Executive Briefing - March 23
- Delphi to Idle 4,000 Workers Next Week
- DOT Officials Talk with Counterparts in Mexico
- Simon to Hike Driver Pay
- NLRB to File Complaint Against Atlantic Trucking
- U.S. Intermodal Traffic Down Again
- Slowdown Forces Tenneco to Amend Credit Facility
- DOT Renews ITS America Charter
- Courier Sells NYC Business
- US 1 Industries Reports 4Q Gain
- Trucks Chassis’ Future May be Online
- Layover.Com Acquires The Truckers Helper
- Randall Purchases Four Publications
Delphi to Idle 4,000 Workers Next Week
Vehicle-parts maker Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. (DPH) said that it will idle about 4,000 workers next week because of production cuts by General Motors (GM) and other vehicle makers, Bloomberg reported.
Also, Friday, Motorola Inc., (MOT), the No. 2 cell-phone maker, said it will eliminate 4,000 jobs in a network-equipment business to reduce spending. The company has reduced its payroll by 15%, or 22,000 workers, since December.
hutdowns, even if temporary, slow down truck shipments. In addition, an idling at an auto-parts manufacturer signals that the vehicle maker and is parts suppliers will not generate as much freight for a while.
GM, Ford (F) and DaimlerChrysler (DCX) all plan to cut output more than 15 percent this quarter because of declining demand for new cars and trucks. Transport Topics
DOT Officials Talk with Counterparts in Mexico
Officials from the U.S. Department of Transportation met Thursday with their counter-parts in Mexico to talk about opening the U.S. border to Mexican trucks, the Journal of Commerce reported.A DOT official said U.S. companies should be able to invest up to 100% in Mexican trucking companies, provided that the service is international, JOC said. But there are some local laws that limit participation to less than half in Mexico.
If the talks are not successful, the North American Free Trade Agreement gives Mexico the right to levy compensatory duties equal to the economic damage from a closed border since 1995, the paper said.
Insiders put that figure at $200 billion, which Mexican truckers would like to have allocated exclusively to their industry, JOC said.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta has said that Mexican trucks would not be allowed onto U.S. roads for a least 8 months, Transport Topics reported this week. Transport Topics
(Click here for the related Transport Topics story.)
Simon to Hike Driver Pay
Dick Simon Trucking will increase its wage rates for company drivers by about 5 cents a mile effective April 1, the company said.The new maximum rates are 37 cents a mile for solo company drivers and 40 cents for both members of a team. Until the new figures go into effect, the rates are 31 cents for a mile by a solo driver and 35 cents for a team.
On top of that, the company also offers bonuses for productivity and low levels of idling.
Simon mainly uses company drivers, although it does have a small program for owner-operators. The company's payscale had been below the average for refrigerated carriers, according to the National Survey of Driver Wages. Jonathan S. Reiskin, Transport Topics
NLRB to File Complaint Against Atlantic Trucking
A National Labor Relations Board regional office plans to file a complaint against Atlantic Trucking Co. for improperly dismissing a driver.Truck driver Robert Bates was dismissed for trying to organize his colleagues as Teamsters. Atlantic Trucking had classified him as an independent contractor, but NLRB Region 11 Director Willie L. Clark Jr. ruled he was an employee.
he action by the NLRB could lead to a hearing in May or June before one of the board's administrative law judges, according to NLRB regional attorney Patricia Timmins.
The dispute could help resolve the ongoing issue of whether port drivers who work in the drayage sector of trucking are employees who can be unionized or independent business contractors who cannot. Jonathan S. Reiskin, Transport Topics
U.S. Intermodal Traffic Down Again
Truck-rail intermodal freight loads at major U.S. railroads dropped 1% last week to a total of 174,099 units, com-pared with 175,893 during the same week in 2000, the Association of American Railroads reported.This was the second straight week that the year-to-year total dropped after a slight increase the week ending March 3. It h as now dropped in five of the past six weeks.
When reported separately, the number of truck trailers hauled by railroads fell 10.2%, while the number of contain-ers rose 3.5%. Trailers reflect domestic loads, while containers may also include international trade.
Railroads reporting to AAR account for 98% of U.S. rail intermodal volume. Transport Topics
Slowdown Forces Tenneco to Amend Credit Facility
Tenneco Automotive Inc. (TEN), one of the world's largest producers and marketers of ride control and exhaust systems, said it has agreed with senior lenders to amend certain terms of its senior credit facility.Tenneco said it has been aggressively reducing costs and spending because of slower production in the North American light vehicle and heavy-duty truck markets.
This deal allows the Lake Forest, Ill.-based company to retain access to its $500 million revolving credit facility. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
DOT Renews ITS America Charter
he U.S. Department of Transportation has renewed the Federal Advisory Charter of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America.
ITS America, which holds federal advisory committee status, is used as a source of research and expertise to create and mold policy.
Over the next two years, it plans to provide advice to DOT in the reauthorization proposal the federal government will produce to replace the TEA-21 transportation funding measure, due to expire in 2003.
ITS America, which promotes the use of technology in transportation to save time and money, has more than 600 members from the telecommunications and automotive industries, as well as state and regional transportation organizations. Transport Topics
Courier Sells NYC Business
Parcel delivery company Dispatch Management Services Corp. said it sold its CitySprint 1-800-DELIVER business to Earlybird Delivery Systems for $2.4 million.CitySprint had been the New York City arm of Lake Success, N.Y.-based company, which needed the money from this deal to pay down debt and increase cash on hand.
Dispatch Management said it will maintain business operations in the rest of the United States as well as Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom. Jonathan S. Reiskin, Transport Topics
US 1 Industries Reports 4Q Gain
Trucking and logistics company US 1 Industries (USOO) said its net income for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2000, was $337,186, compared to $155,285 in 1999.It is the ninth straight quarter in which net income has been greater than the year-ago quarter. Revenues for the fourth quarter increased to $15.7 million compared to $8.7 million in the same period in 1999.
US 1 Industries' subsidiaries include truckload carriers Carolina National Transportation and Keystone Lines. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Trucks Chassis’ Future May be Online
Raoul Witteveen, president of chassis lessor Interpool, said in the near future ocean shipping companies will give up ownership of truck chassis hauling cargo in favor of an online leasing arrangement, the Journal of Commerce reported.Ocean shipping companies currently own about 50% of the hauling cargo around the United States.
However, Interpool hopes to change that. It operates Poolstat, a Web-based service that owns, leases, electronically tags and manages 150,000 chassis.
It currently has four shipping lines among its customers, and is confident it will be able to expand as more ocean carriers embrace Internet-based services. Transport Topics
Layover.Com Acquires The Truckers Helper
b>Layover.com, an online driver recruiter, said Friday that it has acquired a software company called The Truckers Helper.
The Truckers Helper sells software for trucking-related transactions.
With this deal, Layover.com said it will focus on automating the tasks, business processes, regulatory reporting and communications needs of drivers and the companies they work for.
ayover.Com is based in Melbourne, Fla. Transport Topics
(
Click here for the full press release.)
Randall Purchases Four Publications
b>Randall Publishing Co. said Friday it has purchased four trucking and auto-motive publications from Cahners Business Information.
With the addition of Automotive Industries, RPM magazine, Owner Operator and Commercial Carrier Journal, Randall is now the publisher of more than 30 magazines, directories and periodicals.
Randall’s Trucking Media Group publishes Overdrive, Truckers News and Trucking Co. magazines. Transport Topics
(
Click here for the full press release.)