The Chairman's Corner

By John Chipman, Jr.

January 2021

The Royals had a tough 1992; messy divorces coupled with ugly media coverage.  Queen Elizabeth described the year as “Annus Horribilis” in her annual speech.   California Movers and Suppliers might not use that exact phrase to describe 2020.  Latin is not our forte.  That said, there is an industry abbreviation once used by Movers to take exception to pieces of furniture with too many chips, gauges, scratches, broken pieces, and dents --- “AFU”.  The phrase is not Latin or Greek in origin and you will not hear it used by Olivia Colman’s character on The Crown.   Rather, it is a technical term handed down to young movers from truck stop linguists, by way of sailors frolicking in San Diego during Fleet Week. Use of the term fell out of favor in the early 90s. That said, if 2020 was an article of furniture written up by a driver on a descriptive inventory sheet at origin, it would be AFU. 

2020, where to begin?  In any other year, the top industry story would have been the legal soap opera surrounding the US Military’s selection of a single vendor to handle hundreds of thousands of relocations annually.  Protests to the Government Accounting Office prevented the GHC’s implementation.  Our industry will have to watch Season Two of the GHC saga in 2021.  If the legal fight drags on and on this could turn into the moving industry’s version of Dickens’ Bleak House?

The nominees for Biggest Dumpster Fire of 2020 are many.  The award could go to Sacramento politicians for their heavy handed, unilateral push to eliminate the use of independent contractors as a service model throughout the state.  Assembly Bills 5 and 2257 have turned California worker classification law into a swiss cheese of exemptions and tortured exceptions.    We also saw fires in Southern California and Sonoma and Napa counties.  Do I even have to mention the election drama?

But nothing compares to the catastrophe caused by the Covid-19 virus. Tens of thousands of Californians dead because of it.   Tens of thousands of California businesses, especially in the retail, restaurant and hospitality sectors are ruined.  According to Yelp, as of early December, Los Angeles saw 15,000 business closures, half of which are permanent. California Movers and Suppliers suffered. There was a substantial drop in commercial moving.  National account moves for new hires and transferees dropped precipitously.  Forwarders saw a 20-30% decline in international business, except for the 4th quarter. Display and exhibit orders virtually halted. 

Military Movers may have been hit the hardest in 2020. The pandemic caused Transcom to issue a “Stop Movement Order” on April 13, which affected most moves awarded to TPSs.  For several months, military businesses came to a near standstill.  As if military movers did not have to jump through enough hoops.  For example, at Travis AFB, each crew member is required to show a Real ID, or have two forms of ID.  Guards are not bashful about turning away drivers and helpers.  Forgot your DBIDS card Driver? There is no way you are getting the truck onto Travis, or any other base.  Crews wore face coverings in the house and were required to keep them on in the van.  It was crazy hot, but California Movers complied.

What about getting on military bases in 2021?  Will our crews need to provide proof of a negative virus test?  What if the Base Commander requires vaccination certification for drivers, helpers, and packers? It could happen this year.  Will California bases change their names this year?  (With respect to Travis AFB, the answer to last question is “No”.  General Travis dropped bombs on the Nazis.)

It is a good thing California Movers were deemed essential in 2020, thanks in part to the efforts of CMSA and other industry groups.  This distinction no doubt saved us all.  Our industry rallied to protect ourselves and our customers. We wore face coverings, spaced out our work areas, and logged our temperatures each morning. Many employees, including move coordinators and billers, were able to work remotely.  Our crews wore personal protective equipment in the warehouse and on the job.  Sales representatives remotely guided customers through virtual home surveys.

2020 was not completely wretched.  PPP loans helped many California Movers and Suppliers.  Also, residential household goods businesses rebounded during the last part of the year.  Many Movers experienced a Peak Season of sorts caused by a frenzy of customer demand in September, October, and November.  For example, urbanites fled San Francisco and Los Angeles for larger homes and yards in the suburbs.  Other customers left California altogether, and during the Fall it was tough getting trucks off the East Coast.  Furious at Alameda County health officials (and Sacramento’s high personal income tax) Elon Musk moved to Austin, Texas, where he is building a factory.  And why not: no place says “electric car” like the great state of Texas.

Still, Annus Horribilis, indeed.

January 2021- CMSA Communicator