Here at the QuickTSI blog team, we pride ourselves on providing you, our readers, with relevant, up-to-date information regarding what is going on in our industry. And with the COVID-19 pandemic not showing any signs of slowing, information pertinent to your business has been flowing in at a breakneck pace. We want to help you keep up with these updates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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So, what\u2019s the latest? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
New Waiver Issued<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Guidance issued by the FMCSA on March 24 included a limited\nwaiver for truckers whose commercial licenses, permits, and\/or medical cards\nhave expired. The waiver is immediate and is valid through June 30, 2020. The\nwaiver was issued in response to state motor vehicle departments and medical\nclinics closing due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This has made it difficult for\ntruck drivers to get the licenses, permits, and medical cards they need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It is important to note, however, that the waiver is not a\nblanket exception to licensing and medical card requirements. Commercial motor\nvehicle drivers must still have been deemed fit to operate a CMV by a certified\nmedical examiner. The waiver instead merely extends to June 30 any expiration\ndates that are set to land between March 1 and June 30. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you meet the following criteria, however, the waiver does\nnot apply to you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n For those that do fall under the waiver, the FMCSA has\nissued a notice stating it will not take enforcement action against truck\ndrivers and fleets that are covered under the new waiver. It is also important\nto note that the FMCSA\u2019s enforcement notice does not preclude specific states\nfrom enforcing their own rules. Fleets and truck drivers need to make sure they\nare staying up to date on the federal and state regulations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For what it\u2019s worth, the American Trucking Associations\n(ATA) thanked the FMCSA for taking this action, issuing a press release stating\nthat \u201cwhile America\u2019s truck drivers are out delivering the essential medical\nsupplies, food and other goods we need to combat this virus, FMCSA has taken an\nimportant step to let drivers and carriers know how to address things like\nexpired commercial drivers\u2019 licenses or medical cards. With state governments\nmoving to remote work and shuttering offices, drivers will need assistance to\ncontinue moving critical goods safely, and today\u2019s guidance is a step toward\nensuring those trucks keep moving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is in addition to changes to how the FMCSA is\nregulating hours of service. Yet, not every regulation governed by the FMCSA\nwill be waived or extended due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The drug and\nalcohol testing clearinghouse, for instance, carries on without interruption<\/p>\n\n\n\n Drug and Alcohol Testing Compliance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The problem is that some motor carriers and truck drivers may face challenges in complying with the drug and alcohol testing regulations<\/a>. The thing is, the DOT has come out saying that there is little leeway when it comes to drug and alcohol testing. Motor carriers still need to conduct a pre-employment drug test before allowing any truck drivers to operate a commercial motor vehicle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, the FMCSA did state that it understands there will be\nproblems in certain places with compliance. The main reasons they cite are a\nlack of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Companies are expected to make a reasonable effort to locate\nthe resources required to carry out drug and alcohol testing. There are mobile\ncollection sites in areas where fixed facilities are not available. The\nimportant thing is for motor carriers to properly document why a test was not\ncompleted. And it could be more than supply shortages. Fleets are dealing with\nfacility closures and quarantine requirements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If a motor carrier can conduct training or testing later, in\naccordance with the law, they should. According to FMCSR 382.305(k)(2), random\ntesting must be conducted throughout the year. Conversely, according to FMCSR\n382.305(i)(3), each truck driver selected for a random alcohol or drug test\nmust be tested during the assigned testing period. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In cases where a trucking company cannot conduct a test due\nto a lack of resources, they may not permit the individual to get behind the\nwheel of a truck. Motor carriers cannot simply put people in the cab if they do\nnot have a negative pre-employment result. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Concerns Remain<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n There have been some concerns among truck drivers that there\nrisks associated with taking the test in this environment. Fortunately, the\nFMCSA advises trucking companies to review the requirements specific to their\nstate regarding testing later. It will be incumbent on the employer or\nowner-operator to properly evaluate and act on the circumstances around why a\ntest cannot be conducted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, since the COVID-19 outbreak poses such a unique health\nrisk, employers are told they can make judgement calls when dealing with\nemployees who are not comfortable going to clinics or collection sites. Many\nclinics and collection sites have taken specific measures to minimize the risk\nof exposure to those coming in for tests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fleets should have plans in place to ensure necessary\npolicies and procedures are followed even during the outbreak. Some plan\nfactors to consider include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The fact is, even with other trucking regulations undergoing\nchanges or regulation shifts, the drug and alcohol clearinghouse and testing\nregulations remain firmly in place. It is important trucking companies continue\nto abide by them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n OEMs Shutting Down<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As with many other vehicle manufacturing operations,\ntrucking OEMs and suppliers are temporarily idling production facilities both\nacross the nation and overseas. Already, General Motors, FiatChrysler and Ford\nhave all shuttered their operations. The same goes for many overseas carmakers.\nWith shelter-in-place orders in place for many municipalities where these\nproducts are manufactured, people simply cannot come in to get the job done. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Although manufacturers have come out saying they do not\nbelieve they have cases of the virus at their facilities, they are suspending\nproduction to slow the spread of the virus within the communities they operate\nin. Many are also monitoring the situation and exploring ways to allow things\nto get done within the current situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some OEMs are being designated as required help zones.\nDaimler, for example, is a designated equipment manufacturer within nation\u2019s\nlisted Critical Manufacturing Sector. We could see the day that big rig\nmanufactories are used instead to help create ventilators and other equipment\nnecessary to help combat the virus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And even though many trucking companies are not actively\nsending procurement people to dealerships, the trucking industry is more\nimportant than ever in this crisis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Is This the New Normal?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With just under a quarter of the population under\nstay-at-home orders, suddenly habits are changing. Imagine all the families\nthat are now cooking a lot more. The fact is household budgets are definitely\ngoing to shift. You will see consumers go from spending money on movies and\nrecreation to things like, yes, toilet paper and groceries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Take refrigerated fleets as one example of how the game has\nbecome upended. Demand for such fleet services are spiking, with multiple\nrecovery-type orders hitting fleets every day. With grocery stores moving\nthrough inventory so quickly, a functional supply chain has never been more\nimportant. And even though a lot of retail locations are closing, operations\nlike Amazon and other online outlets are seeing massive growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Amazon, for example, has announced it is hiring another\n100,000 people. Walmart is adding 150,000 through the end of May.\nUnfortunately, with historic unemployment numbers in\nthe millions<\/a>, these additions are drops in the bucket. But they do shine a\nlight on how this crisis is pending the norms and changing the way people shop\nand do business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As supply chains rejigger themselves to account for this change, trucking companies will need to innovate to stay ahead of the curve. While these are tough times for many trucking companies and owner operators, others are finding ways to get by and, in some cases, even increase business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n The question now is: Will there be a recession? Well, many\neconomists say we are already in one, the numbers have just not come out yet.\nSo, where will trucking be after the crisis passes? If consumer spending\nremains depressed, trucking may find itself short of a lot of work. At this\npoint, only time will tell. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"