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cbr600 wrote:

cbunt1 wrote:The gun question is clearly a Red Herring, and it's doing its job.

Well, the thread title is "Fired because of gun" so what you call a red herring, some might call on-topic.


On topic, yes. The red herring in this instance is that the firing was over a concealed gun (on paper) when it was clearly about refusal to carry an overweight load. Most company drivers operate under "Forced Dispatch" meaning they can't refuse a load...but if the load is or would be illegal, that firing would create a wrongful termination case all by itself. The company avoided this by firing "This Person" over a concealed handgun, thus my "red herring" comment.

Unfortunately blowing the whistle on the overweight (or any other safety) aspect tends to be a "career limiting decision."

As mentioned above...the lesson is "Do the right thing, pay the consequences"...

I hope this ends well. Really I do. There's much at stake.

Well, here's my two cents worth.

The gun question is clearly a Red Herring, and it's doing its job.

I'd look for an (additional?) attorney with experience in Transportation Law, and one who is well versed with part 49 of the FMVSS--that's where this started, and it's where the real problem lies.

Being an ex-trucker (Hotshot owner-operator, as well as a company driver for some of the big boys), I can vouch for the game with overweight trucks. They overload the trucks, somewhere (usually) under 5-10%, and make it the driver's problem. Been there, done that. Got the scale tickets to prove it.

The events sound feasible, and I'll guarantee the company made a public spectacle of this to make an example to the other drivers...surely "This Person" isn't the only one who was concerned about carrying overweight loads all the time...it's dangerous, and expensive...and the companies won't back the drivers. It's no coincidence that the 5-10% (most 18-wheelers are registered for 80,000# gross) is just about the amount of fuel and driver gear that an OTR truck will carry!

The dog just don't hunt on the gun thing anyway. The federal side was removed from part 49 in the late 90's IIRC. And trust me, most independent companies don't give a rip if a driver carries a gun legally...they just don't want to "know" about it.

It's a crooked deal all the way around, and I wish you the best with your case. For CHL'ers too, but even more so for drivers and owner-operators who are pushed into this kind of stuff.

Have you considered talking to someone at OOIDA?