribution or losing a competitive job if they push to be paid.

Contractor or Employee?

In some cases, truck drivers working with certain trucking companies may be misclassified as independent contractors when they should really be considered employees, and receive the wages and benefits afforded to full-time employees. This misclassification allows companies to avoid the individual business costs associated with truck driving, while maintaining control of the drivers and their schedules.

Control over a driver is the chief criteria that separates independent contractors from employees. If a company sets your hours and controls the truck driver’s schedule, mileage rates, load assignments, and more, they may actually qualify as an employee rather than an independent contractor.

Being misclassified as an independent contractor would mean that a truck driver would be footing the costs of being an owner/operator out of pocket, but still remain under the control of a trucking company, without receiving employee benefits.

The misclassification of truck drivers may violate the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA), as well as individual state labor laws.

The California Labor Commission recently found that two dozen California truckers had been improperly misclassified as independent contractors and, as a result, the drivers were owed nearly $6 million collectively.

Trucking Companies Under Investigation

A number of California trucking companies may be underpaying or misclassifying their truck drivers, including:

• Mercer Transportation
• Dalton Trucking Inc.
• Gardner Trucking Inc.
• Heitz Trucking Inc.
• Hendrickson Truck Lines
• KKW Trucking Inc.
• Matheson Inc.
• Osterkamp Transportation
• R & A Trucking Company
• TCI Transportation
• TRIUS Trucking

Filing a Truck Driver Independent Contractor Lawsuit

If you currently work, or have worked for, a trucking company and you live in California (or you make deliveries or carry loads out of or through California) and you believe the company you work with failed to pay you proper wages or overtime, or otherwise failed to properly compensate or classify you, you may be able to join this class action lawsuit investigation.

Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork by connecting you with an experienced attorney. Consulting an attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

Join a Free Trucker Overtime Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you have worked as a contract truck driver and believe your carrier has failed to pay you minimum wage or overtime, or otherwise might not have honored a contract with you, you may qualify to file a truck driver lawsuit or class action lawsuit.

Learn More