Two Truck Driver Employment Lawsuit

Tow truck drivers across the US may be victims of violations of various employment regulations, including failure to pay minimum wage, failure to pay proper overtime and illegal deductions from wages. Tow truck drivers are entitled to protection under the Fair Labor Standards Act and other state and federal employment laws. Furthermore, tow truck drivers may be misclassified as independent contractors.

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Tow Truck Employment Law

Tow truck drivers who are employees are covered under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and various state employment laws. Those laws ensure minimum wage for hours worked and time-and-a-half for overtime hours worked.

Some tow truck drivers are classified as independent contractors; however having such a classification does not mean tow truck drivers are in fact independent contractors. If they are called independent contractors but are treated as employees, then they are technically employees and have the right to minimum wage and overtime protections.

Tow Truck Employment Lawsuit

In May 2013, the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division announced United Towing & Transport Inc would pay more than $157,000 in back wages to tow truck drivers and roadside assistance technicians after an investigation found violations of various employment laws. Among the violations were illegal deductions to employees' wages to cover damages to vehicles, which resulted in wages dropping below minimum wage. Further violations included failure to properly pay overtime and failure to include discretionary bonuses when computing overtime.

Investigators further found that some tow truck operators were misclassified as independent contractors.

In 2011, a group of tow truck drivers reached a settlement with their employer after they filed a lawsuit (Lanktree, et al. v. i-70 Towing, et al) alleging they were not properly paid minimum wage. The lawsuit alleged drivers were paid commissions for their tow jobs, but those commissions did not amount to minimum wage. They further claimed that they were not paid for time spent on call. The terms of the settlement were confidential.

Tow Truck Driver Legal Help

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Published on Jul-11-13

READER COMMENTS

Posted by
Rodriguez
on February 8, 2022

My husband laughs at the people complaining who has a set schedule. They force my husband to work 24/7 straight with zero time off because there isn’t a big enough crew for these guys to have any time off whatsoever. He is only paid 30% of each call and most days I don’t even see him. This is effecting his mental health he is literally losing his marbles at this job but he has been through so many companies and realizes there really is no money in towing and it’s too much of a risk on your life. One of his buddies was shot in the leg just for towing someone’s car FOR A TRAFFIC STOP! They aren’t supposed to but he Carries a gun and he doesn’t even do repo work. He is so cranky all the time it really sucks. He feels like he cannot get out of the business because there isn’t much else for him to do that will allow him to get paid the way he’s paid now. In my opinion, he deserves way more than just 30 % for working so many hours. I wish someone could do something about this because it CANT be legal

Posted by
Gene
on January 24, 2020

I pay my drivers/mechanics standard pay at 40 hours. Range from 13 to 16 an hour. Time and a half after 40 hours. Then one third of wrecker tow per call after hours. If a tow is 100 dollars appx 35 40 miles, a third of that is 33 dollars to pay out. At 16 an hour time and a half would be 24 dollars an hour. A driver should be able to run that call at the same rate as overtime pay. If not he is too slow at the job. It averages out bout the same. I do not work my guys 80 hours a week. I will jump in and do it before I expect it from them.

Posted by
Mictavish Huff
on September 16, 2019

My husband it working with a tow truck company in bardstown ky, He worked labor day weekend and labor day got no hoilday pay, he also works one week monday threw thursday 8pm to 8am and most of the time not even off by his normal time, hes off friday that week and works again saturday and sunday same times 8pm to 8am, and again not off by that time, then he's off on tuesday, works again wednesday, thursday and friday 8pm to 8am if he gets off at them times, they say he is paid salary but his checks are always different. Such as one week he worked over time he was paid for it any other time he was worked over time, he was not paid for it, he also has to sit in random spots threw out the night such as krpger parking lots, parks, gas stations or anywhere he can find when not on a run and sleep in his truck, he's loitering in someones parking lot witch is illegal in our laws, their is not designated area for him to stop at and wait for another call or sleep threw out the night. What could he do about this, he's taking his chances on getting a ticket and also takimg chances on getting hurt or robbed by someone if he falls asleep, and also not getting paid fairly I believe.

Posted by
Lauren Isaacs
on April 12, 2019

My husband worked for a tow company for 5 weeks. For 3 weeks he was in training. After he left, he only recieved one check for $400. They are saying he does not get paid for training only the tows he hooked up. Is this illegal?

Posted by
Ken Kovacs
on March 26, 2017

To all you wrecker operators out there getting RIPPED OFF, get out of the business, before you get run over on the highway. There is NO MONEY in driving a tow truck. I have been doing it for at least 10 years in several Chicago suburbs, and let me say this, it is VERY UNNERVING to be hooking up a car on the tollway 3 feet from the white line and a semi flies by at 70 mph, so close you could reach out and touch it. Road service is a demeaning job. Employers constantly scam you, while they make all the money. The laws have to change,Employers need to be disciplined, Insurance companies need to pay the price, and employees need to be respected, and paid a LIVING WAGE. $ 12.00 hourly is a JOKE. This seems to be a MAJOR problem across the USA. Soo the hell out of them !!

Posted by
Bob
on March 16, 2017

My father is a tow truck driver in Florida. They get 25% of whatever the calls pay. They are expected to run 24/7 8 days a week. Sometimes he ends up leaving in the morning at 7-8am not getting home till 11pm then called out in middle of the night expected to be back at work at 8am. Is this actually legal. I don't even understand how they do it for 8 days straight then 2 days off. I believe he possibly works close to or over 100hrs in a weeks time.

Posted by
David
on September 28, 2016

I work as a tow truck driver in Southern California. My question is regarding workable hours. The company here does the schedules for entire month. While we only 12 hour shifts everyday, some weeks we work as few as 3-4 days at a time and work streches to almost 10+days at a time. While I have no problem with that. My question is that I picked up a second job working weekends, mostly in the evenings at a totally different company doing completely different work where I am stationary at one place for about 6 hours or so. Recently my boss told me that I was in violation of the law working this second job on the weekends while working the tow job during the day. Very rarely unless I have specifically asked for it have I been granted a weekend off from this company. So am I in violation of the law, trying not to regfuse to work scheduled days without asking for weekends off? Because now I am being met with atitude and threats of being fired and refusles of any requested time off long before the schedule gets written.

Posted by
Aaron
on September 5, 2016

I am needing some help here, I need to know if I am being treated fair cause I feel like I am not. I am a tow truck driver in Texas. We have a truck assigned to us we take home everyday, we work 24/7 and hardly ever get a day off, we get paid 20 to 25% of the tow, no hourly pay, nor no overtime pay but we do not clock in or out. we do not get on call pay. We do roadside for AAA, and other Insurances company's. Even when I get a day off I still can not go do things with my family cause I have to stay close to answer the rotation calls for the police, I have to go and release car out of impound for free and do not get paid for them What do I need to Do.

Posted by
Tonya Cooper
on July 22, 2016

My husband is a tow driver in ky. His schedule is M-F 8-5, on call every night and every other weekend. Only off every other weekend and thats it. Our temperatures have been over 90 in the past few weeks, his truck has no air conditioning and the boss isnt worried about getting it fixed. In fact my husband has tried several things on his own time to try and fix it. Today he told him he had a damage and he was going to take 50.00 a week out of his check. Does he need to show him a repair bill or anything in order to do this? He is on commission and only makes 35% per call already. He is given less calls than anyone there. Things just dont seem right.

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Posted by
renee bell
on June 15, 2016

my boyfriend just started working a few months ago for a tow truck company in California and he worked 8 hours shifts 5 days a week and they makehim do on call two to four nights a week at the very last minute at the end of the shift they tell him is that legal

Posted by
Kimberly
on June 11, 2016

Hi, my husband just got a job as a tow truck driver, they told him he will get a base salary,plus 40% commission, for three weeks now, he's only got his base salary,no commission, i told him to ask. He called the owner, and that person said you get your base salary, but your commission's have to be above your base salary. Last week he was on police calls, and each call was over $200.00 on commission. He is fuming right now. He also works 80-90 hours a week for $450.00 a week, he takes home $403.00 a week. Is this right or is it illegal. Thanks

Posted by
Ben
on March 11, 2016

I'm a Texas tow truck driver been towing for almost a year, I don't get paid minimum wage, I get paid 35% of every tow, I'm usually on call from 7am to 8-10pm depending if the phone continues to ring, sometimes after a busy and full day or towing, I get a message from dispatch saying I'm on call over night?!? I know that can't be right, I feel like this isn't legal, the only drivers for the company are myself and the owner, with one truck. I feel like I'm being taken advantage of, do I get paid if I'm on call and don't work? I basically get no productivity done when I'm on call because my work phone is glued to my hand. Wish the issue would be addressed

Posted by
Dallas Hainds
on February 7, 2016

I have been a wrecker driver in Michigan for nearly 18 years. We usually work at the shop 5 days a week and put 40 hours in on the time clock. All drivers rotate the nights and the weekends. All after hour calls are paid commission at 35%. In many cases the 35% will not meet our time and half pay rate. For instance, during the day I am paid $14.00 per hour. If I have my 40 hours in for the week I should get paid $21.00 per hour. If I go out and do AAA tirechange , AAA will pay the company approx. $32.00 and I will get paid $11.20. Is this legal for the company to this? In some cases the 35% is over the time and a half rate. I don't want to stir the pot if its not worth it...