There has been a lot of talk about flexibility in the HOS by the trucking media. I myself really like flexibility when it is my favor such as getting home or anything else that works towards my personal goals. The problem with flexibility is it is a double-edged sword and leaves room for abuse to be flexible and can easily be contorted to fit other’s needs.
Let’s switch this flexibility around and let the shippers and receivers be completely flexible and while they had set appointment times they really did not adhere to them. if you are late to deliver they will stay as long as necessary and pay their workers to do nothing while they wait for you. In this scenario the shippers and consignees will start being taken advantage of by drivers and companies now abusing their time.
As a general rule we all know the warehouses are not going to become that flexible as they would be abused by drivers, carriers, and anyone else that dealt with them. For years the shippers have had the upper hand by keeping ridged hours of service while we have been flexible.
Yet there still seems to be a push from many to keep the flexibility on our shoulders. In the grand scheme of things does flexibility fall in our favor or is it detrimental to our pay and worthiness to society.
At the end of the day which benefits us the docks being flexible or us being flexible? In my next blog let’s talk about the opposite us being rigid.