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22 • FEBRUARY 2023
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TAT cont. from Page 19
the end of the day, I wouldn’t be out in the parking lot, selling myself
if someone wasn’t buying.”
When Asked what conditions might make a driver suspicious
that trafficking is occurring, Williamson was quick to note that
trafficking victims are not always women.
“You’re looking for (both) male or female. We don’t want to forget
that happens to boys too, who may be going from car to car, offering
some type of services,” she said. “They could be not dressed
weather-appropriate, just because that clothing is easier to take on
and off.”
There are other signs to watch for as well.
“You could be seeing that they come and go at regular intervals.
Maybe they’re dropped off by a driver in a group and then
they’re picked up, you know, a half hour later,” she said. “You
could notice signs of abuse. Or, you could just be thinking to yourself,
‘It’s 3 a.m. What are they doing out there?’”
Identifying trafficking, or at least being aware of suspicious
situations, doesn’t help if action isn’t taken. TAT supports the use
of the National Human Trafficking Hotline, 888-373-7888, to report
suspicious activity or to seek help. The hotline is maintained
by Polaris, an international anti-trafficking organization.
Williamson stressed that 911 gets the call if a crime is being
committed, but that the TAT hotline may have access to more
resources than a local emergency responder. Once the police are
notified, the hotline can call on local nonprofits that specialize
in trafficking and can offer shelter, counseling or other services.
Calling the hotline also helps TAT compile statistical information
that may not be automatically shared by local authorities.
Drivers and other people who are interested in helping fight
human trafficking can obtain a wallet card, truck decals and other
helpful materials through the TAT website, truckersagainst
trafficking.org. There is also a free TAT mobile app, available on
Google Play and the Apple App Store.
Freeing a person from the bonds of human trafficking is only
one step in the journey to freedom.
Williamson says she’s happily married today but that it has
been a struggle to adapt to life outside of trafficking.
“I wasn’t convinced there was more to life,” she said. “You
couldn’t have sold me that kind of fairy tale. I was just tired of being
sold.”
With no other available resources, she found herself in a
homeless shelter.
“I just made it work,” she explained. “There should always be
credit given to the survivor’s absolute gumption to just pull yourself
up by the bootstraps. That’s a very American sentimentality.”
At the same time, she wants other victims to know that help is
out there if they want it.
For Williamson, the path after getting free was difficult, in
large part because she hadn’t been taught how to survive in a
“normal” world.
“I had a degree, but I didn’t have any life skills,” she said. “I
didn’t know how just to do normal life, because in the background,
I had been sold from age 6.”
As she recovered from her ordeal, Liz worked with groups that
provided services to minors, talking about her experiences. She
became aware of TAT through a personal friendship with Kylla
Lanier, current TAT deputy director and senior director of public
sector engagement.
“She helped me remember things I didn’t think about,” Williamson
said. “She asked, ‘What experience did you have with
public transportation while you were trafficked?’ — things I
hadn’t thought about for a while.”
Today, Williamson says, “My life is dramatically different. It’s really
good. But I will say that I’ve never forgotten where I came from.”
She runs several online support groups, including one specifically
for survivors of familial trafficking. She works with a support
group for girls from other forms of trafficking, such as Romeo
pimps (traffickers who control victims through romantic means)
or gorilla pimps (who control victims through physical or psychological
abuse), helping them adapt to new lives.
“It’s called ‘Ending the game,’ and I’m glad to work on it because
it’s super-important to have peer support,” she said.
Even though Williamson still occasionally struggles with life
in the “normal” world, she’s determined to help others find and
live the rest of their best post-trafficking lives.
Like many others involved in TAT, she is determined to make a
difference — and she’s doing so, one heart and mind at a time. 8
BROKERS cont. from Page 3
FMCSA proposes to remove the rule allowing loan and finance
companies to serve as BMC–85 trustees.
“FMCSA is aware that some brokers improperly choose to
withhold payment to motor carriers for services rendered,”
according to the NPRM. “Motor carriers can then submit
claims to the financial responsibility provider in an attempt
to receive payment.”
If the financial responsibility provider has received claims
against an individual broker that exceed $75,000, the financial
responsibility provider will often submit the claims to a court
to determine how to allocate the broker bond or trust fund.
“The interpleader process can be costly and time consuming
for motor carriers, and generally results in motor carrier
claims being paid pro rata, depending on the number of
claims against the broker bond or trust fund,” the FMCSA notice
states. “FMCSA believes that most brokers operate with
integrity and uphold the contracts made with motor carriers
and shippers. However, a minority of brokers with unscrupulous
business practices can create unnecessary financial
hardship for unsuspecting motor carriers.”
FMCSA is relying on available data from which to draw an
estimated percentage of how many brokers fail to pay motor
carriers.
The agency’s best estimate is that approximately 1.3%
of brokers (approximately 440 in 2022) would experience a
drawdown on their surety bond or trust fund within a given
year, with average claim amounts of approximately $1,700
per claim submitted. Of these brokers, 17% may receive total
claims in excess of $75,000, potentially leading to interpleader
proceedings.
“Because this data is limited in scope, FMCSA cannot quantify
benefits resulting from this proposal,” the NPRM states. “It
is FMCSA’s intent that the provisions in this rule, if finalized,
would mitigate the need to initiate interpleader proceedings
and alleviate the concern of broker non-payment of claims.
To review the NPRM, visit govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-
2023-01-05/pdf/2022-28259.pdf. 8
SALES cont. from Page 17
newsworthy. According to data from Wards
Intelligence, December sales topped the nextbest
December of the 21st century — the EPA
pre-buy year of 2006 — by 2,752 trucks (10.4%).
Freightliner sold 10,660 Class 8 trucks in
the U.S. in December, bringing its 2022 total to
96,573, good for 37.9% of the U.S. market. Compared
with 2022, Freightliner sales increased
15.4%. Freightliner sibling Western Star held
a much smaller share of the 2022 market at
2.6%, but December sales of 764 represented
an increase of 51.9% from last December’s
results. The company reported sales of 6,509
for the year.
International finished the year strong with
sales of 3,612 in December, topping December
2021 sales of 1,314 by 175%. For the year, International
sales rose by 21%, while the market
as a whole rose 14.7%. Navistar was acquired
by the Traton Group in July 2021, and the
changes made undoubtedly impacted sales
for 2022. The company’s share of the U.S. market
grew from 11.9% in 2021 to 12.5% in 2022.
Kenworth sales in December of 4,528
brought the company’s 2022 total to 36,730,
up 13.7% from 2021 and good for 14.4% of the
U.S. market. PACCAR sibling Peterbilt sold
4,624 in December to bring its 2022 total to
38,782. Compared with 2021, Peterbilt Class 8
sales on the U.S. market rose 18.2% and comprised
15.2% of total U.S. Class 8 sales.
Volvo sales of 2,590 in December brought
the company’s 2022 total to 26,994, a 22.1% increase
over 2021 — the largest percentage increase
of all the OEMs. Volvo’s share of the U.S.
Class 8 market rose from 10% to 10.6%.
At Volvo-owned Mack Trucks, however,
things weren’t as rosy. December sales of 2,436
Class 8 Macks were 79.6% higher than December
2021 sales but weren’t good enough to
bring sales for the total year 2022 into positive
territory. Mack sales declined 8.7% for the full
year, the only major OEM to lose ground compared
with 2021. Mack’s market share slipped
from 8.4% to 6.7%. It’s important to note that
a large percentage of Mack Class 8 trucks go
to the vocational market, supplying the trash,
concrete and dump markets, as opposed to
the over-the-road market. That’s a different
type of buyer, and that may have impacted
sales during a turbulent year.
If predictions hold, it will be at least a few
years before we see December sales like in the
last one — or another sales year to top 2022.
8
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