Seminar: Kristen Monaco

Kristen Monaco, Cal State Long Beach, will be our first seminar participant for the 2008-09 year. Kristen will be presenting "Wages and working conditions of truck drivers at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles," on Friday, October 10th at 3:00 pm in room 102 Wimberly. A copy of her paper is here.

Abstract:

Using data from surveys conducted in 2004 and 2006, we examine the work and earnings of drayage drivers at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Though possessing relatively low levels of education (most have a high school diploma or less), these drivers average approximately $35,000 in earnings net of truck expenses, working, on average, 11.2 hours of work per day. Owner operators experience increased net earnings once their trucks are fully paid for, leading them to buy older, more polluting trucks. This negative externality is currently being addressed by both Ports enacting new regulations regarding truck drayage in Southern California.