The last time I refuled in New Jersey, I was told that self service gas stations are not allowed in NJ. Why? In my mind, this is the epitome of featherbedding.
Are their other jurisdictions (either within or without the US) that require an attendant to pump the gas? Does NJ (or any other jurisdiction) have a training requirement for a employee who is pumping gas?
Are their any statistics regarding the safety of self-service gas stations v. attendant pumping?
Oregon is the only other US state with a law against self-serve pumping.
I think NJ has odd rules about gas to allow a motorist to compare prices on a apples to apples basis while driving by, the price is a state wide standard and you are not comparing full to self serve. Also I have noticed some disclaimers about certain promotions like fill up with 8 or more gallons at Shell and get a discount to some place are not available at NJ gas stations.
But for featherbedding, NJ is usually lower priced then NY, so I really don’t see that.
Not really. Featherbedding has to do with a job that doesn’t need to be done at all. This situation might be considered a cousin of featherbedding, in that pumping gas doesn’t necessarily require an employee to do it, but it’s still something that has to be done.
The pricing has nothing to do with featherbedding.
New Jersey has low state taxes on fuel (relative to other states) and is centrally located among big refineries = low fuel prices.
It’s generally considered a means of creating and protecting jobs even if that’s not explicitly stated in the law. Since I’m ancient I remember when there weren’t self service stations, and I’m pretty sure the NJ law was the result of lobbying by the existing gas station interests to stop competition from self service stations. I think they cited safety as an issue though there wasn’t any real evidence that self service was unsafe.
It’s definitely something akin to featherbedding, in that it makes work that isn’t necessary. In 48 states, full service gas stations are rare to nonexistant, and people do just fine without them.
I think you’re confusing a job with a person. The job is the pumping of gas, which has to be done.
Featherbedding is hiring more workers than necessary to do the job. Since actually zero are required (the customer can pump his own gas) then hiring any amount of people to pump gas is featherbedding.
Is it straight up illegal for someone to pump their own gas in NJ and OR? Or is it just illegal for a station not to offer pumping services?
If a patron pulls up, gets out of their car, and is very, very insistent about pumping their own gas – even to the point of whipping out thousands of dollars in cash to buy off the pumper – is that an illegal act? Could the station manager call the cops and get several squad cars out in short order to draw weapons on the offending gas buyer?
How big a deal is it, really?
My family has a '75 Chevy that has the gas cap behind the rear license plate. AND it’s a locking gas cap. I’ve sometimes wondered about “modern” full-service stations.
I’m sure that a lot of the attendants wouldn’t know that such cars ever existed, and thus would be confused when they couldn’t find a door for the gas on the side.
Can anyone guess what would happen in such a case? I’m fairly certain that I would have to get out of the car–not only to show the attendant where the gas cap is, but also to unlock it. What happens after that?
The guy pumps the gas. It ain’t rocket surgery.
I seem to recall that in the not too distant past they tried to change the law to allow self service (I live in New Jersey). Enough people got upset that it never got changed (and I am not talking about the people who pump gas - those people rarely write their state representatives). I think it will stay that way as long as the price of gas here is cheaper relative to surrounding states. I know it always annoys the hell out of me when I pump my own gas in Connecticut and pay 20 cents more a gallon for the privilege. I know that I am paying a small premium to stay in my car (and I don’t even know how much that is), but personally, I am happy with the situation.
In Oregon it is illegal for either the customer to insist that he be allowed to pump his own gas or for the station owner to allow it. Possible $500 fine. If a customer wants to be a jerk and pump his own gas the attendant is likely to call the police, since allowing him to pump his own gas opens the station to the same fine.
There are exceptions, for motorcylces and airplanes, and others. The attendant is allowed to had the pump nozzle to a motorcycle operator and let him put his own gas in.
Start at 480.310
http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/480.html
The policy reasoning for the law starts at 480.315
Non-factual addendum:
There are 3 things you agree to when you become an Oregonian. Raise your right hand and repeat after me.
“All 400 miles of ocean beaches shall forever remain public property.”
“We shall never have a state sales tax.”
“We shall never pump our own gas.”
Wecome to Oregon.
Ditto. Especially in bad weather. And even more especially when I have snacks in the car and don’t want to touch the yucky gas pump.
Wikipedia is your friend:
“Full service” is a misnomer. They won’t check your oil, clean your windshield or check your tire pressure. Having some guy pump gas for you just means a few more jobs for the state, and they pass along the cost to the customer.
Remember the old Texaco commercials when, as the customer pulls up to the pump, six or seven guys ran out to the car and started checking tire pressure, etc? All in perfect uniform, caps and all. Never happened, never will but, well, I think it would be nice. (Just once!) 
I haven’t been to New Jersey since the turn of the century, but I used to travel there regularly. There were many times I would have gladly paid extra if they had just let me pump my own friggin’ gas and get out of there.
The roadways to the Newark airport had (and may still have) small signs pointing to the airport gas station where, if you are driving a rental car, you might be tempted to fill up to save the outrageous rental company gas charges. The signs lead you down a lot of twisty, bendy little roads for what seems like five miles to a little gas and car repair station outside a parking lot. When you pull up at the single pump, the attendant usually ignores you (or is doing an oil change or something). But most of the time he is just sitting looking out the window at you and smoking a cigarette. You have to go in and ask him to come out and pump your gas, which he will do as soon as he reaches a convenient breaking point (or finishes his cigarette).
Anyway, I once was with another cow-orker on his first trip to NJ who didn’t know the rules, so when I pull up, he just jumps out of the car and starts pumping and finishes. I go into the station to pay. And the guy just runs my credit card and grunts. I’m sure he was grateful not to have his smoke break interrupted.
Other times when stopping at other stations, the attendant disappears after starting the gas pump, so I have finished the pumping and put the hose away (and still had to wait for him to come back to pay). All that happened is I got dirty looks from the natives sitting docilely in their cars.
The most frustrating experience is trying to fill up at the NJ Turnpike gas plaza right before the airport. It is a huge plaza with just as many gas pumps as any interstate truck plaza. Unfortunately, cars are usually backed up all the way to the entrance because there are only one or two attendants on duty, so only two lanes are open and the rest are sitting idle while everyone sits in their cars, burning gas, and waiting their turn. This is where I would really love to have had the option to pay extra and use one of the many idle pumps so I could get out of there and not miss my flight.
If you ever need to refill a rental car at the Newark Airport, go to the airport, and follow the signs to US 1-9 South. You’ll soon be on a busy street outside the airport with lots of gas stations that actually seem to want your business and little or no waiting.
Thanks for letting me vent.
Except that your Portland area gas prices are not cheaper across the river in Vancouver, Wa. where it is only self serve, are they?
I love not having to pump my own gas. It makes more sense to me to have employees who are properly dressed for the task and the weather be the ones to do this job. I sure don’t want to leave the comfort of my vehicle and go out in the cold or the rain. If the station is properly staffed, it is IMHO more efficient.
Now that there is “pay at the pump” it is less of a problem in the other states, but during my travels I’ve had the experience of the pump not issuing the receipt and I had to go inside to be sure the proper transaction occurred. And if you want to pay cash you have to go inside. What do you do if you have a small child in the car? Leave him/her there alone? Unbuckle the kid and take him/her with you? There is also the issue of cars left blocking the pump while the customer goes inside to pay.