The South Dade Logistics & Technology District is hoping to bring thousands of logistic jobs to the South Dade area while protecting Biscayne Bay and the environment. If the application is approved, the development would allow for “793 acres bordering the Florida Turnpike Extension and SW 112th Avenue to be used as a hub for logistics, e-commerce, technology and light manufacturing.” Read more…
LACK OF TRANSPORTATION HURTING LOGISTICS WORKERS IN SAVANNAH
There are plenty of jobs and opportunities at the warehouses and ports in West Chatham, Savannah, but many applicants lack the vehicle to commute to these jobs. Across the country, “8.5% of households live without a car. In urban settings with reliable and frequent public transit or walkable neighborhoods, lacking a vehicle poses no problem. But in most cities and rural areas across the country, millions of families lack access to reliable transportation.” Read more…
LOGISTICS PROGRAMS TO BE TAUGHT IN VR
Goodwill of Southeast Georgia and Savannah Technical College will be offering a new virtual reality pilot program that will help applicants that are interested in learning manufacturing and forklifting skills. The certification courses will be taught in a hybrid format with the goal of providing students with innovative, hands-on classroom training. These virtual reality training courses “will allow the college to increase its logistics and manufacturing class sizes from 15 students to around 92.” Read more…
CONNECTICUT TRUCK DRIVING CHAMPIONSHIP SET FOR JUNE 11
The Motor Transport Association of Connecticut will once again hold the family-friendly Connecticut Truck Driving Championship. The 71st anniversary of the event will be held at the FedEx Freight facility in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, with an awards ceremony to immediately follow. The stakes are high as “drivers who win their class at the state level will have the chance to compete at the national level. This year’s American Trucking Association (ATA) Nationals will be held in Indianapolis Aug. 16-20.” Read more…
MARIJUANA BAN SIDELINES THOUSAND OF TRUCKERS
Though the government is promising to put more commercial truck drivers on the road to ease the supply chain woes that are blighting the country, an obstacle of their own making is currently hamstringing their vow – a federal ban on marijuana use that has taken thousands of truckers off the road. According to experts and court documents, “Washington’s zero-tolerance approach to weed has swept up drivers who lit up only when off-duty, as well as those who consumed hemp derivatives such as CBD oil that are advertised as non-psychoactive.” Read more…
TRUCKER DEMAND KEEPING CDL SCHOOLS BUSY
Teresa Maki, owner of T Enterprises, a Pasco private trucking school certified in Commercial Driving License (CDL) training by the state Department of Licensing, exclaims that the trucking industry has exploded and enrollment in her school has nearly doubled since 2020. Maki goes on to claim that “employers hiring new drivers have increased significantly. Before, they could easily find someone with a little bit more experience, but now they just can’t find enough drivers.” Read more…
ATTRACT TRUCKERS WITH SAFER JOBS AND BETTER WAGES
Though many trucking companies lament the fact that they are low on truck drivers, this runs counterintuitive to the fact “that there are many times more commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) issued than there are jobs in the industry.” With unemployment levels below 4%, it appears that many truck drivers are leaving the industry to find one with a “safe, steady job that will enable them to provide a reasonably comfortable life for themselves and their families.” Read more…
TEXAS IS LOSING TRUCK DRIVERS
John Esparza, chief executive officer of the Texas Trucking Association, insists that “a shortage of commercial truck drivers is contributing to increasing supply chain issues” within the state. With nearly 200,000 commercial truck drivers, the most in the nation, Texas is continuing to lose a generation of truck drivers and not replacing them accordingly. The median wage in the state for truck drivers, $47,000, is certainly not helping the issue either. Read more…
GEORGIA TO GIVE $1.5B IN AID FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE MAKER
Rivian automotives will receive $1.5 billion in aid from the state of Georgia and local governments to “build a 7,500-job, $5 billion electric vehicle plant east of Atlanta.” With the hopes that Rivian will anchor an entire electric vehicle industry, including electric trucks and commercial delivery fans, the aid package will become “the largest single industrial announcement in Georgia history, including a pledge that the company will reach the full investment and job targets by the end of 2028, with jobs paying an average of $56,000 a year, plus benefits.” Read more…
TRUCKING AUTOMATION WILL LEAD TO JOB CHANGE, NOT JOB LOSS
Fully driverless trucks have caused concerns for many in the industry about the potential layoffs, but “ a growing body of research and expert opinion, however, suggests that the economic shift to self-driving big rigs is unlikely to impact as many truck driving jobs as some news headlines proclaim.” Read more…