SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - Shawn Yadon, CEO of the California Trucking Association (CTA), issued the following statement regarding the convoy of more than 150 independent truckers that converged the Capitol as part of a protest, organized by the California Truckers Guild, to call attention to Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5), authored by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez. CTA has been working with the author and legislators to offer a fix to AB 5 that would protect employees from misclassification without eliminating the independent owner-operator business model.

“This is much more than a story about traffic inconveniences in downtown Sacramento on a Thursday in early September. This is a story about businessmen and businesswomen, who made a decision, in many cases 10, 15, 20 years ago or more, to invest well over $100,000 of their money into a truck and start their own business as an independent owner-operator, not an employee driver.

“With driver jobs widely available, these individuals could have decided to become employee drivers at any point over the years. But independent owner-operators want exactly that, to operate their own business independently and continue working for themselves as they have done for decades. With AB 5 they are watching their livelihoods being destroyed right before their very eyes, they are rightfully upset, they want to be heard and I agree with them.

“These truckers are here because AB 5 would deny a significant segment of the trucking industry the ability to continue operating as independent owner-operators, forcing them to abandon investments they’ve made in their trucks while taking away their flexibility to set their own schedule and determine the destiny of their business.

“While we support clear definitions of who can and cannot be classified as an independent contractor in order to avoid abuses in the workplace, AB 5 does not take into account the more than 70,000 California truckers who have built their business around the independent owner-operator model, invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in their trucks and have made the decision to run their own businesses instead of being employee drivers.

“Independent truck drivers represent a vital and successful segment of the trucking industry and Sacramento should be encouraging this entrepreneurial spirit, not destroying their livelihood.” 

Since 1934, the California Trucking Association has been serving the commercial motor carrier industry in California and the companies that provide products and services to the trucking industry. A critical and vital component of California’s economy, nearly 80 percent of California communities depend solely on trucks to deliver their goods. Our carrier membership ranges from individual owner-operators, to small for-hire fleets, to the largest national and international carriers. Allied members of the California Trucking Association range from businesses involved with truck and trailer sales, parts and service, insurance, legal services and all other businesses that support the trucking industry.

The California Trucking Association promotes leadership in the California motor carrier industry, advocates sound transportation policies to all levels of government, and works to maintain a safe, environmentally responsible and efficient California transportation goods movement system.