Minnesota man pleads guilty to embezzling $1.3M from truck dealer

A Minnesota man has pleaded guilty in federal court to embezzling more than $1.3 million from his employer, I-State Truck Centers, in a multiyear scheme.  Leon Arthur Keener, 55, of Hugo, pleaded guilty last Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota to mail fraud after he used his position as manager…

Teamsters out at Southern California trucking company; other votes mixed

The Teamsters have been pushed out from their representation of employees at Dependable Highway Express, an LTL and truckload carrier based in Southern California that’s been in business since 1950. Rank-and-file workers at Dependable never had an opportunity to vote on rejecting the representation. Instead, employee John Cwiek filed a union decertification petition last month…

How shipping document automation drives profitability

Over the past several years, the logistics industry has been propelled into the digital age by a powerful combination of consumer expectations, government regulations and technological innovations. Some companies have been eager to adopt these tools, while others remain skeptical about the benefits, effort — and risks — associated with new technologies. Despite the myriad…

Ocean freight rates steady despite Baltimore bridge collapse

The March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore has significantly disrupted U.S. East Coast supply chains. However, ocean freight container shipping rates have remained relatively stable, according to Xeneta, an ocean freight rate benchmarking and intelligence platform. Xeneta’s data reveals that average spot rates from the Far East to the East…