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A trucking company is being accused of not paying new employees during orientations and baiting them with jobs that never materialize.
Six former drivers who worked with TransAm Trucking are accusing the company of violating federal and state labor laws, in a class action lawsuit filed Wednesday.
These drivers, who live in various states, claim they were enticed to sign up for work with TransAm and were promised jobs after attending an orientation.
TransAm only holds orientations in three cities, each in Texas, Florida and Kansas, according to the complaint.
Prospective TransAm employees travel for hundreds if not thousands of miles to get to these locations, the former employees said.
Once signed up, these drivers are expected to stay for 3 to 4 days, followed by a week’s worth of time shadowing experienced drivers in trucks.
The former workers say TransAm either doesn’t pay new employees at all for the orientation and shadowing or do so at a rate that falls below the federal minimum wage.
Even more, according to the class action lawsuit, TransAm misleads new hires by initially promising company jobs are available but later pressures them into buying a truck lease and working as an independent contractor.
All of the six former workers report this is how TransAm treated them when they drove the long distances to their orientations. One driver, John Curtis, tried twice and encountered this alleged bait-and-switch each time.
“Many individuals recruited by TransAm with the promise of company driver positions have little choice but to sign on as lease purchase drivers, because they are stranded at the orientation site with no way to get home and often without the financial means to do so,” the lawsuit stated.
The nonpayment of wages violates the Fair Labor Standards Act, the class action alleges. TransAm’s hiring practices of not being clear about job availability violates the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.
The plaintiffs are seeking to recover the unpaid hours in addition to damages.
In addition to not paying new employees, several trucking companies are allegedly misclassifying their semi truck drivers as California independent contractors—a practice that allows them to take advantage of commercial truck drivers by passing on business costs to them while still maintaining control over the means and manner under which the truck drivers must perform their jobs.
Do you or someone you know work for TransAm Trucking? Have you ever had your paycheck shorted? Let us know in the comments below.
Counsel representing the plaintiffs in this class action lawsuit are Brendan J. Donelon of Donelon, P.C.; Hillary Schwab, Brant Casavant and Rachel Smit of Fair Work, P.C.
The TransAm Truck Driver Wages Class Action Lawsuit is Roberts, et. al, v. Transam Trucking, Inc., Case. No. 2:21-cv-02073, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.
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28 thoughts onTransAm Trucking Co. Accused of Not Paying New Drivers
They talked me into a 6month lease and after 2 weeks making them over 17000 they burned me and said I owed them 12.00 over 5600 miles mind you. Got the paperwork from them.
Literally the same thing happened to me . Was told 90 dollars a day for a week of orientation. Got paid 150 , also was told after 14 days I would be home , was denied home time and after a month of bro g on the road with 0 home days said I wouldn’t take anymore loads unless they were going towards my home state . Was told to go to rockwall for truck inspection, waited 3 days there with no pay . Just to get fired and stranded at their location.
My husband just did orientation with them and here it is a week or so after and he has been sitting and hasn’t received orientation pay either as of today. Alot of promises and no communication. This is so unfortunate for those who have traveled and have families dependent upon them. My husband is one of them and I’m sure many others.
Currently on the road as a otr driver and I’ve been here about 3 months so far and this is one of the worst employers I’ve ever worked for. They’re illegally paying two states out of of my check for a garnishment that should only be going to one. I was paid 70 dollars while I waited 2 weeks to be paid for the orientation. They lie on you alot , plus everything is your fault. And the trucks are beat up from a previous driver. Only thing I liked about this trucking job was that there is no training, you learn on your own. But everything else is a scam here. I am underpaid and being treated unfairly at this company if a law suit is against this company I want in.
Please include me aswell
TransAm Trucking Company are liers, thieves, and scammers. U waw paid $137 for a weeknof orientation. Told I would be getting $80 a day. Then after $90 a day for every day Im still at hotel. Found out the $25 for lunch, they promised us, came out of our checks. Equipment is dirty and stayed breaking down. Stayed at shops and unable to make any money. 31 cents a mile isn’t any money. Was told by recruiter I had a dedicated route. Lies. Lied bout drop yards they have. Told me had bring truck back to 1 of their 3 terminals. After trip planning and paying for my plane ticket, I give them that information. Only for them to come take the truck from me, without my knowledge, after telling me it had to go to terminal or its abondenment. Liers and thiefts. This experience took more, from me, then I gained.
Can you email me about this ,I was a victim of this shady company as well.
Yes I was told same thing that I would be paid $90 a day for orientation never told $$25 of that was taken for lunch when we were told that lunch was on them. Was only paid $150 at end of the week an was dismissed last day after qn instructors named Stacy who looked like a drug addict lied on me as he was letting women make it through the course who had been running over cones an backing into trailers , This was in Rockwall,Texas . Not a very good experience an you continue to see trucks an drivers come in for there truck to get fixed . Not worth it at all .seems like a big scam
How do I join this law suit?
I also would like to be included in this lawsuit dennis h. 2242270837
How can someone join in this?
During my extra week I waited at the hotel for a truck, because I didn’t fall for the lease program, they called me 9/23 to tell me my truck was ready but all it needed was a wash and detail (meaning it’s not ready). 9/24 morning I call them because I’m ready to leave the hotel and got the call saying this day my truck would be available. I call them and they say the cleaning crew wouldn’t arrive until around 4:30pm but check out for the hotel was 11:00am. They sent me an Uber request to their terminal because they weren’t going to extend my stay. I leave the hotel around 11:30am and get to their Tampa terminal and wait until the terminal was closed at 7:00pm. My truck hadn’t been washed or detailed, but they told me inspect the outside of the truck and make sure there’s no defects. Once the man that’s in charge of the yard for the trucks and maintaining them told me it was getting close to the time they closed I called TransAm and said the truck hadn’t been washed so what do I do because they had me check out my hotel so I had nowhere to sleep that night and they tell me take a truck that’s on “repair status” and PC to a truck stop. They tell me they’ll send me $60 for supplies to clean the truck myself. The man over the yard told me TransAm had never told him to do anything with my truck. So I sat there checked out from my hotel waiting at their Tampa terminal the entire day waiting on something that was never going to be done to then be told to take a truck on repair status and wait at a truck stop. They told me I couldn’t be dispatched on repair status, but I could PC to a truck stop because I couldn’t sleep on their yard in the truck and they weren’t going to place me in another hotel.