A ruling by the NLRB on Thursday has changed the classification of truck drivers working in the Los Angeles area from ?independent contractors? to employees and awarding those employees $3.6 million in back wages and penalties. Later on Friday, one of the companies employing the drivers, Pacific 9 Transportation, reached an agreement with its employees, stating that the company would recognize the workers? rights to collective action and organization. The Teamsters have supported the employees throughout the legal process while simultaneously working to organize them. The ruling and agreement could change the industry and the raise wages from a little as $20,000 per year to closer to $100,000, the same as what some trucking contractors make.
See "String of actions strengthens the hand of truck drivers", James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, March 23, 2014