As discussed in the last two posts in this series the Driver Inc. model is a hot-button topic in Canada’s trucking industry. It blurs the lines between employment and independent contracting, often at the expense of employees’ rights, government tax revenues, and fair competition. While this practice continues to generate debate, these questions remain: What is the Canadian government doing to address the issue? How are industry associations and stakeholders responding? And most importantly, how can shippers and brokers identify and avoid Driver Inc. companies?

In part two of this series on Driver Inc, we are going to look at how this scheme takes advantage of newcomers to Canada, and vulnerable drivers (eg. financial difficulties, under-educated)

Driver Inc. doesn’t just hurt compliance-minded companies or muddy labor laws—it disproportionately affects the most vulnerable drivers in the Canadian trucking industry, including newcomers to Canada and the financially disadvantaged. These drivers are often the least equipped to navigate the complexities of employment classification, making them prime targets for exploitation under the Driver Inc. model.

Driver Inc. is a business model in the Canadian trucking industry where commercial drivers, who do not own their vehicles, are classified as independent contractors rather than employees. This setup requires drivers to establish their own corporations, allowing them to invoice the trucking company for services rather than receiving traditional wages with benefits. Under this model, drivers avoid standard deductions like taxes and CPP (Canada Pension Plan), while carriers sidestep obligations such as overtime pay, Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) contributions, and other employee protections.