Posted on 08/23/2014 7:24:59 AM PDT by upbeat5
Truck driver Anthony Plummer remembers when he was in the middle of the country on a long-haul delivery when he learned his daughter was sick in the hospital.
“I was told to get back [home] as soon as possible. But there are a lot of rules that limit how much I can drive, so I told them I would get back as soon as I could.” It was after this incident that Plummer decided to make a career shift to become a regional truck driver. “It blew my mind if something were to happen and if I was way across the country. Every now and then I still go out there to long run because she is doing better, but it’s rare.”
Plummer isn’t alone with his career move as the trucking industry suffers a shortage of drivers across the board, especially among long-haulers. According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the industry is about 30,000 short of qualified drivers. Over the next 10 years, that number is set to rise to 200,000.
The industry, which has an average 115-120% annual turnover rate, according to Brian Fielkow, CEO of Jetco Delivery, a logistics company specializing in regional trucking, also has an aging problem. Bob Costello, chief economist at the ATA, says the average age in the for-hire truckload market is about 49, and for less-than-truckload drivers (LTL) and private carriers the average is about 55.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxbusiness.com ...
I would assume the shortage is due to the 9 billion government regulations a driver has to deal with?
Force enough drivers out and you end up with a new job Americans won’t do.
Drivers and companies.
Long haul driving doesn’t pay. The wage has been stagnant forever. I have a Class A CDL with doubles/triples and tanker endorsements. Why in the name of all that is holy would I want to drive longhaul when I can get 80% more pay in a local job because I can actually get out of the cab and work when needed? Plus the medical card requirements are getting to the point of retarded.
Not to worry as the next round of truckers will have Mexico and Saudi Arabia license plates.
Truck drivers are treated horribly such that they have continuous turnover. They are paid low, demanded to violate laws to drive more, and they are treated like dirt.
I am not a trucker, but I know people who are and they are treated extremely poorly.
Why is that though, who is holding back the pay? If they are having this mass shortage of long haul drivers I would think they would pay through the nose unless companies like UPS are taking the biz of transporting? But I would think it would cost a fortune for a company like Coors to UPS all their beer.
“Drivers, as of last year, were making, based on real dollars, somewhere between 6-8% less than they were in 1990…and working 70 hours a week.”
I think I see where the problem might be.
As we become “Stoner Nation” w/ “mayorjwanna” legalization / decriminalization, how many will not be able to pass the pee test and not be material to hold or maintain a CDL. And by extension, does that decrease the pool of potential drivers?
And yet we have the lowest labor participation rate in 45 years
The government and the Fed are truly screwing up the economy and society
Regulating owner operators out of business
Instead of companies paying more wages, they had to pay more for fuel, thanks to OBummer.
I have a friend who gave up truck driving and became a cargo pilot for UPS because the hours are better and its just far less hassle.
The big outfits are importing Russians, Romanians, Sikhs, etc...to drive. How they get green cards and CDL’s I have NO idea.
Yes on the drug testing. A stoner is a liability on the road.
Where I live the state lowers work comp premiums for all employers who drug test. The Fed’s mandate drug testing for CDL drivers upon hiring.
When the fed’s got involved with trucking the job of being a trucker started to really suck, mostly for the over road guys though.
I drive on the interstates a lot. I see a fair number of Canadian trucks but Mexican trucks are a rarity.
We’re seeing a significant number of Indian (dot variety) drivers, complete with Turbans.
Right.
A younger generation that is indifferent to driving of any kind, and a large percentage unwilling/unable to pass drug screening, and those conditions apply to illegals too.
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