The AFL-CIO is hailing a victory on an attempt by Walmart and other corporations to keep truckers working up to 16 hours in a day. A congressional amendment allowing those work hours has been withdrawn. Michael Buckley, Communications Director for the AFL-CIO's Transportation Trades Department, says 16 hour days would be bad for truckers and potentially bad for traffic safety:

[Michael Buckley 1]: "We think it's a great victory for workers and labor unions and highway safety advocates. What Walmart wanted to do is to extend the length of truck drivers days to as much as sixteen hours, which is really unconscionable from a workers standpoint. We're fightin' hard to hang on to the eight hour day. We certainly don't want to make it a sixteen hour day."

The proposal has been withdrawn for the moment but Buckley says labor has to be vigilant to corporate efforts to eventually sneak this into other legislation.

[Buckley 2] : "The victory is always shortlived in that we think it increases the chances that Walmart and others will try to do this in a quiet middle of the night way in a way that maybe doesn't require a public vote or get as much attention."

Buckley says with studies showing fatigue can reach dangerous levels after just eight hours on the road, this labor victory stopping the 16 hour workday for truckers sought by corporations is good for workers and for all drivers who share the road with truckers.