Oregon Trucker Who Refused to Drive Unsafe Vehicle Gets Job Back

An Oregon trucker will get her job back after a federal regulator determined she was wrongly fired for refusing to drive an unsafe vehicle.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Monday it has ordered an independent trucking contractor in Gresham to reinstate the driver who was fired almost three years and to pay her back wages.

OHSA did not reveal the name of the driver. The agency says she refused to a 10,000-pound truck with inadequate tire tread. The contractor, Terry Unrein, fired the woman eight days after she had the truck’s tire replaced before driving on the highway.

OSHA officials say driving a truck with inadequate tire tread would violate federal transportation regulations.