By Robert Farago
June 9, 2008 -
Just when Detroit thought it was safe to go back into the red ink-stained waters, the Teamster's union has stolen their swimsuits. (Or something like that.) Automotive News [sub] pinged-us with news of a strike at the nation's number two car delivery hauler: Performance Transportation Services (PTS). "The action comes after a bankruptcy court judge gave the suburban Detroit company permission to cut the pay of its union drivers by 15 percent. PTS is operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in three years." This time 'round, it ain't just The Big 2.8 who could get slammed by a strike. PTS delivers an unknown percentage of its four million cars shipped annually to Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes, Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Toyota dealers.
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June 9th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
It’s now Nonperforming Transportation Services.
June 9th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
I guess if I were Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes, Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Toyota, I’d go ahead and start buying my own damned trucks (super cheap low hours units available used all over the country right now), buying new car hauler trailers and hiring some of the ex-independent truckers who can’t afford to drive their own rigs any more, giving them a fair wage as a contractor and letting them handle their own retirement plans.
Then when these guys got off strike, I’d say - gosh, sorry, we don’t have very much work for you.
I feel for the drivers going on strike, but on the other hand, there are an awful lot of people out there who need to feed their families, too. And have almost no means of doing so right now.
You should see the number of people coming to our church food pantry. It’s getting downright scary.
June 9th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Performance Transportation Services:
31 facilities in the US & Canada.
Serves 37 states, one CA province and one US territory.
1800 tractor/trailer combos
Delivers 4 million new & used annually
June 9th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Now isn’t the time for low-skilled labor to go on strike. They striking drivers will simply be replaced, either by their employer or by the customers switching to other means.
Considering the collapse of the US car market, there are a whole lot less vehicles which need delivering. PTS’ 4 million units nearly matches the shrinkage in the market.
June 9th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Maybe a bumper crop of independent truckers with used rigs (they seem cheaper than ever) will rise up to meet demand. All in all, this is a depressing situation.
June 9th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
I’m sure most MFGRs have backup plans with the constant problems from PTS - as this was easily foreseeable.
June 9th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
New summer promotion: Factory delivery with free plant tour.
June 9th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Car Hauling is not a easy segment to break into in the trucking business.
Cars are quite fragile freight. One mistake and you have a $1-3k+ trip to the body shop.
Loading the “Parking lot trailer” requires agility, stamina and skill. You have to load for maximum number of vehicles in route sequence while getting all of them to fit while staying legal on axle weights.
You can’t take someone fresh out of his 3-4 weeks of CDL training and have him be an effective driver in this segment. Swift (the Wal-Mart of trucking) tired to get into car hauling roughly 4-6 years ago and lost their shirt on claims.
While you can fit 2-4 cars on a flatbed or step-deck, a true car hauler than can haul 6-9 vehicles is a quite specialized setup that can cost $200-300k new.
June 10th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
You’re right, it has been a horrible anus.