Opinion: The time has come to get real with driver accessorial pay

In today’s episode of Freight Broker Live, I spoke a while about detention, truck ordered, not used and layover and how a major change is needed in order to assure that drivers are fairly being compensated for their time…..at all times.
Having worked in the industry as a carrier and broker for the past fifteen or so years, I have witnessed the rising costs to operate a trucking all to well. Carriers expenses soared while accessorial pay rates have essentially stayed the same. Had to wait a few hours back in 2000 to get loaded, you were paid anywhere from $35-$50 per hour in detention. Experienced a scheduling issue with your appointment and have to wait at the receiver? Here’s $150, go catch a movie and grab a burger. If your load cancelled, you were offered $150-$250 for the mix up. 
While those were probably not the most ideal amounts, it was tolerable as a gallon of diesel was right around $1.40 a gallon. That burger and movie probably $7-$10. Fast track to now, the national average price of diesel at $3.07 this week. A burger is going to cost far too much and forget about the movie being affordable. 
With that said why hasn’t the rate of detention, layover and TONU’s risen with the rising cost of virtually everything else in trucking? I do not really know the answer. Most will say it is because the broker or the shipper is cheap, greedy or just does not care enough to go and try and go out and get more money for the carrier. While that may be true, the burden of responsibility to assure the trucking company is getting paid what they should be getting paid falls on the shoulders of the carrier. 
As a broker, if I am booking a load, and a carrier tells me that his detention rate is $70-$80 per hour after the first two hours and can’t book the load without that stipulation being in the rate confirmation, I am going to go to my customer and tell them I need that extra money to load the truck. If they refuse, which they probably will, I will relay that information to the carrier. The carrier now has the decision to take that load. Now I know, some of you are sitting back reading this saying if you hold firm, and pass on the load, I will probably find someone else to take the load, and you are probably correct. However if all the carriers who are calling in on the load all have the same detention rates, my customer is going to need to agree to pay if they want their load moved. I am going to work just as hard to get you that extra money as I need you to take that load so I can make money. 
I think it is time for drivers, and brokers to try and make a push and let the shipper community know that these accessorial rates need to come up and the only way to do that is if drivers start to fully understand their control they have. Set your pricing before you accept the load. Have the broker include the specific wording and amounts that you require before you sign the confirmation. If they do not agree, take a stand and wait for the next load. Brokers when quoting these customers whether it be a spot quote or a long-term RFP, include these higher rates. That is how we can make it happen, or so I hope.
Now I know this is a novel concept and the chances of carriers and brokers working together to implement this kind of change is something that probably won’t happen, but just image in.
Make trucking great……..