Jeff Kuehl, who does business as Night Hawk Courier Service, is known for writing bad checks, defaulting on fuel accounts, working his employees for 12 hours, 4-5 days per week without overtime pay, and refuses to carry workers' compensation coverage on his employees.
Jeff Kuehl is very well known in contract carrier circles for bouncing his employees' payroll checks. This is a regular practice for Night Hawk Courier Service. One employee of his was not paid for over two months at one point... Not only that, he forced one employee to buy his own gas, until his personal credit card was maxed out to the tune of $1,500! Late checks are also a common practice of Jeff Kuehl. He is constantly late paying his employees. It's not uncommon for Night Hawk Courier Service to pay employees a week late. Sometimes more.
He has been sued for defaulting on a fleet fuel account. Krause Gentle d/b/a Kum & Go had to sue Jeff Kuehl d/b/a Night Hawk Courier Service for breach of contract to get the money he owed him. The case number is Case: 05771 SCSC350622, on file in Polk County, Iowa. He has been cut off from fuel priveledges numerous times by Ultimate Enterprises of Des Moines, Iowa for non-payment of his bills.
Jeff Kuehl does not carry workers' compensation coverage. He has already had one employee die on the road, and he never paid the required death benefit to the employee's widow. My own mother was involved in a vehicle rollover accident on the job with Night Hawk Courier Service, and he attempted to get her to pay her *own* medical bills! To this date, my mother's medical bills are still unpaid, and Jeff Kuehl still denies liability.
Every time Jeff doesn't meet a financial obligation, he tends to get a new "toy, " as his employees call them. On top of Night Hawk Courier Service's business vehicles, Jeff Kuehl is known to own two cars, a conversion van, jet skis, a boat, and a vacation property. His house rent is around $700 per month, and his court ordered child support is around $600/month. Pretty good for a "man" who claims to only make $16,000 per year from his business, eh?
Jeff Kuehl d/b/a Night Hawk Courier Service falsifies United States I-9 documents. He consistently gives his newly hired employees I-9 forms... And sends them home with them to fill out. Jeff Kuehl simply tells you to fill in your own information in Section 2, lists A, B, and C, and bring them back to him the next day. He does *not* check any of his employees' identification. One could fill in anything one wanted to, and Jeff Kuehl won't question the authenticity of the information given.in the author's opinion, this makes Jeff Kuehl d/b/a Night Hawk Courier Service not only an immigration service nightmare, but a national security risk.
His employees are afraid to leave, because he's known to slander former employees who use him as a reference. Former employees have found that sometimes life after Jeff Kuehl/Night Hawk gets mighty tough.
If you're a business, you should keep in mind that Jeff Kuehl d/b/a Night Hawk Courier Service puts your business at risk. Remember that an angry, overworked, unpaid sub-contractor's employee can lead to angry customers and clients for you to deal with. As well as shoddy work and damaged deliveries. Employee incidents can also open your business up to large, costly lawsuits, as well as lost business.
If you're an employee, don't count on being paid on time, if at all. And God forbid you get hurt on the job. But, you can count on being asked to violate at least a handful of federal and state laws.
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