Two In One.

Ok so.I.have two different questions. I know i have been asking alot of questions on here I just try to.get as much information as I can. I also just wana put out there that I really dont appreciate the replies. My questions are for companies that say home on weekends is this realistic? it always seems like you hear from the people that dont like there company but never from the ones who do so I'm just kinda curious if this is actually a possibility. My second question is here in Wisconsin there is a family medical leave act that allows parents of either sex to have up to six weeks off from there job if they have a baby and other things. Does this apply to trucking also? I heard overtime doesn't apply to trucking under a transportation rule or law or something I really dont understand so I didn't know if other things played into that.

You can find plenty of people on here that like their company. I'm home every Friday and leave either Sunday afternoon or Monday morning. I can't answer the family medical leave act.

FMLA is a Federal Law. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a United States federal law requiring covered employers to provide employees job-protected and unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. You'll want to read it very carefully to remain in compliance and more importantly, keep your job.

Thanks for the info and yes this site is the exception before I joined the site I hadn't heard of many people who liked it so I always believed they were giving one sided answers.

... companies that say home on weekends is this realistic? it always seems like you hear from the people that dont like there company but never from the ones who do so I'm just kinda curious if this is actually a possibility.

I drove for a dedicated account at Swift for about a year. "Home weekends" is true, if you understand the fine print. I loved the job, running five days out, and getting home mostly on Saturdays. Home on Saturday afternoon was your expected time home. Then you start again Monday.

Here's the fine print for my account: the "weekend" is set to be at least 34 hours, making that 34 hour reset. Now, I got my assignments in batches, usually on Friday for the start of next week, and then on Wednesday to finish up the trip. If everything lined up, I got in, got out, arrived early and had good weather and traffic, I occasionally got home Friday afternoon! A three day weekend bonus!

... I heard overtime doesn't apply to trucking under a transportation rule or law or something I really dont understand so I didn't know if other things played into that.

Matt, a piece of advice for Trucking Truth: be really careful using the phrase "I heard", because it usually means unsubstantiated claims (usually negative) from another web site, or worse, a driver lounge somewhere.

But yes, there is no "overtime" in a mileage based trucking job. You may drive any time of the day or night, seven days a week. You are allowed 11 hours maximum driving in more or less a day. But Hours of Service rules make sure you have enough rest & sleep time.

Unfortunately I'm extremely "close" to a drivers lounge so the things I hear are normally from drivers that are not in good humor at the time. Thats one reason I appreciate this site so much I can actually have conversations that are not one sided.

Home on weekends is very doable and possible. But word to the wise. Things do get borked up. I was doing Regional with home weekends. Unfortunately I only made it home once in December. It was for Christmas. Things do happen out here. I am going home this weekend for the first time since Christmas. Needless to say, my wife is one VERY unhappy customer. But I am getting an extended stay at home for my troubles. Will be home by noon Friday, not leaving out until Tuesday morning.

FMLA can be both a federal law and a state law. NJ for example has added benefits above the federal law.

Basically you get up to 12 weeks unpaid to protect your job. This includes illness of self, spouse, parent or dependent child....it doesn't include boyfriends or siblings. It can include birth/adoption of a child. Some states will pay a maternity/paternity under the act. Pregnancy in itself is not considered an FMLA condition, however the morning sickness and other ailments are.

There is a separate provision for spouses of deploying military personnel or those caring for a servicemen injured during deployment.

The law considers a "chronic" condition to be anything over three days, or intermittent flare-ups that require the treatment by a doctor. You must "certify" the condition by having the doctor fill out a packet and the employer can determine how often you must certify. Usually its every year or two for long term conditions. Could be month to month for less serious illness as determined by your doctor.

The law requires you work a minimum of 1200 hours at the employer the previous calendar year. However, this is the employer s right to waive it. For example, you get a job in October but are then in a car accident in May. The employer does not have to protect your position if you had not worked 1200 hours between October and Dec. One employer may allow you to be protected while another does not. One employer may allow you to use your sick leave or vacation in lieu of unpaid leave but they are not required to do so.

Because it is medical, the certification is not forced to give a diagnosis....however if your employer provides a doctor, you can submit the document to that doctor after you sign a release. This info is still not to be passed to the employer...so your supervisor is not entitled to know your illness under the HIPAA laws which protect privacy.

I would imagine that for truckers any additional provision provided by state law would be covered by the state in which the company headquarters is located, but I could be wrong. It might be determined by the state in which you pay income tax.

Hey...you asked about the law lol

Home on weekends would largely depend on where you live and your companies freight lanes. some companies depending on your location you could very well be home every weekend and it not affect your paycheck. others you probably won't be home every weekend.

Ok so.I.have two different questions. I know i have been asking alot of questions on here I just try to.get as much information as I can. I also just wana put out there that I really dont appreciate the replies. My questions are for companies that say home on weekends is this realistic? it always seems like you hear from the people that dont like there company but never from the ones who do so I'm just kinda curious if this is actually a possibility. My second question is here in Wisconsin there is a family medical leave act that allows parents of either sex to have up to six weeks off from there job if they have a baby and other things. Does this apply to trucking also? I heard overtime doesn't apply to trucking under a transportation rule or law or something I really dont understand so I didn't know if other things played into that.

If you get a mileage job there probably isn't any overtime. If you get an hourly position (probably local) there will be. But it varies between companies. Some companies pay you overtime after 8 everyday some after 40 every week and some after 50 or 60 every week.