Twenty Inch said:I'm not sure the whole story has been told re: the driver with the laptop.
I used to work in fruit and veg. Many a time I've heard our Operations Director or Senior Buyer screaming "I don't care what it takes, get the fruit to me by 8am tomorrow for packing or we reject the lot" to a Spanish or Italian supplier. This inevitably meant some knackered driver being told to go out of hours and make sure the produce was delivered. The companies don't care as if the driver is stopped, he'll be sanctioned. The managers behind him who are telling him to deliver it on time or he'll lose his job, and the people behind them, are never in the firing line.
So while this driver undeniably killed people because he was checking his laptop, he may have been told that if he didn't check it, he'd lose his job. To me, that makes the managers culpable too.
Rhythm Thief said:While I agree with the general point you're making, as far as I understand it they've just found a laptop in his cab. The driver claims he wasn't using it, the police say that it was in a position within the cab where it could be seen by the driver. Nothing has been proven either way yet.
User3143 said:Nowadays with most driving firms from my experience if they want you to go over your hours and fly around chasing the clock then they are not worth it and they are shoot companies to work for.
Rhythm Thief said:I agree with this, too. I'd never go over my hours - apart from anything else, who wants to work for longer? - and I wouldn't work for long for anyone who expected me to.
Bad Company said:Why is using a telephone while driving illegal but using CB radio is considered ok?